strengthening families, growing compassion, building community

Doing Good Together is partnering with the Midtown Global Market to host our 2nd annual Better Together event – a free, community-wide family service night. Families are invited to come together to do simple, hands-on service projects, reflect on the importance of giving back, and learn about opportunities to get involved in their community. A diverse group of organizations will be participating – each hosting a “station” with a fun, kid-friendly service activity for families to complete. This will also be a chance for organizations to provide information about their mission and volunteer opportunities that are available for families.

This event will be held in conjunction with Midtown Global Market’s Family night, and will feature live, family entertainment from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Market’s Central

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2012 5-8pm

Midtown Global Market – Lake Street and 10th Avenue S, Minneapolis

This is a free event; no RSVP necessary. Up to three hours of free parking is available in the 10^th Ave ramp (with purchase and validation).

HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!

Questions? Contact Rachel@doinggoodtogether.org

Pint-sized Philanthropy: Save up pennies, nickels and dimes and bring them in to decide which of three featured causes you want to donate them to. Then, make your own Giving Box to take home and save up even more money to give away.
Caring Cards: Create cheerful cards for children who are hospitalized.
Wrap-up a Smile: Decorate a lunch bag to brighten up elders’ Meals on Wheels.
More to try at home: To get more family-friendly service projects ideas that you can do at home or in the community, stop by the Doing Good Together table.

Be aware that the museum charges an admission fee. Check their website for details.

Date/Time: Saturday, January 14, 10 a.m. – 7:30 p.m.; Sunday, January 15, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.; Monday, January 16, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Location: Minnesota Children’s Museum, 10 West Seventh Street, St. Paul, 55102

1. Sponsor a family. Many families have a tradition of “adopting” a local family for gift giving. Social service agencies can match you with a family in need and suggest what gifts they would appreciate – usually basics like hats, mittens, socks, underwear and blankets. And, of course, toys! If you need help finding a family, visit The Volunteer Family searchable database to locate an agency in your area with an “adopt-a-family” holiday program.
2. Pass the cards. Homemade holiday cards are sure-fire day brighteners. Donate your creations to a local nursing home, Meals on Wheels program or veteran’s hospital. Or send them to a service member or a child with a life-threatening illness.  
3. Pack up parcels. Organize a family assembly line to bag up supplies for low-income families. Buy cost-effective bulk quantities of pinto beans or rice, then put family-size portions into two-quart reclosable plastic bags. Your local food shelf will distribute them for you, but contact them first to be sure you have a taker.
4. Get warmed up. A popular project is making blankets by tying the ends – no sewing required! Even youngsters can pitch in. Instructions for a simple no-sew fleece blanket can be found at the Project Linus website. Donate your creations to a local chapter of Project Linus , a local shelter, or to Soldiers’ Angels.
5. Create a giving box. It’s easy to get into the habit of giving when you make a fun container to collect your loose change. Start with a coffee can, shoebox or jar. Decorate it together, then place it in a prominent spot in your home. When the box is full, decide together where to donate the money. Start with charities whose goals match your family’s interests.
6. Make a 2012 calendar of giving. Sit down together and choose one simple service project per month from the ideas listed on the Doing Good Together website. Other great projects are listed in Doing Good Together: 101 Easy, Meaningful Service Projects for Families, Schools, and Communities (Free Spirit Publishing, 2010). 
7. Pay a call. Each holiday, over 3 million people are confined to places like hospitals and care facilities, and 60 percent of those receive no visitors. Your family can help them feel less lonely by simply sharing your time. Before going, call to find out the best time for a visit. Take along small gifts or homemade treats to share.
8. Join a toy drive. Pick out a toy for a child in need, then deposit your gift (unwrapped) at a convenient Toys for Tots location. It’s simple, doesn’t cost much and helps spark the spirit of giving in your brood. 
9. Party hearty. For your holiday party, ask guests to bring a nonperishable food item, new or gently used book or toy, pair of socks or mittens, or other essential you can donate to a local charity. String up a clothesline so guests can hang the socks or mittens they bring, or create a “sculpture” from the canned foods they bring.
10. Give gifts that give back. Some fun possibilities:
    • Books with “giving themes,” such as Ellen Sabin’s The Giving Book: Open the Door to a Lifetime of Giving (Watering Can, 2004) or A Kid’s Guide to Service Projects by Barbara A. Lewis (Free Spirit Publishing, 2009).
    • A “share save spend” bank to make charitable giving a family habit.
    • Crafts by artisans in developing countries. See the online catalogue at Ten Thousand Villages.  (If you live in the Twin Cities, shop at Ten Thousand Villages in St. Paul on December 7. A portion of that day’s sales will be donated to DGT!)
    • Charity gift cards from Just Give,  Network for Good or Charity Gift Certificates.    

11.  Cause a stir. Bake some treats to donate to a lonely neighbor, a food shelf, our troops or a group that serves the homeless or elderly. For ideas and inspiration, check out Spread the Bread, a great organization that encourages everyone to “bake a difference.” 

12.  Load a shoebox. Operation Christmas Child, a project of Samaritan’s Purse, invites folks to pack a shoebox full of goodies (toys, school supplies, hygiene items) for children in developing countries. Have your children add a note and a photo of your family.

FOR GENERATIONS TO COME

a fundraiser for doing good together

Friday, October 14, 2011
6:00-9:00 pm

Dorsey & Whitney LLP
15th Floor Atrium
50 South Sixth Street
Minneapolis

Convenient $5 parking is available in the Dorsey parking ramp. Click here for directions and parking instructions.

This celebration is a fundraiser for Doing Good Together, however, no minimum donation will be requested.

EVERYONE IS INVITED! BRING YOUR FRIENDS!

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Featuring:

• Complimentary hors d’oeuvres and desserts and wine from
  Isaac Becker of 112 Eatery and Bar La Grassa,
  the James Beard Foundation’s
  2011 Best Chef in the Midwest
• Big Wall of Wine Raffle
• Live and Silent Auction
• Live Music

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Donate a bottle of your favorite wine for our raffle!
Contact Rachel at rachel@doinggoodtogether.org

BIG WALL OF WINE RAFFLE
Support Doing Good Together by purchasing a chance to win a wonderful selection of wines.

1st  prize          40 bottles
2^nd prize          30 bottles
3^rd prize           20 bottles
4^th prize          10 bottles

Raffle tickets are $10 each (or 11 tickets for $100). Winner need not be present to win. Tickets will be available at the door, or in advance. Contact rachel@doinggoodtogether.org  to order.

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LIVE AND SILENT AUCTION
Preview some of our amazing auction items!

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Event is free, but space is limited. If you plan to attend, please RSVP to rachel@doinggoodtogether.org

Questions?  Contact us at  612.822.6502 or rachel@doinggoodtogether.org

This event will be held in conjunction with Midtown Global Market’s Family night, and will feature live, family entertainment from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Market’s Central Plaza. 

FEBRUARY 25, 2011
            5-8pm

Midtown Global Market – Lake Street and 10th Avenue S, Minneapolis

Activities include:

Decorating lunch bags for Meals on Wheels recipients
Creating tissue paper flowers for Little Brothers Friends of the Elderly
Packaging rice and beans for Centro Emergency Food Shelf
Learning about people around the world with Global Citizens Network
Folding paper cranes for the Brain Injury Association on Minnesota
Creating giving boxes to take home to use to collect money for charity
Contributing to an art collaboration project that will be on display at the market

This is a free event; no RSVP necessary. Up to three hours of free parking is available in the 10^th Ave ramp (with purchase and validation).

Questions? Contact Rachel@doinggoodtogether.org

SEE YOU THERE!

Be aware that the museum charges an admission fee. Check their website for details.

Date/Time: January 15 – 30, 2011
Location: Minnesota Children’s Museum, 10 West Seventh Street, St. Paul, 55102
www.mcm.org/SHBH

Friday, November 12, 2010
6:00-9:00 pm

Balbo Acrylic Design
9611 Girard Ave So
Bloomington, 55431

This celebration is a fundraiser for Doing Good Together, however, no minimum donation will be requested. See the DGT annual event page on our website for more details.

Are you a grandparent that’s done a volunteer project with your grandchildren? Do you know any grandparents who have made multi-generational service a part of their retirement plan? If so, we’d love hear about it!