Make A Difference Day rapidly approaching
By Will Hoover
Advertiser Staff Writer
The celebration of people helping people — the nation's largest day of community service — is just around the corner.
It all happens Oct. 27.
Make A Difference Day, created by USA Today and operated in partnership with the Points of Light Foundation, is that annual magic moment when thousands of volunteer projects are set into motion nationwide and a spontaneous explosion of good deeds ensues. For those who want to make a difference but can't come up with project ideas, assistance is only a click or phone call away.
Virtually anything you want to know about the 11th annual Make A Difference Day can be found online. The Idea Generator, for instance, is a simple three-question quiz with 13 possible mouse click responses that generate a menu of personalized idea possibilities.
The winning edge can be fine-tuned by clicking on What Others Have Done to collect thousands for their cause. The web site is easy to navigate and comes loaded with tools and tips — and motivation.
Consider this: Kermit the Frog is so interested in making a difference that he'll not only join the right project, he'll bring a $10,000 check from the Jim Henson Company. Want to lure Kermit to Hawai'i? Click on his little green icon and find out the details. But hurry. Kermit's deadline for project suggestions is Sept. 10.
Other projects judged especially creative and outstanding will be awarded $10,000 from Paul Newman's food company, Newman's Own.
If you'd rather not go high-tech, the Make A Difference Day hot line is (800) 416-3824.
Got a project idea but need volunteers? Or, if you'd like to volunteer to participate in local projects Oct. 27, call the Voluntary Action Center, a program of Helping Hands Hawai'i, 536-5006.
