The Cape Fear Volunteer Center: National Make A Difference Day

Saturday October 25,2008 is National Make A Difference Day, 8:00am Little Buddies will begin to gather to fish with UNCW volunteers Junior League, Target, church and community volunteers, 10:00am a Beach Sweep will launch, 8:00-10:00 Volunteer Awareness Fair and Toy Drive at Fort Fisher State Recreational Area and other locations (See Attached Press Release for in depth details on entire event and history). Separate press releases were issued for earlier events for October 24 events and are posted at our website for your convenience.

Millions of Americans across the country are expected to spend Saturday, Oct. 25 - the 18th Make A Difference Day - doing volunteer projects to improve their communities and help neighbors in need.

On the last Make a Difference Day, a record 3 million volunteers participated and an estimated 28 million volunteers participated and an estimated 28 million people-in-need benefited. Projects have ranged from a countywide cleanup involving thousands of people to a mentoring program in which members of a sorority provided one-on-one support to 35 under-privileged children. Make A Difference Day is the largest community service effort in the nation, rallying corporations, government leaders, charitable organizations and everyday Americans into action on one day. This year, the Cape Fear Volunteer Center will be participating in their 2nd annual National Make a Difference Day this Saturday, October 25th, 2008, at the Fort Fisher State Recreation Area.

The Big Buddy Program will have a Fishing tournament from 9am to 12 noon. The Big Buddy program is a one-on- one mentoring program for at risks youth, and youth from low income and single family homes in our community. A Beach Sweep will also be held on behalf of Keep America Beautiful where there will be a collection of Hazardous wastes at the New Hanover County Government Center. A Volunteer Awareness Fair will also take place 8am to 11am so that the community can learn more about volunteer opportunities in the Cape Fear Region. A toy drive will also be held from 8am to 12 noon to collect toys to give to needy children at Christmas for First in Families.

On National Make a Difference Day, there will also be a Kids Care Club Party from 12 noon to 1pm. The Cape Fear Volunteer Center Kids Care Club is one of more than 1,800 clubs nationwide. Since 1990, Kids Care Clubs, a program of HandsOn Network, has been developing compassion and inspiring a spirit of volunteering in elementary and middle school children. Clubs across the country will be “Party Pals” to local community members in need. Some clubs will host “Parties with a Purpose,” which are special birthday or holiday celebrations and other clubs will assemble “Party Pal Packages” for seniors, military service personnel, families in shelters or children in foster care. Quaker, the premiere partner of Kids Care Clubs, is providing over 90 grants totaling 33,000 across 39 states to help bring Kids Care Week projects to life. The party will be held in conjunction with National Make a Difference Day to show our under-privileged children that they are special and to remind children the importance of volunteerism and being grateful.

For the Oct. 25 event, a total of $100,000 is available to Make A Difference Day charities:
To recognize outstanding volunteer accomplishments, 10 awards of $10,000 will be donated by Newman's Own. Award recipients will be selected by a panel of judges. Awards will be presented in April 2009.

For more information about Make a Difference Day or getting involved in the community, please call the Cape Fear Volunteer Center at (910)392-8180. More information and a national databank of local project plans is available at the Web site makeadifferenceday.com. To learn more about Kids Care Clubs or to start a Club, visit www.KidsCare.org. Kids Care Clubs is a program of HandsOn Network.

The Cape Fear Volunteer Center will be hosting a Kids Care Club event in conjunction with National Make a Difference Day. The Big Buddy Program will have a Fishing tournament from 9am to 12 noon. The Big Buddy program is a one-on- one mentoring program for at risks youth, and youth from low income and single family homes in our community. A Beach Sweep will also be held on behalf of Keep America Beautiful where there will be a collection of Hazardous wastes. A Volunteer Awareness Fair will also take place 8am to 11am so that the community can learn more about the Cape Fear Region. On the last Make A Difference Day, a record 3 million volunteers participated and an estimated 28 million people-in-need benefited. Projects have ranged from a countywide cleanup involving thousands of people to a mentoring program in which members of a sorority provided one-on-one support to 35 underprivileged children.

National Make A Difference Day

Tuesday, October 21 2008 @ 02:44 PM US/Eastern