HAPPY 25th ANNIVERSARY SURFRIDER!
Conservation. Activism. Research. Education. These are the 4 ways in which the Surfrider Foundation is working to protect our oceans, waves and beaches for all people. Volunteer to do a beach clean-up. Learn about their Rise Above Plastics campaign… There are so many ways for you to become involved in this long-standing and well-regarded environmental organization! At a recent chapter meeting for volunteers, Surfrider board members shared proposals for the Marine Life Protection Act, discussed the Clean Water at the Bu Coalition and so much more. Visit their websites to learn more about how you can support our local chapters!
P.S. They’re super friendly.
http://surfriderlam.org
http://www.surfrider-southbay.org/
When Life Gives You Lemons...
…make LEMONADE! That’s what our friend Ali H. (http://alihiss.tumblr.com/) (& Co.) are doing this weekend as part of Big Sunday’s 3rd Annual When Life Gives You Lemons Make Lemonade Stand Project. Volunteers all over LA will be hosting these stands to raise money for local charities. (Ali’s lemonade stand will be set up at the PetCo in LaCanada this Sunday, May 3rd from 12-2pm, with all proceeds going to the Los Angeles Times Summer Camp Campaign, which provides scholarships to low-income children.) Visit http://www.bigsunday.org/whatshappening/specialevents2009.html to find a lemonade stand near you! (Unfortunately, it’s too late to sign up to host your own Big Sunday lemonade stand - sorry!)
BIG SUNDAY is the largest regional community service event in America. Featured in the Wall Street Journal, LA Times and on the NBC Nightly News to name a few, Big Sunday brings together thousands of volunteers to hundreds of projects all over Los Angeles. Visit http://www.bigsunday.org/index.html to learn more and search for a project! (FYI - this particular event is for all ages…)
HAPPY EARTH DAY EVERYONE!
Today’s post is not so much a volunteer opportunity, but an informal networking event for those interested in environmental issues! Green Drinks is a worldwide network that enables anyone concerned about environmental issues to get together over a drink. Today, LA Green Drinks is celebrating Earth Day 2009 at the Pharmaka Gallery downtown:
“Join LA Green Drinks in celebrating Earth Day 2009 at Pharmaka Gallery, LA’s first eco-friendly gallery. Connect with inspiring individuals over organic cocktails, meet organizers from other eco/social orgs, dine on delights from Cuidad Restaurant, sample Coconut Bliss Ice -Cream, calculate your eco footrprint with the assistance of Sustainable Works, participate in “I Heart Earth” group canvas, and take a step to improve our world.”
For more information about the event, check out their website! http://www.lagreendrinks.org
South Central Scholars
A few weeks ago we received an email from our friends at South Central Scholars (SCS), sharing the news that one of their students had recently been accepted to Harvard Medical School, his 9th medical school acceptance so far. An amazing achievement in itself, but even more inspiring considering the obstacles he’s overcome. As a South Central Scholar, he is one of approximately 400 highly-motivated inner city high school students in Los Angeles benefitting from the support of the program. Not only do the students lack the financial resources to attend college and graduate school without assistance, they lack the essential family support and educational, cultural and social experiences necessary to ensure their success in college and in their careers. Their students live in the most economically deprived, dangerous and crime-ridden areas in Los Angeles. SCS attempts to provide the students with the key support to overcome these insurmountable obstacles.
With this assistance, 95% of the Scholars have graduated from the finest universities in the country and many are moving on to graduate or professional schools.
What you can do: Become a MENTOR! The students can greatly benefit from your experiences, as you figured out college and how to navigate successfully into the “real world”.
Time commitment: Honestly, it varies! Your mentee may simply have questions about a company in your industry that they just heard about or want your opinion on picking a major. What’s most important is that you’re available to your mentee!
For more information: visit http://southcentralscholars.org/.
Other questions: Contact us at volunteerLA@gmail.com! (We’re both mentors.)
APRIL IS VOLUNTEER MONTH!
A big welcome to Vol-LA from Sherry and Elizabeth. We’ve been living in LA for a while now and noticed that there are a lot of people in this town who would like to volunteer, but probably don’t know where to start. To make matters worse, most volunteer websites are geared towards kids or retirees and our age group is, well, forgotten.
So follow us - there are so many inspiring, worthwhile organizations in LA that we want to introduce to you! We’ll have plenty of volunteer opportunities for you to explore. We hope that Vol-LA will motivate you to volunteer more with your peers and make it easier to connect with causes that are important to you.
