Kate Hollandsworth, 9, from Loganville loves to play board games. With a love for game nights, Hollandsworth found a way to use her favorite passtime to give back to a good cause. On Sept. 8, Hollandsworth hosted a game night to raise money for A.G. Rhodes, a nursing home in Atlanta.
“It was important to me because I really like to go to nursing homes and spend time with the people who live there and I thought it would be great if I could raise a lot of money for them,” said Hollandsworth.
The game night included ice cream, making cards for the residents of the nursing home, and some large group games with prizes. The game night had a goal of raising $300 that would help A.G. Rhodes support its activities program and help it to offer fun and interesting on-site and off-site activities for the elders. Through her efforts, the game night raised more than $1,200 for the nursing home.
“It’s wonderful to see someone as young as Kate do something so thoughtful for our elders,” said Kim Beasley, director of Volunteer Services and Community Engagement at A.G. Rhodes. “When children find ways to appreciate the experiences and skills of elders, it helps bridge the generations. Kate demonstrates that there is no age requirement when it comes to making valuable contributions to the community.”
Like Hollandsworth’s efforts, the nursing home is always seeking volunteers like Hollandsworth to give back. People can volunteer with A.G. Rhodes by spending time with residents and doing music programs, gardening and more.
The game night was a part of Kids Boost, a nonprofit organization designed to empower kids to give back to the world by helping children (ages 8-14) use their gifts, talents and passions to raise money for a charity of their choice. Each child receives $100 start-up funds, a one-on-one coach and resources to help them with their project.
“Kids have the innate need to give back and make a difference in the world but often just need a little guidance,” said Kristen Stocks, founder of Kids Boost. “Kids Boost was created with the hope of helping kids connect the dots between using what they love to do and help others, while also giving them a voice.”
To support its mission, Kids Boost is always seeking fulfilment of wishlist of items to support Kids Boosters projects - items like small prizes, baking supplies and office supplies.
When asked why it was important for her to give back, Hollandsworth put it simply: “I think kids should be involved in the community because it’s important to help others and because kids are unique and they have a lot of great ideas.
In other news
In July, 560 partners and associates of nationally recognized public accounting firm Cherry Bekaert LLP participated in the second-annual Volunteer Week. Reflecting this year’s theme of “Making a Difference in the Lives of our Youth,” Cherry Bekaert Volunteer Week 2017 included associates volunteering at Ronald McDonald Houses, Boys & Girls Clubs, Junior Achievement, United Way, and numerous local parks, schools and camps. Associates engaged in activities such as networking with at-risk high school students, building a recreation area for a community park, painting school murals, planning and hosting sports, and more. In addition to engaging in specifically youth-related activities, Firm associates also volunteered at local shelters, soup kitchens and food banks.
Information: A.G. Rhodes, agrhodes.org/volunteer
Kids Boost, kidsboost.org
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