Volunteer Opportunity through the Holidays

 

We all made it through another semester!

I know this is a time when many people will be leaving town to spend time with family and friends, but for those of us who will remain local, I just wanted to inform you about some events Family Promise has requested our assistance with:

On Monday, December 27 Family Promise is looking for volunteers to help sell 50/50 Lucky Drawing tickets at the Florida Panthers game at the Bank Atlantic Center. Volunteers are asked to arrive at 6:00 p.m., to allow early entrance into the arena, and will be allowed to stay and watch the game afterwards. Of the tickets sold, Family Promise will get 25% proceeds!... This is a great way to help out the organization and get into a game free!

SPACE LIMITED to the first 8 people!

During the week of December 20^th, Family Promise would like any available volunteers to stay with families at the designated home, to have dinner and socialize with them from 5:30 pm-7:30 pm.

There is also a great need for volunteers to remain with the families overnight from 7:30 pm to 7:00 am. I, personally, have done this over the Thanksgiving holiday and if you would like additional information as to what this entails, please feel free to contact me.

If you are interested in working with the families in another capacity, volunteer opportunities are available driving the agency van and/or spending time with the families at the day center.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions at tjulias@fau.edu

Final meeting of the semester!

As the fall 2010 semester comes to a close, SOWSA would like to invite you to a holiday pot-luck celebration and meeting to recognize our accomplishments on December 7th, 2010 at 7PM in room SO112. We will discuss our future goals and decide on meeting dates and times for next semester, so please attend the meeting so that you can share your ideas and requests. Please feel free to bring a homemade or store-bought dish, drink, or desert for the holiday pot luck - there will be food and fun for everyone! Please RSVP for the meeting by sending an email to sowsa.fau@comcast.net.

To help recognize our accomplishments, Kokie Dinnan, the Network Director of Family Promise of South Palm Beach County, will speak at the meeting about the impact that our "Adopt an Agency" initiative has had on Family Promise this semester.  

We would also like to invite you to continue to support Family Promise through the holiday season by participating in our holiday toy drive.  Family Promise has provided the attached "wish list" of gifts for children of families that they are currently serving. If you are able to provide a gift from the list, or a gift card of any amount no matter how small, please feel free to bring it to our meeting on December 7th, or drop it off at the School of Social Work office in SO284 attention: SOWSA TOY DRIVE.

We look forward to seeing you at the meeting!

Phoenix Adams
SOWSA, President 

Thank You, but our work is not done…

SOWSA would like to thank all the volunteers who helped out with the recent event on November 4^th in support of our adopted agency Family Promise.

Your help was greatly appreciated!

But our work is not done…..

In the Spirit of the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday and in our continued partnership with Family Promise, SOWSA is looking for volunteers to stay with the families of the program at a designated shelter on Friday, November 26^th and/or at the day center on Saturday, November 27^th

Hours vary from morning to overnight!

Please help us support this great agency that does so much for homeless families in Palm Beach County!

Time spent with these families will be much more than a few hours out of your day… it could be a life changing experience!

For more information or to sign up to volunteer, please contact SOWSA’s Community events committee chairperson: Tanisha Julias at: tjulias@fau.edu

Thank you and have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Pancreatic Cancer Awareness

SOWSA @ FAU would like to take a moment to promote Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month. Please spread the word and check out the S. FL event below.

PurpleStride South Florida 2010 Is Right Around the Corner - Don't Miss the Excitement!

November 6, 2010
Nova Southeastern University, Davie, FL
Registration opens at 7:15 a.m.

Register at www.purplestride.org or register at the event. Sign up today for PurpleStride South Florida on Saturday, November 6! Join hundreds of other Florida citizens and help us advance research, support patients and create hope for tens of thousands of people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

• 5K walk
• Musical entertainment
• Face-painting for kids
• Prize drawings
• Breakfast will be served!

Join us for a day of inspiration and hope. Together we can make a difference. Register today at www.purplestride.org.

Proceeds of PurpleStride benefit the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, a nationwide network of people dedicated to working together to advance research, support patients and create hope for those affected by pancreatic cancer. In addition to PurpleStride South Florida, there are many other ways to support the pancreatic cancer community:

• Become an advocate.
• Raise awareness.
• Share your story.

Learn more at www.pancan.org.

Volunteer Needs!

Hello Social Work Faculty and Students!

As you know, SOWSA has "adopted" Family Promise as an agency that we will support throughout the 2010-2011 academic year through volunteer events, fundraising events, food and clothing drives and other organized activities.

Family Promise will commemorate its second anniversary with a “One Night Away” fundraiser at Mizner Park Cultural Arts Center on Thursday, November 4, 2010, from 5:30 pm – 8:30 pm, at  201 Plaza Real, Mizner Park,  Boca Raton, FL 33432 (former Cartoon Museum).  At this event, Family Promise will celebrate their achievements, recognize their sponsors and volunteers, and support their mission through fundraising and a silent auction.  

Family Promise needs many volunteers to support them through this event. SOWSA's November meeting, which is also scheduled for November 4th, will be devoted to supporting Family Promise through this volunteer opportunity. In place of our monthly meeting, SOWSA's officers. Committee chairs, and members will sign up for volunteer shifts based on the needs identified below. We would like to ask you to join us in support of these efforts. Family Promise needs volunteers on November 4th starting at Noon through 9PM.  

If you or any of your contacts can volunteer, please send an email to our Volunteers Committee Chairperson, Alexandra Jolly, at ajolly@fau.edu. Please indicate the shift that you would like to sign up for in your email request. For additional information, you may contact Alexandra or email SOWSA at SOWSA.FAU@comcast.net

The shifts and number of volunteers needed for each shift are indicated below: 

• From Noon to 3 - The noon people will  help roll in tables and set up chairs (5 people)
• From 3-5, we need people to set up the silent auction.  (3 people) 
• From 4-5:30 we need to set up the bars and front entrance.   (4 people)
• From 5:00 to 6:30, we need greeters to welcome guests and make sure people get on the elevators.  (4 people)
• From 6:00- 8:00, we need people to casually walk around and make sure tables are cleaned, pick up cups, etc - host (3 people)
• From 6:00-8:00, we need people to say good night to the guests and make sure they get on the elevators (4 people)
• After 7:30, we need people to move the tables out, help people with silent auction items, clean up. 

Please see our updated Volunteer page for some great opportunities to assist the Office Depot Foundation, as well.

Thank you for your consideration, on behalf of SOWSA and Family Promise!