Community Service Program
The Community Service Program involves our girls in the wider Austin community, as part of our effort to support GSA girls in developing the knowledge and skills to become energetic, capable, and responsible participants in the world. Through volunteering, the girls learn not to take the little things for granted, that there are many people in need in our community, and that kids can make a difference! Fall 2010, we have 24 girls in the program, and already we have seen a great impact. Our Community Service partner nonprofits are shown below, with links to provide more information about the people they serve and the good work that they do. In addition, we have received support from the following local businesses: H-E-B and Costco.
GSA Community Service by the numbers
This Fall we will:
- Make more than 3,700 sandwiches at Caritas of Austin;
- Create and assemble more than 50 Get Well bags for Dell Children's Medical Center for their room-bound patients;
- Assemble approximately 600 educational packets for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation;
- Volunteer more than 500 hours from September through December!
Confirmed List of Nonprofit Organizations for Fall/Winter 2010
Caritas of Austin
Over the past 45 years, Caritas has added programs and enhanced existing services to meet Austin's changing needs. With a budget of over $6.4 million and a staff of 54, Caritas now serves over 20,000 men, women and children per year. Caritas programs are in the areas of: Housing, Food, Education, Employment.
GSA Community Service — We will be making hundreds of sandwiches each week that we work with Caritas, which will be distributed through their lunch program.
Dell Children's Medical Center
Dell Children's Medical Center of Central Texas, the only dedicated freestanding pediatric facility in the region. Serving a 46-county area and beyond, Dell Children's is the premier health care provider for children and adolescents. Kids are different and so is Dell Children's. Children are not small adults. They have unique healthcare needs. Statistics show that children heal faster when treated in a children's hospital.
GSA Community Service — We will be decorating bags as Get Well Packets, full of fun items for the children in the hospital, including crayons, paper, markers, stickers, bubbles and more.
For Every Child
For Every Child, Inc. is a charity started by PGA TOUR player Tim Petrovic and his wife, Julie. The pair, deeply committed to children's issues, started the charity to help provide children with much needed basic necessities. One of the programs For Every Child, Inc. runs is the "Hope Tote" program. This program provides a tote with 3 - 4 days worth of new clothing, socks, underwear, pajamas and toiletries to children in emergency shelters and safe houses. Often, these children arrive with only the clothes on their backs. "Hope Totes" provides a few basic necessities as well as hope. Every tote includes a note telling each child that they are important and that someone cares.
GSA Community Service — We will be decorating tote bags, sorting clothing, packing up toiletry items and filling the bags with the basic necessities.
Friends of Mayfield Preserve
This group focuses on the preserve, including trails and ecological restoration projects at Mayfield Park. Allison Mayfield purchased the picturesque cottage and 23 acres for his family as a summer and weekend retreat in 1909. A prominent Austin political figure, he was Chairman of the Railroad Commission and former Texas Secretary of State. Mary Mayfield Gutsch designed the gardens while Milton directed the building of the stone walls, ponds, and garden features with the help of Steve Arrendondo, resident gardener for many years. The peacocks were gifts from friends in 1935 and their descendants are here today. Mary Mayfield Gutsch died in 1971 and left the home and acreage to the City of Austin to be used as a park.
GSA Community Service — Our work will include planting and caring for native plants, weeding and cleaning out beds, distributing mulch and watering the gardens.
Goodwill Industries of Central Texas
Goodwill Industries mission is to provide job-related services and opportunities for people with barriers to employment. They envision a world where every person has access to meaningful work. Goodwill's philosophy is "a hand up, not a hand out," helping people gain new job skills and start new lives of independence. Every day Goodwill assists more than 450 Central Texans through their services.
GSA Community Service — We will be working in the North Lamar store, sorting donations and reorganizing clothing in the store.
Juvenile Diabete Research Fund International
As a 501(C)(3) not-for-profit organization, the mission of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) is to find a cure for type 1 diabetes and its complications through the support of research.
GSA Community Service — We will help assemble educational program packets for elementary schools in Austin, to help raise awareness and funds for Diabetes.
Komen Austin
The mission of Susan G Komen for the Cure is to save lives and end breast cancer forever by empowering people, ensuring quality care for all and energizing science to find the cures.
GSA Community Service — We will be making beaded key chains as a fundraiser for Komen Austin.
Meals on Wheels and More
Meals on Wheels and More seeks to nourish and enrich the lives of the homebound and other people in need through programs that promote dignity and independent living. This year, MOWAM celebrates 37 years of service in the Greater Austin area. What began as a program of eight volunteers serving 29 seniors has now expanded into a multi-service organization of 5,000 volunteers serving almost 2,500 elderly and disabled persons each day. Aside from preparing an average of 936,009 meals in 2008 year, MOWAM also offers many other programs designed to keep people healthy and living in their own homes.
GSA Community Service — We will be making Thanksgiving cards to be distributed to Meal on Wheels clients with their Thanksgiving dinner.
Operation Blue Santa
Operation Blue Santa is a community based nonprofit, organized by the Austin Police Department, with support from the Texas National Guard, the Austin Fire Department, the Austin Parks and Recreation Department and Austin Energy. Each year they provide each family they serve with a full holiday meal and wrapped Christmas gifts for each child under age 14. Their service to citizens of Austin began back in 1972 serving about 20 families, this year they will serve over 3500 families. This is only possible because of the goodwill and big hearts of Austin’s citizens, businesses, and civic groups that support us each year.
GSA Community Service — We will sort and wrap the donated gifts for the families served by Operation Blue Santa. Then, using the wish lists from the families, we will "shop" for gifts for each family.
Partnerships for Children
Partnerships for Children’s mission is to cultivate resources and partnerships that directly benefit abused and neglected children in the Austin area while providing support to CPS caseworkers.
The Rainbow Room is a resource center located within the CPS offices, where Partnerships for Children distributes new essential items such as clothing, formula, diapers, and hygiene supplies to victims of abuse and neglect. CPS caseworkers have access to the Rainbow Room 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
GSA Community Service — We will organize the resource room and sort clothing items and other donations.
Holiday Wishes
Many Travis County children have never known the thrill and anticipation of the Christmas holiday and the excitement that Christmas morning brings. The Holiday Wishes project is able to create Christmas memories for children served by Child Protective Services (CPS) through the generosity and support of our community. All contributions of new toys or cash donations go directly to benefit abused and neglected children of Travis County.
GSA Community Service — We will sort, organize and wrap the gifts for the children.
Refugee Services of Texas
Refugee Services of Texas is a refugee resettlement agency providing quality services to refugees and other displaced populations joining families or starting new lives in Texas. Working in partnership with faith based communities, businesses and volunteers, RST provides their clients with resources, referrals, education and guidance to ensure their successful and self-sufficient lives in Texas.
GSA Community Service — We will be helping set up apartments for refugee families moving to Austin. Our work will include making beds, putting away donated food, cooking utensils, toiletries and clothing items, and generally making the apartment ready for the family.