In recent years, more local school districts have begun to require students to volunteer or complete community service projects as part of their graduation requirements. As a result, many Seattle parents have turned their children's efforts into homework for the whole family, volunteering together to make a lasting impression on their communities.
"When families volunteer together it makes a marked difference in the experience the young adult has," says EarthCorps [1] project manager Elizabeth White. "It turns something that just can be seen as fulfilling the requirement for school [and] makes it more of a community effort, something that everyone can do."
While local volunteer coordinators can't say for sure how much of a role the school service requirements are playing, many say they have experienced an increase in calls about family volunteering.
"It has increased over the eight years I've been involved with Habitat," says Anne Gallegos, associate director of Habitat for Humanity Seattle/South King County [2]. "Parents are looking for ways to have their children have a sense of giving back to the community."
The key is to find an activity that's age-appropriate. While EarthCorps welcomes children as young as 8, the hazardous nature of construction work means Habitat volunteers have to be at least 16. Habitat's age range could change, though. The agency has received so many calls that it has formed a youth team to come up with meaningful volunteer opportunities away from work sites.
Fortunately, there are still plenty of places for the whole clan to do good works. It just depends on the child's age, abilities and schedule.
Here are a few examples:
The Nature Conservancy [3]
According to volunteer program coordinator Barbara French, some Nature Conservancy events are more kid-friendly than others, but she says the organization's prairie restoration work parties are a good option for families.
Held at the Glacial Heritage Preserve south of Olympia every Tuesday and the second Saturday of each month from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., the effort to return native prairie land to its original state includes pulling scotch broom, cutting back Douglas firs and collecting seeds from native plants.
"We can tailor a work party to a younger group, but it's better to be 8 and over," French says. For more information, contact the Washington Chapter of the Nature Conservancy at 206-343-4344.
Green Seattle Partnership [4]
The organization that helped create Green Seattle Day in 2006 co-sponsors, coordinates and/or lists more than 500 events aimed at restoring urban forests throughout the city. All of the opportunities are listed on its Web site [5].
How age-appropriate each event is depends on parental expectations, says Joanna Nelson, Green Seattle Partnership project manager for the Cascade Land Conservancy. Some parents want to spend an hour working with their kids, while others are happy to work with a baby on their back.
"It really just depends on the attention span of the kids involved," Nelson says. "We've had kids aged 5 running a bucket of mulch down a trail." Age limits vary. For more information, call 206-905-6913 or e-mail info@greenseattle.org [6].
EarthCorps [7]
A typical event might involve removing invasive plants from forests, planting native plants and taking care of past work sites. The organization does work in 16 Seattle parks on Saturdays throughout the year, and the events run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
United Way of King County [8]
The United Way of King County's Web site is another good resource. All parents have to do is go to the volunteer opportunities page [9], scroll down to "Category of volunteer" and select "Families."
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