HandsOn

Volunteering with BikeAthens!

dawnaiello — Wed, 09 May 2012 17:00:44 +0000

Last weekend FamilyServe hosted a service project at BikeAthens. It was awesome to see how much the volunteers accomplished in just a few hours and to know the impact they’ve had on the community. BikeAthens does a lot in the world of alternative transportation but they also recycle old bicycles and redistribute them through various social service agencies to individuals who have no other reliable form of transportation to work or school. Great mission, great people. It was a pleasure.

It was also really neat to see how BikeAthens’ facility has changed and improved during the two years I’ve been working with Community Connection. They have such an organized system for processing the bikes as they’re brought to BikeAthens, repaired or broken down for parts, and made ready for their new owner! And one of the best parts is that they welcome volunteers with any level of knowledge about bicycles. They’re happy to work with you when you come and always provide great instruction. Consider volunteering with BikeAthens (or any of HandsOn NEGA’s partner agencies) sometime soon!

Special thanks to Regina and her family for their commitment and contribution to FamilyServe!

Global Youth Service Day Success by Partnerships!

dawnaiello — Mon, 07 May 2012 19:35:32 +0000

The 2012 Athens Global Youth Service Day was certainly a success! We had over 1,400 youth volunteers who in just three short days contributed over 5,700 hours of service to the Athens community! An effort of this magnitude simply cannot be accomplished by a single organization. HandsOn NEGA is very grateful for its partnerships with the Clarke County School District, Keep Athens-Clarke County Beautiful, the University of Georgia, the Department of Juvenile Justice, the members of the Athens Community Mentor Collaborative and the dozens of local nonprofit and government agencies that were willing to host and make accommodations for our young volunteers. We are also thankful to Youth Service America and the State Farm Youth Advisory Board because without these two excellent leaders in youth empowerment and service we would not have been able to fund all of these wonderful projects.

Below I’ve included a few pictures from the weekend’s events. From the photos you can see how these youth influenced and impacted the world around them. But you can also see how these projects impacted the youth as well. They were given a chance to make a difference, a chance to have input about social change, a chance to exercise leadership and responsibility, and a chance to serve. Thank you to everyone who was a part of this wonderful event!

Star Quality Girls decorated and filled gorgeous flower pots …

… and delivered them to residents of Lanier Gardens/Talmage Terrace!

Residents of Park on West Broad built a flower garden on the property to encourage young residents to take care of their environment!

Mentors and Mentees of the Clarke County Mentor Program also decorated and filled flower pots. These were delivered to Morningside Assisted Living Facility.

Over 580 CCSD students served as Litter Gitters, picking up trash around our county!

620 students at Coile Middle School wrote letters of support during GYSD. An additional 60 students completed other service projects and displayed their work for community adults to see!

Jay, one of our YLP participants, gathered a group of students to raise awareness and support for undocumented students in Clarke County through the use of film and other art mediums.

Athens Twilight

Regina Roth-Goldman — Fri, 04 May 2012 16:36:27 +0000

“They go by in a blur!” That is what I always say at the Athens Twilight Criterium. The cyclists race so fast it is hard to keep an eye on them, and this year’s Terrapin Twilight was no different. Community Connection was there signing up and managing the hundreds of volunteers it takes to run a huge event like Twilight. THANK YOU, TO ALL OUR AWESOME VOLUNTEERS!! Everyone worked hard to make sure the Pro Finals, and all the other weekend activities, went off without a hitch (or a flat tire). Professional cyclists from all over the world come to the Classic City to compete, and this year, nearly 30,000 people came to watch it! Events like Twilight give Athens a chance to show-off her community spirit. Community Connection is glad to be a part of it.

Helping with Registration

Helped with kids’ activities!Helped selling t-shirts!

FamilyServe: Everybody gets in on the action!

Regina Roth-Goldman — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 15:18:21 +0000

Check out these photos of families volunteering together. That’s what FamilyServe is all about. HandsOn has this great program going which gives families the opportunity to work on a community service project together with other families. What makes FamilyServe really terrific is the program benefits both our community and the volunteer families involved.

Okay, this is what I mean: When families spend time together working on a project, it promotes family stability and enhances values such as kindness, compassion, and tolerance. At the same time, volunteers learn new skills and feel appreciated for their contributions. Then, they can go on and train other volunteer families to serve. Its true. I looked it up. (http://www.generationon.org/parents). This website, part of the HandsOn Network, gives a lot of good information about the benefits of family volunteering.

Volunteering together develops a inter-generational interest in civic responsibility. The value of helping the community is passed down from family member to family member; kind of a ‘Generation to Generation’ type thing.

Now, that is something every community needs.

AND ITS FUN! Young children can work alongside their parents or participate in supervised activities. Older kids can be in-charge of their own assigned tasks. Everybody gets in on the action!

The next FamilyServe event will be at Bike Athens on May 6 from 12-2. Bike Athens distributes refurbished bicycles to people who do not have access to transportation. So, on May 6, families will be repairing bikes for the community. Young Kids will be in charge of washing bicycles and learning about bike safety.

Call Grandpa. Text your sister and her kids. Get the cousins together. Help out on a community service project. For more info, visit http://handsonnortheastgeorgia.com/programs/familyserve/

Join in the fun!

Fundraisers This Spring to Support Community Connection

dawnaiello — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 19:56:07 +0000

The 2012 Taste of Athens Weekend was a great success, thanks to wonderful volunteers and generous supporters. A Taste of Athens has been a cherished annual event for 19 years and the committee is really excited to plan our 20th anniversary! We had our fundraiser for the year so now we’re done, right?

WRONG!

Community Connection and its programs depend on community support so I’m glad to share with you about the following events! April is FILLED with opportunities for our friends, families, volunteers and partners to help support Community Connection in whichever way suits them best. If you’d like to volunteer for any of these events, please visit our Special Events page for the volunteer registration links.

Terrapin Beer Company and One More Mile have joined forces to create the 4th Annual Terrapin Beer Co. 5K Plus One More Mile 4.1-mile race on April 7th. It starts and ends at the Terrapin Brewery and even includes a tour admission for those who are of age. We will be recruiting and managing the volunteers that day, so be sure to say hi! All net proceeds from this event will support Community Connection. This one is for all of you Taste 10K runners.

On April 14th, Terrapin is celebrating it’s 10th Anniversary by having a carnival! Were you there last year to dunk some of the Terrapin brewers into a dunk tank filled withbeer? No worries if you missed the chance, because you can do it again this year. You can even nominate a friend to be the dunkee! They’ll be other great games and activities – but I can’t reveal all our secrets! All net proceeds from the carnival games and snacks will support Community Connection.

The last weekend in April every year is the Athens Twilight. Thousands of people descend upon Athens to participate in and watch cycling races of all types – amateur and professional, short and long, fast and leisurely. We are there to manage the 200 volunteers who are needed to make this two-day festival happen. But did you also know that the net proceeds from all Twilight merchandise and all non-alcoholic beverages support Community Connection as well?

Can’t wait to see you in April!

Who do you want DUNKED!?

dawnaiello — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 18:05:36 +0000

Terrapin Beer Co. is throwing their 10th Anniversary Carnival event on April 14th. Community Connection is helping them out by coordinating some AWESOME carnival games. We are even bringing back the beer-filled dunk tank. But we need your help. If you could pick anyone in Athens to be dunked in Terrapin Beer, who would it be? Fill out the form below and let us know! Share this link with your friends so we can receive as many nominations as possible.

Nominate your friends!

This could be YOUR friend!

Park on West Broad

mbrown@communityconnection211.org — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 14:08:18 +0000

For the Park on West Broad, this has been a great start to a new year. The resident leaders and members of the WIT UGA action team have come together to start an after school program from scratch. It took going to the office Manager to see if we could use the cabana, since it wasn’t being used. We have also partnered with CCSD, Papa John’s, Wal-Mart, Kroger and a few other organizations. There are some needs that aren’t being met, but I can truly see this program prospering.

The goal is to boost the educational achievement of the children, most from low-income families. Whatever It Takes’ goal is that by 2020, every child in Clarke County will graduate from high school and go on to college or some other kind of post-secondary education.

But Tamika Williams, one of the parents who started this program, has bigger ambition than good report cards.

“Hopefully, we’re teaching them lifestyles,” said Williams, one of WIT’s neighborhood leaders in The Park on West Broad, along with parents Loreal Vinson and Mark Brown.

Peace Maker Training

mbrown@communityconnection211.org — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 20:28:36 +0000

Yeah! Me and seven other resident leaders have just finished six weeks of peacemaker training. This is a great piece of training for the resident leaders in our communities. There were so many good things learned from taking these classes, such as resolving conflicts with children, husbands or wives, and people within the community. It is always good to see growth in people that has the heart and passion to deal with children and people.”To go from ordinary to extraordinary, you must be willing to stretch and move outside your comfort zone” and this is what I see happening to these resident leaders in the community.

TASTY

Regina Roth-Goldman — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 19:48:00 +0000

Sunday, February 19 was the 19th annual Taste of Athens event. Almost 2000 Athenians sampled delicacies from over 50 restaurants. There was wine and beer; a silent auction and live music; raffles and prizes. It was great! I helped to manage the 150 volunteers it took to pull off a huge event like TASTE. Thank you to all the awesome volunteers. You made the night terrific! During the evening, I was pretty busy, but I did get to nibble on some spicy chicken curry from A Taste of India. Yum. Also, at the silent auction, I spotted an awesome Widespread Panic concert poster; a lovely silver and gold necklace from Aurum Studios, a gift certificate to Farm 255 and Five & Ten restaurants. The people who won those items are happy, I’m sure. The Taste of Athens’ illustrious judges chose Piccolo’s Italian Steakhouse as winner of the Best Food Award; Jittery Joe’s Coffee as the Best Drink; and Em’ Kitchen as the Best Presentation. The Audience Choice Award went to A Taste of India. Congratulations! I have to say, A Taste of Athens was, well, tasty.

MLK What a Day!

Regina Roth-Goldman — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 16:52:32 +0000

On January 16, our city marked the 10th anniversary of the MLK Day of Service in Athens. What a day! The weather was a bit chilly and cloudy, but that did not stop over 750 people volunteering at 36 projects sites to make it a Day On and not a Day Off.
One of the highlights of the day began early in the morning with the Drum Major for Service Award. This year, Community Connection recognized Donna Line as the person who has logged the most volunteer hours on the HandsOn Northeast Georgia website (www.handsonnortheastgeorgia.org).

Ms. Line is a volunteer crisis counselor with The Cottage Sexual Assault Center in Athens. By raising awareness about violence and sexual assault, Donna is making Athens a more peaceful community. Dr. King said, “Say that I was a drum major for justice; say that I was a drum major for peace…” So, every year Community Connection will be awarding the Drum Majors in Athens who, like Donna Line, turn their compassion into action.

TO OUR FANTASTIC MLK DAY OF SERVICE VOLUNTEERS: Thank you so much for making this year’s observance of MLK Day a success. You are helping build Dr. King’s vision of the beloved community!