If you’re slightly behind in your planning this year and haven’t come up with any amazing ideas yet, don’t panic. I have put together and came up with not one, not two, but 67 great ideas for you to choose from!
1. Bake cupcakes (or put together care packs) for teachers at an under-resourced school
2. Do a neighbourhood clean-up armed with plastic gloves and black bags
3. Sort donated clothes in near Clothes donations organisations
4. Help serve lunch or dinner at a soup kitchen
5. Make ‘care kits’ (including a comb, toothbrush, toothpaste, soap and face cloth )for patients at a nearby government hospital
6. Throw a tea party for the children at a children’s home
7. Offer to mow the lawn and fix up the garden at a nursing home or hospice
8. Visit Police Stations and Clinic to help out on cleaning
9. Host a meal packaging event through Stop Hunger Now
10. Organise a blanket drive
11. As an office, make sandwiches to hand out to people living on the street
12. Organise a fun outing for children in an HIV/Aids programme
13. Read stories to children at a children’s home
14. Learn First Aid to teach
15. Give blood
16. Become an organ donor
17. Host a dinner where the meal budget is R5 per person
18. Do a sponsored walk/hike/swim
19. Set up a recycling system for your home
20. Create a car pool schedule with your colleagues
21. Plant a garden or tree where the whole community can enjoy it
22. Clean up a city park
23. Offer to mow the grass at a school park
24. Fix things at a local school or organisation (paint, fix broken windows)
25. Remove graffiti
26. Help build a home with Habitat for Humanity
27.Visit the oncology unit at your local hospital and play with the children
28. Walk instead of taking your car
29. Hold a teddy bear drive for abused children
30. Visit a local safety house and read to children
31. Organise a tea party for care givers
32. Teach at an adult literacy centre
33. Baby-sit for a single parent
34. Volunteer at your local animal shelter
35. Adopt a pet from your local animal shelter
36. Donate books to your local library
37. Collect and distribute children’s books to under-resourced schools
38. Start or join a reading club at a nearby under-resourced school
39. Donate magazines and books to a home for retired people
40. Invite a carer to go on a relaxing outing to the beach or to a park for a picnic
41. Throw a tea party for the residents of an old age home
42. Mow the garden or clean the windows for a senior citizen
43. Pick up groceries or medicine for an elderly person
44. Go for a walk with a senior citizen in your community
45. Teach someone how to use a computer and the Internet
46. Tutor a student that needs help learning English
47. Donate your old computer to a school
48. Hold a mini-Olympics at a school
49. Give up your seat on the bus or train to someone
50. Mentor a young person at Beth Uriel
51. Offer to attend a high school class to talk to students about your career
52. Train to become a Lifeline counsellor
53. Knit a blanket for someone in need
54. Bake cookies and take them to a police station for the police officers
55. Write a letter to a newspaper editor about an issue you care about
56. Blog about a charity that needs support
57. Offer your skills (finance, marketing, customer service) to help an organisation run more efficiently
58. Organise a prayer meeting with family and friends to pray for our country
59. Raise funds and select few learners to help with school clothes
60. Clean community streets
61. Sign up for MySchool and donate to your favourite organisations
62. Donate books by reading online
63. Read the first 67 pages of Generous Justice by Tim Keller
64. Park your car and share lunch with a Big Issue seller
65. Knit a Valuable to Jesus doll
66. Go through your house and donate items to your nearest charity shop
67. Make everyday Mandela Day!
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