One Person Can Make a Big Difference
By: State: Colorado | Source: AARP.org
Over 50 years ago, Dr. Ethel Percy Andrus, founded AARP with the motto, To serve, not to be served. Today, AARP has continued to serve with more than 9 million volunteers, activists and donors. The organization recently launched Create The Good, a network of people who want to make a difference, at AARP.org/CreateTheGood. Members are connecting with each other, finding new and different ways to give back on their time, and helping others in their community.
Four in 10 boomers and older Americans have told us they want to help even more than they do now. Despite their reputation as the "Me Generation," boomers are showing the world that the "We Generation" is more accurate. And their efforts are making the world better one neighbor, one community at a time.
70% say they have not lived up to John F. Kennedy's call to service. But they are willing to pitch in to make the world a better place; 5 million are providing primary care for an elder, and 28 million have children under 18 in the home.
Whether people have five minutes, or five hours, Create The Good’s community of people who care are responding with key resources to help improve our neighborhoods and communities.
Create The Good expands on traditional, scheduled ways to volunteer by exploring simple steps, time-flexible opportunities, and a wide variety of different ways to get involved. The website, AARP.org/CreateTheGood, features free downloadable toolkits to organize a group to help neighbors in need. This makes it sound like it's about organizing a group when the tools can be used with neighbors and friends who are in needs and can also be used to create a group activity. A few examples of the ideas include identifying low-cost ways to make homes more energy efficient and bring down utility costs, making homes safer and more secure, assisting those in need with applications for public benefits, or simply by starting a walking group with friends to stay healthy.
Anyone can visit AARP.org/CreateTheGood to find hundreds of easy ways to make a difference, organizing tools and an online community of fellow Americans who want to help others in their community. Join the Create The Good network and turn small actions into big results.
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