Little boy is among volunteers who worked with the Free Bikes 4 Kidz project in Minneapolis on Make A Difference Day in 2014.(Photo: Photo courtesy of Terry Esau)
From refurbishing local parks to chipping in with yard work for families hit by cancer, tens of thousands of people across the country will take part in a nationwide day of community volunteerism today.
Make a Difference Day is an annual event of community service sponsored by USA TODAY and its parent company, Gannett. Other sponsors include<span style="color: Red;">*</span>the volunteer organization Points of Light, and Newman's Own, Inc., the philanthropic food company founded by late actor Paul Newman and author A.E. Hotchner.
Projects across the country will take place with help from $400,000 in grants from the Gannett Foundation, $170,000 in community grants from TEGNA Foundation and $130,000 in grants from Newman's Own.
In Appleton, Wis., Gannett employees from 10 sites will do yard work and light household projects for families with children battling cancer, to aid Midwest Athletes Against Childhood Cancer. On the U.S. territory of Guam, volunteers will take part in a toy drive. In Monroe, La., volunteers will deliver meals to seniors for the local Meals on Wheels program.
"Make a Difference Day is an opportunity for Americans to come together for the sole purpose of making their communities stronger by giving back," said Bob Dickey, Gannett's president and chief executive officer. "Gannett is built on serving our local communities and empowering people to create positive change. With Make A Difference Day, we are inspired and gratified to see the communities and participants around the country who come together to make a positive impact for so many people and causes each year."
"Newman's Own is all about supporting people doing great things," said David Best, the food company's president and CEO.
Make a Difference Day is in its 24th year and serves a range of causes.
USA TODAY
Millions volunteer across USA for Make A Difference Day
Employees from Gannett headquarters in McLean, Va., will put together 7,200 weekend food packs for needy elementary school children to assist Food for Others, a food bank that serves Fairfax County, Va. The children served by the program often do not have access to adequate meals on the weekends.
In Auburn, Wash., volunteers will work at Seattle Tilth Farm Works, a program that helps about 20 refugee immigrants each year learn organic farming and small business management. The program helps refugees stay afloat, Mohamad Aden Juma, a Somali refugee, told King 5 television.
"For my children - clothes for school and everything," Juma told the news organization. "I'm buying from what I produce here."
In Bound Brook, N.J., the
Courier News is funding a park refurbishment project that is open to fundraisers and volunteers, according to MyCentralJersey.com. Those who wish to help out are asked to show up at 9 a.m. ET Saturday at the park located at East Main Street and Park Avenue. Volunteers will focus on landscaping, Bound Brook Police Capt. Kevin Rivenbark said. The park will be renamed for Samuel Kriney, the only officer from the community to die in the line of duty.
"After the work is done, we'll be serving lunch, and we should be done by around noon, so everyone can go out and enjoy a beautiful fall afternoon," Rivenbark told MyCentralJersey.com
.
Anyone who wishes to participate in one of the projects across the country can learn more by visiting the Make A Difference Day website at makeadifferenceday.com. Those exhibiting the greatest spirit of volunteerism will be recognized at an event in Washington in the spring.
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