Act Out Now http://actoutnow.org Education through Action! Mon, 27 May 2013 06:26:28 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 A Hygiene Kit Project: We Need Your Input http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/27/a-hygiene-kit-project-we-need-your-input/ http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/27/a-hygiene-kit-project-we-need-your-input/#comments Mon, 27 May 2013 05:55:11 +0000 Michael McGuire http://actoutnow.org/?p=1238 [...]]]> Act Out Now is looking to kick off a project to assist Hospital Sisters Mission Outreach. Hospital Sisters Mission Outreach addresses unmet medical needs of people in developing countries. These kits will be used as learning tools in literacy, hygiene, nutrition and health classes. They are also distributed to people who understand personal hygiene but have limited resources. Our project would consist of collecting and assembling materials needed for hygiene kits. This would be a great service project for families with kids of all ages.

We hope to have this project up and running in early June, but right now we want to assess the level of interest in helping with this project. To help us determine the interest, please send us a note in response to the following two questions:

  • Would you be interested in participating in a hygiene kit drive? This would consist of collecting/purchasing materials and then coming together to assemble them. This would be ideal for families with kids of all ages.
  • Would you be interested in participating in a field trip to the Mission Outreach facility? This field trip would be for kids 9 and up. Mission Outreach is located in Bedford Park, IL.

Let us know what you think, and we’ll get this show on the road. It’s going to be a great project. Thank you. We look forward to volunteering with you.

]]> http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/27/a-hygiene-kit-project-we-need-your-input/feed/ 0 June Service Opportunities http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/27/june-service-opportunities/ http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/27/june-service-opportunities/#comments Mon, 27 May 2013 05:19:50 +0000 Michael McGuire http://actoutnow.org/?p=1216 [...]]]> We’ve got some exciting service-opportunities already on the calendar for June. Check them out, and more are on the way.

Sertoma Centre Super Sale

June 1 and 2, 2013 9:30 – 5:30 (half shifts available): The good folks at Sertoma Centre need about 40 volunteers to staff their annual fundraising housewares “super sale.” There are many positions available–something for everyone. Also, they will be signing off on community service hours, so if you know of anyone who needs hours for school or clubs, let them know. This is a great opportunity for 7th and 8th graders through High School students as well as college aged individuals. Come volunteer as a family—they would love to have you.

Also, do not forget about the VOLUNTEER ONLY Preview Party and Sale. For any volunteer participating in this event, there is a Preview Sale Day just for YOU! You get to purchase any items you would like before the sale opens to the public. The special preview sale is set for Friday, May 31st from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm on location at 4331 W. Lincoln Highway. All merchandise is deeply discounted. Do not miss out on this great perk.

If you are interested in volunteering for the sale on June 1st or June 2nd, please e-mail Laura Gardner with the day and shift you are available, and she will get you on the list. Dress comfortably. Volunteers will be asked to wear a volunteer shift during their shift. Lunch and snacks will be provided. Just do it. It’ll be a great experience for the whole family. Contact Laura at lgardner@sertomacentre.org.

Romeoville Prairie Nature Preserve Restoration

June 1, 2013 8:00 am – 12:00 pm:The Will County Forest Preserve could use your helping hands. Volunteers will cut, haul, or stack brush; learn about why the District takes such great care of the preserves it owns and manages; and feel a deep sense of accomplishment for a job well done. Please dress for outdoor work and the weather. Wear long pants, closed-toe shoes, and work gloves. Registration is required. Please call 815.722.7364 or e-mail Renee Gauchat (rgauchat@fpdwc.org) for more information or to register for this event.

Feed My Starving Children

June 11, 2013 2:30 pm – 4:30 pm: Feed My Starving Children (FMSC) is always a great way to do good for others. FMSC packs specially formulated food for children who are on the brink of starvation in many developing countries around the world. You can literally save lives by participating in this event. It’s a great way to spend a couple of hours with friends (old and new) and family. It’s a child friendly service opportunity too, so get the little ones involved. Act Out Now will be at FMSC on June 11, so please join us. Just click the link: RSVP NOW.

]]> http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/27/june-service-opportunities/feed/ 0 551 Pairs—Sorted, Counted, Delivered http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/23/551-pairs-of-shoes-sorted-counted-delivered/ http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/23/551-pairs-of-shoes-sorted-counted-delivered/#comments Thu, 23 May 2013 05:51:37 +0000 Michael McGuire http://actoutnow.org/?p=1206 [...]]]> We recently brought our April Shoe Drive to close. Collecting shoes is one thing, but processing them all is quite another. That was our project for Wednesday this week. We had been stockpiling the bags of shoes as they were coming in throughout the drive. (The garage was full.) Early this morning, we packed bag after bag into the back of the pickup and began the journey to Share Your Soles. (The bags were stacked so high, I’m surprised we didn’t lose any along the way.)

At Share Your Soles we received a warm welcome as always and got to work processing our shoes. We unloaded them all and began the count and sort. Four hours of hard labor later, we’re happy to report that we collected 551 pairs of shoes bound for those in need across the globe. Great work to everyone who contributed to this effort. Thank you so much.


Working the Shoes at Share Your Soles

]]> http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/23/551-pairs-of-shoes-sorted-counted-delivered/feed/ 0 Sweet Treats for Those in Need http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/23/sweet-treats-for-those-in-need/ http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/23/sweet-treats-for-those-in-need/#comments Thu, 23 May 2013 05:25:59 +0000 Christine McGuire http://actoutnow.org/?p=1177 [...]]]> Our son was born premature and spent six weeks in the hospital before coming home. Even though this was almost 10 years ago, I remember clearly the long days we spent there at the NICU. I would arrive as soon as the nursery opened first thing in the morning and would stay until the nurses kicked us out late into the night. We basically lived at the hospital for those six weeks. During that time I remember friends, family, and acquaintances who stopped by to offer support, love, and . . . food. Yes, food. It is amazing what a warm, home-cooked meal can mean when you have been eating hospital cafeteria food for days on end (or forgetting to eat all together). Food can be such a comfort in difficult times.

I think this is part of the reason that I have been enjoying going to the Ronald McDonald House these past couple months. This past Monday was our third time going and it just warms my heart to have the kitchen filled with yummy smells and tasty treats, and my hope is that the food offers the same comfort to the families staying at the House as it did for me so many years ago.

We spent a lovely afternoon on Monday with two other families baking all kinds of tasty goodness–cookies, brownies, and oatmeal chocolate chip bars. The sweet aroma of chocolate filled the kitchen, and we filled platters with the delicious treats for the 16 families staying at the Ronald McDonald House in Oak Lawn. It was a good day.


Happy Kids with Sweet Treats in Hand

]]> http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/23/sweet-treats-for-those-in-need/feed/ 0 ActOut 2013 in Photos http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/08/actout-2013-in-photos/ http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/08/actout-2013-in-photos/#comments Wed, 08 May 2013 16:38:24 +0000 Michael McGuire http://actoutnow.org/?p=994 [...]]]> The ActOut 2013 fair was significant success—even bigger and better than last year. Over the course of two days, we hosted three amazing speakers, about 75 students showcasing their service-learning-related work in one form or another, and over 30 local nonprofits with information tables informing the community about the good work they do and how others can get involved. We had posters, found and original works of art, video installations, and more all focused on the idea of action toward positive and lasting change in our communities and in our world.

As a service-learning event and academic project coming through several college courses, including a number of research composition courses, political science and international relations, and American history at Moraine Valley Community College, the event is getting more recognition and support from the College and the community. This is a good thing as it will help the annual event grow stronger each year.

Check out the photos we snapped during the event. If you missed this year’s ActOut event, we’ll be doing it again next year. In the mean time, get involved and act out!

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]]> http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/08/actout-2013-in-photos/feed/ 0 Featured Speakers at ActOut 2013 http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/07/the-american-red-cross-at-act-out-2013/ http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/07/the-american-red-cross-at-act-out-2013/#comments Wed, 08 May 2013 04:59:03 +0000 Michael McGuire http://actoutnow.org/?p=983 [...]]]> Last week, Act Out Now hosted ActOut 2013, its second annual service-learning and volunteer fair in cooperation with the Moraine Valley Community College Library. During the course of the two day event, we had three inspirational speakers. The awesome folks at the MVCC library (along with their tech crew) captured these brief lectures for those who couldn’t make the event to see them in person.

First up was Jodi Leiffring, Regional Volunteer Coordinator for the American Red Cross. Here she discusses disaster relief and the role of volunteers.

Later that day, we heard from Moraine Valley’s very own Tamarra Coleman-Hill who talked about her life as an activist and the role that activists play in society. This lecture reminds us all of the importance of developing advocacy skills.

Finally, during the second day of the ActOut event, we heard from community organizer Claudia Ayala about her work the Little Village Environmental Justice Organization.

To see more, check out the photo gallery from this year’s event.

]]> http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/07/the-american-red-cross-at-act-out-2013/feed/ 0 Lucas Berg Clean Up http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/07/lucas-berg-preserve-clean-up/ http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/07/lucas-berg-preserve-clean-up/#comments Tue, 07 May 2013 05:00:16 +0000 Michael McGuire http://actoutnow.org/?p=977 [...]]]> Come one, come all! Its that time of the year to lend a hand in cleaning a favorite local nature preserve—The Lucas Berg! Come on out from 9:00 to noon on Saturday, May 11, get a little dirty, have some fun and see the wildlife all while lending a hand (and some elbow grease) to beautify this local area of need. Refreshments and “ataboys” will be provided by the Life Safety Committee and Village of Worth leadership at high noon. Come out and lend a hand to keep this green space one of the most beautiful on the Southwest side.

The Lucas Berg is a site of some controversy, as the Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has been considering it as a repository site for contaminated dredge material from the Cal Sag project. The Life Safety Committee is working to promote its removal from the USACE’s list of placement property forever.

The Lucas Berg is a fragile ecosystem; flora and fauna have developed at Lucas Berg after 30 years of neglect by the USACE. The Lucas Berg hosts an abundance of fish and wildlife in a wetland that are currently not protected or recognized by the USACE, they will certainly be destroyed should the Life Safety Committee fail in its mission. To learn more about this project visit the Life Safety Committee. To lend a little help in the short-term, come on out for this clean up day on May 11. No RSVP required. Just come on out.

]]> http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/07/lucas-berg-preserve-clean-up/feed/ 0 Cookies from the Heart http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/06/cookies-from-the-heart/ http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/06/cookies-from-the-heart/#comments Tue, 07 May 2013 04:40:50 +0000 Michael McGuire http://actoutnow.org/?p=973 [...]]]> The Ronald McDonald House is a source of tremendous comfort for families struggling with the challenge of having a sick child in the hospital. The House offers a comfortable place for a family to call home close to the hospital while their child is there. Certainly, nothing compares to being home with your child, but a place of respite—a place to take a moment, to get a homemade meal, and to find caring, friendly people can go a long way to easing a family’s stress.

You can be a part of this giving this comfort on Monday, May 20th. A group of us from Act Out Now will visit the Oak Lawn Ronald McDonald House to participate in their Cookies from the Heart program. We’ll gather together for a couple hours to bake some cookies and other treats for the families staying in the house. This is a child-friendly event. Join us if you can: RSVP Now.

]]> http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/06/cookies-from-the-heart/feed/ 0 An NGO Showcase http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/02/an-ngo-showcase/ http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/02/an-ngo-showcase/#comments Fri, 03 May 2013 03:54:18 +0000 Michael McGuire http://actoutnow.org/?p=954 [...]]]> Moraine Valley Professor Kevin Navratil invited students from his International Relations course to participate in the Act Out 2013 event this year by compiling a playlist of seventeen videos featuring non-governmental organizations (NGOs) working around the globe. Featured organizations included Charity Water, the International Committee of the Red Cross, Doctors without Borders, Green Peace, Amnesty International, Democracy at Work, Save the Children, Kiva, Human Rights Watch, and others. It played throughout the event and was very well received. Thanks Kevin and thanks to all your students for their hard work in bringing the essential work of these worthy organizations.

If you missed this amazing bit of video compilation, you can see it here. Enjoy.

]]> http://actoutnow.org/2013/05/02/an-ngo-showcase/feed/ 0 Book Drive: Help Give the Gift of Reading http://actoutnow.org/2013/04/18/book-drive-help-give-the-gift-of-reading/ http://actoutnow.org/2013/04/18/book-drive-help-give-the-gift-of-reading/#comments Thu, 18 Apr 2013 05:10:15 +0000 Michael McGuire http://actoutnow.org/?p=908 [...]]]> Students at Moraine Valley Community College are running a book drive to help give the gift of reading to underprivileged children. The drive runs through April 26. Book must be new or gently used, be hardcover, and be for preschool ages 3-5 years. Collection boxes are set up in the Moraine Valley bookstore, library, and cafeteria. All donations support Books for Kids. Cash and check donations can be handled in the Moraine Valley library. Checks are made payable directly to Books for Kids or Carole Robertson Center for Learning. Please ask a librarian about information on how to receive tax exemption. All proceeds will be donated to the Carole Robertson Center for Learning library and the Books for Kids library.

Moraine Valley Community College is located at 9000 W. College Pkwy, Palos Hills, IL. If you do not make it out that way often and would still like to donate books to this cause, contact Act Out Now and we will do our best to assist. Thanks.

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