With the pandemic, it’s hard to focus on good and happy things. And with the month of Thanksgiving, I wanted to highlight some great ways we can come together and help others.
🔹Seeds of Caring
Seeds of Caring empowers kids to create a kinder community with their hearts, hands, and minds. They do this by designing meaningful opportunities for kids to engage in service, social action, and community-building. As kids learn about hunger in our community, make blankets for hospitalized children, or share conversation with seniors, they build confidence in their ability to contribute. In the end, we all benefit: our kids develop a heart for service, our families are united by a common purpose, and our community becomes a more compassionate place to live, work, and grow.
Seeds of Caring is a Columbus-based non-profit that empowers kids as young as age two to make a difference in their communities through volunteerism and education.
❓How can you help?
Check out their website for events, here are some of the current offerings…
Tunes & Togetherness with Seniors-
(From a Distance or Zoom)-Brighten the days of seniors in a local senior living center by creating music and creating kindness rocks to place outside the building. Senior residents will remain inside and participants will be outside to ensure the health and safety of residents.
Brown Like Me Care Kits-To start the project, have an open and kid-friendly conversation about race, then pack one care kit for a porch drop-off.
Litter Clean Up-Families will begin the experience by reading a book to teach children about why caring for our environment matters, then begin the clean up project to keep our Earth litter-free.
We are currently participating in the Goodwill Penpal program. My girls love creating art and brightening someones day. We have previously participated in the Tunes Tots and Togetherness with Seniors and even got to help in a community garden during another event. It’s highly organized and super easy to particpate!
🔸Feed the Kids Columbus
www.feedthekidscolumbus.org
Feed The Kids Columbus was created after a local Mom took time off from her Corporate career to find her passion to help give back. Her eyes were opened to the food insecurity that literally exists in all communities no matter how affluent you might think they are. It broke her heart to think of a child without the basic need of food. Children aren’t able to seek resources so she decided she would advocate for them.
What started as a Facebook post on a local moms group asking for help to sponsor a bag of food to be provided to children in need over Christmas break, has turned into a non-profit. And they are collaborating through the Covid-19 pandemic as well.
They have provided over 72,000 meals to date! And this doesn’t include the food provided to local schools for afterschool snacks for kids in need. Pretty incredible!
❓How can you help?
- Food bags for Holiday Break
5 days worth of food (breakfast, lunch and snacks)
- Snack bags (peanut free and gelatin free)-applesauce pouches, crackers, fruit snacks, and granola bars
Current reach includes:
Dublin, Plain City, Marysville, London, Groveport, Columbus City, and Galloway
🔹Franklin County Dog Shelter
4340 Tamarack Blvd
Columbus, OH 43229
(614) 525-DOGS (3647)
If you follow Columbus For Kids, you’ve probably noticed that we are dog lovers. For the last 3 years, my oldest daughter asked her friends to provide supplies instead gifts at her birthday parties. Proud Mom moment, ahh.
❓How can you help?
When cleaning out your closets, save your old blankets and towels. They can use them to make the dogs more comfortable!
They can always use
- Canned or soft dog food, cream cheese, creamy-style peanut butter, and soft or chewy dog treats. For scout troops or classes interested in baking home-made dog treats, please choose from one of these recipes.
- Larger bath towels and beach towels are great, but not face cloths or hand towels.
- Blankets, comforters, or flat sheets of any size.
- Dog beds, crates, pet carriers, grooming tools, collars, leashes, or any other dog related items.
- We love durable toys like kongs and nylabones, puzzle toys, and larger balls.
Additionally, they have a free pet food pantry for dogs (& cats) in our community, and will gladly accept donations of dry, moist, or canned food and treats, including openned bags.
Enrichment Donations
They always appreciate donations for their enrichment program!
- Spices: thyme, sage, nutmeg, and dill.
- Essential Oils: peppermint, lemon, eucalyptus, clary sage and chamomile.
- Miscellaneous: paper towel rolls, newspaper, brown paper bags, paper Dixie cups, and bubbles.
- Kuranda dog beds
- Washable dog beds
- Check out our Amazon Wishlist!
Toys and Kongs are always appreciated. Spending day after day in a cage can be really boring. Dogs love toys to break up the monotony & amuse them at playtime. Durable, interactive toys, like Kongs are great!
🔸 Colony Cats
Adoption Center at:
2740 Festival Lane, Dublin, Ohio
614.570.0471
Now for the cat lovers…
❓How can you help?
- The kitties put together a wish list of what they need. (Of course, their biggest wish of all is a forever home!)
-Please drop off wish list items during the center’s open hours(please contact due to Pandemic)
- Amazon Wish List
Another fun way you can donate items is through the Amazon wish list on their website. You can ship direct and save yourself a trip.
🔹Bags for Homeless
My girls always want to know the homeless peoples stories when they are standing by a stop light. So, we decided we could help fill their bellies(soft granola bars, applesauce squeezy, water bottle) and keep their feet warm with a pair of new socks. We also threw in the travel toothpastes and lotions we received at the dentist and hotel stays. Add in sanitizing hand wipes for the pandemic.
🔸 Butch Bando’s Fantasy of Lights
Enjoy a socially distanced family outing and support Recreation Unlimited, A Kid Again, Steps for Sarcoma and 3rd & Goal. This is a tradition for our family. It’s fun to see the new additions each year.
❓How can you help?
Enjoy the show by attending or donate to the Butch Bando’s Fantasy of Lights Recreation Unlimited Camper Scholarship Fund on their website.