NEW!!!! Check out our 4GOOD product.

Check out our new product store at www.zazzle.com/erikaathanas*

20% of your purchase will go to help 4GOOD's administration costs.

Buy a t-shirt and wear it to our next event...buy a bumper sticker to help support this great cause!!!

Boys & Girls Club Week March 22 - 26

Update from The Boys & Girls Club of Venice-
Aileen Martinez - Director of Marketing & Development
Boys & Girls Club of Venice
2232 Lincoln Blvd
Venice, CA 90291
(310) 574-5053
www.bgcv.org


National Boys & Girls Club Week March 22 – 26. This is the perfect time for you to volunteer and discover your local Boys & Girls Club and its role in the community. From homework help, open houses and parades to picnics, performances and fundraisers, there are many opportunities to learn how you can make a difference in the life of a child.

We invite you to join and support us during National Boys & Girls Club Week and learn how we are helping young people BE GREAT!

Consider sponsoring a day by volunteering and participating in our activities. By sponsoring a day, you can choose to plan something as simple as offering a cookie decorating class to as complex as a creating an obstacle course and test the endurance of our members through a Get Fit Challenge! It’s really up to you and what your creativity and interest can bring to our Club (and kids are welcome to volunteer and join in on the fun!).

Here’s a sample of what other Club’s are doing that week:

Monday - Member Challenge
Obstacle Course/Sack Race (3-4pm), Paper Airplane Challenge(4-5pm), All Star Monday Night Members Vs. Staff Basketball Game (4:30-6pm).

Tuesday - Club Star & Bring-A-Friend
Club Spelling Bee (3:30-4:40pm); Math Baseball (3:30-4:40pm); Dancing Shoes (4:30-5pm); Dance, Dance, Dance-A-Thon(5-5:30pm); Sing-Star Karaoke (5:30-6:30pm) and Movie Night: Prom Night (7pm).

Wednesday - Express Yourself
3-6pm: T-Shirt Contest, Membership Card Design & Club Pen Pals
6-9pm:Digital Photo Contest, Video Reinactment

Thursday - Torch Club/Keystone Takeover
Our character and leadership development groups takeover staff jobs and plan activities for members.

Friday - Pajama Day
SMART Girls/Passport to Manhood Slumber Party (3-4:30pm)

Service to the Club/Community
Service projects at the Club and surrounding neighborhood.

Contact Aileen if you have any interest!!!

From Erika Athanas - Please read!!!

www.4goodcommunity.org info@4goodcommunity.org volunteer with your kids...join the movement!!

What is 4GOOD?? If you have been thinking about volunteering and giving back to your community, but you are too busy to figure out what to do?  Then join 4GOOD- we can help.  If you want your children to understand the true meaning of kindness and compassion, then volunteer as a family with 4GOOD. 's mission is to help families actively participate in volunteer activities to foster the values of kindness, compassion, tolerance, community responsibility and good citizenship. Wouldn't it be nice if the next generation learned from an early age how important these simple traits are? Maybe there would be more compassion in our busy society and we would all slow down just enough to pay more attention to our surroundings, our community and our families. Since August 2009, 4GOOD has been finding, creating and participating in family friendly volunteering opportunities.  We started as a group on Facebook just 7 months ago, and now we are a Non Profit Organization working on securing our 501(c)3 status.  We need your help so please read below, do what you can and most importantly... volunteer with your kids...join the movement!!!

MORE INFO ON 4GOOD Check out our calendar of events click here for calendar link You will find: suggested "family friendly" volunteer events 4GOOD participating events where we will participate in an event with our members as a Team soon there will be 4GOOD sponsored events that we will host.   At the moment we are only concentrating on Southern California events, however, part of our plan is to create chapters throughout the country so we can foster the values needed to support the important national movement that has taken hold this past year.  Most importantly our goal is to to lead by example so our children understand the impact they can have and as they get older, increasing the chances that these values will be instilled in the fabric of their being.  Research shows that children whose parents set the example of giving back and provide volunteer opportunities for them to partake in, are 2 times as likely to volunteer as adults than children who are not exposed.  Not only is 4GOOD providing a way for families to volunteer together, we are also creating our own community within the community we are serving.  By working together as a group of like minded people, we believe we can build the motivation and focus needed to create a lasting legacy, 4GOOD!

HOW YOU CAN HELP Check out our Website:www.4goodcommunity.org Become an official 4GOOD member- Fill out the membership form on our website- or click right here you will receive updates on events and news about the organization Even if you don't live in LA, become a member anyway, you might be inspired to do something in your community and if your interested in starting a chapter in your own city or town, let us know.  info@4goodcommunity.org   Look at our Calendar of Events-Click here to connect We have 2 exciting 4GOOD PARTICIPATING events coming up: March 13th- Packing a Million Meals for Haiti – email us @ info@4goodcommunity.org if you are interested and I will sign you up on our 4GOOD Team at Volunteer Match. April 17th- Nothin' But the Sand-  email us @ info@4goodcommunity.org if your interested and I will sign you up on our 4GOOD Team at LA WORKS. Check out the other exciting suggested events that are all family friendly   Donate- CLICK HERE We are currently awaiting our 501(c)3 approval, until then any donation even if only $5 would help more than you know. Donate directly to 4GOOD through the safety of Paypal, no need for a Paypal account just use your CC - CLICK HERE.  All Donations will help the organization get off the ground, but the bulk of these donations will go directly to the causes we are supporting for each event.  If you would like further clarification on where your donation will be going please contact us at info@4goodcommunity.org Follow us and Share PLEASE: Our BLOG Twitter Facebook Page- become a fan Facebook Group Other things we need (yourself or others in your life that might be able to help): Please spread the word - share us on your FB page, twitter, linkedIn…forward this newsletter to your  friends  and family.  Ask them to become members through our website or send them this link: Membership Form Graphic Artist - with some experience in product design who is willing to volunteer some time helping to design Web Site Help- if you know about website design and management we could really use your help Accountant- knowledge of non profit regulations regarding we could use your help Funding- if you have connections with any companies or corporations who might be interested in donating product for future events, advertising on our website or blog, or small cash donations to help us get off the ground…keep us in mind when you see future newsletters or news about 4GOOD PR & Marketing - we need help creating press kits, getting our name and message out there with local newspapers and magazines, connections with editors or newsgroups, or any other marketing ideas. What You will see in the future: 4GOOD product like t-shirts, magnets, tote bags, etc...that you can buy to help raise money for the organization and get our name out there. The History Behind 4GOOD   I have always felt a pull towards wanting to take part in community service, but I always made excuses about how busy I was- I never followed through.   Last August, I was laid off from my job and suddenly there were no excuses left.  So, my husband Peter, myself and our good friends Katie and Jeff Goldman were talking about what we could do and include our kids in the process.  We made a commitment together to go in search of finding family friendly volunteer opportunities that were appropriate & interesting for our young kids. It was not easy to find organizations that accommodated families and included young kids in the volunteer process....we couldn’t believe it!! There you have it....that is how 4GOOD was born…the 4 of us started a group on Facebook and in a short time gathered loads of friends and friends of friends all with the same goal.  After searching around, we finally found some unique volunteering opportunities which enabled us to have a hands-on way to show the kids about giving back, by walking-the-walk together, as a family unit and as members of a giving community.  Since August 2009, we have participated and created a number of great events and it's been an amazing process as we watch our kids partake.  Truly inspiring and heartwarming. After a great deal of research and discussions with other parents, it was clear to us that there was a great need to bring easy access to families like us who have the right intentions but can’t find the time to commit because it’s not convenient enough.  That is what 4GOOD will do…provide accessible family friendly volunteer opportunities and a few other great things along the way.  We will keep you posted!!!   Thank you for your help and support!!!  I look forward to seeing you and your family at one of our events!!! Erika Athanas President ~ Executive Director erika@4goodcommunity.org

What America Cares About Compassion Counts More Than Ever | Parade.com

What America Cares About Compassion Counts More Than Ever | Parade.com

This article in today's Parade Magazine from the LA Times is proof that 4GOOD has an important place in today's socially conscious minded American. It is a startling account of how important "Public Service" has become in all of our lives.

Personally, I think this trend has a great deal to do with President Obama's call to service as well as the 1 million free tickets Disney Theme Parks is giving away with their Give a Day Get a Day program. Whatever the reasons are I am just happy to see the trend.

"The Americans surveyed by PARADE are particularly proud of one very
personal way that they're contributing to the greater good: Ninety percent said that they are
working hard to teach their children the importance of activism. They're imparting these lessons in a variety of ways, including leading by example (64%); talking to their kids about important issues and causes (51%); discussing their own charitable contributions or efforts with their
children (35%); taking them to meetings or when they volunteer (32%); urging them to follow role models who are working for positive change (31%); and encouraging them to donate their own money to causes (25%)."

I want to see an increase in the 32% of Americans taking their kids to volunteer...hopefully 4GOOD can help to raise that number, as studies show kids who actually take part in volunteering are 2 times as likely to continue to do so as they get older.

So...join the movement...volunteer with your kids!!!

check out our calendar of events and find something that works for you!
https://www.4goodcommunity.org/calender.html

Packing A Million Meals For Haiti

4GOOD participating event- join us pack meals for Haiti

Where: Salvation Army Emergency Services Warehouse,
Bell, CA 90015

When: Mar 13, 8:00 AM - 8:00 PM

Description: Great Event if you want to help Haiti...
4GOOD members who want to participate from 8am - 12pm please email info@4goodcommunity.org 4GOOD members will be there helping this worthy cause.
We will officially invite you through the Volunteer Match website.

In continued efforts to provide disaster relief for Haiti, The Salvation Army is seeking over 1400 volunteers to help pack a million meals in 24 hours. Just a few hours of your time will make a huge difference for those in need on either day listed below. Children must be accompanied by a supervising adult.

Friday, March 12th (8AM - 8PM)
3 Shifts: 8AM - Noon, Noon - 4PM, 4PM - 8PM
or
Saturday, March 13th (8AM - 8PM)
3 Shifts: 8AM - Noon, Noon - 4PM, 4PM - 8PM

To sign up please contact Erika Heeb at:
erika.heeb@usw.salvationarmy.org