2016-17 Community Service Theme: Make a Difference
FGE promotes the ideal of service to one’s community. Each year, FGE encourages its chapters to participate in a community service project of their choosing, and report their involvement and results to the state office. We will then share the collective impact of our chapters for that school year.
As you conduct your project, keep track of how many hours your chapter put into it and how many people were served then tell us what you accomplished!
The 2016-17 theme for FGE Community Service is Make a Difference. Below are some thoughts on why community service is important and how to select a project that is right for your chapter. But you have great ideas, too, so feel free to share your idea with us!
Why Should You Participate in Community Service?
There are numerous benefits to participating in community service, both for yourself and others.Below are some of the most important benefits of volunteering:
- Gives you a way to help others
- Helps improve your community/school
- Can help strengthen your resume and college applications
- Can be a way to meet new friends
- Often results in personal growth
- Gives you a way to gain work experience and learn more about certain jobs
Source: http://blog.prepscholar.com/129-examples-of-community-service-projects
There are innumerable ideas for community service, as a quick Internet search will prove. In order to narrow down the possibilities to the best choice for your chapter, consider the following.
- Who would you like to help? children? families? disabled individuals? elderly? homeless?
- What needs exist in your community/school? high dropout rate? hunger? high poverty? School counselors and administrators of local government services (such as DFACS) can provide helpful insight.
- What kind of impact would you like to have? Is it important to you to be able to quantify your impact (such as number of people served, or number of dollars raised)? Or are you comfortable with less quantifiable impacts, such as a beautification project or adopting an elderly widow to help with her yard work?
- Do you want a one-time activity or one that is ongoing?
These are some things to consider as your chapter determines how you want to serve your community. But the most important thing is to get out there and make a difference!
“One person can make a difference, and everyone should try.” — John F. Kennedy