Get your hands dirty this weekend, make a difference in the lives of your neighbors and show the Richmond region what happens when a grassroots organization comes into its own.
On Saturday, October 18, Hands On Greater Richmond is gathering hundreds of its favorite people -- and quite a few strangers -- to tackle more than 30 community projects around the area in the first Hands On Greater Richmond Day. It's not too late to roll your sleeves up and do a bit of good.
Hands On coordinates regular community projects for organizations as diverse as the Central Virginia Food Bank, ElderHomes, the Richmond Ballet and the Friends Association. By connecting volunteers with established projects, Hands On takes the confusion out of good, old-fashioned volunteering -- making it easy for Richmonders to pitch in and make a difference.
Style Weekly profiled the three founders of Hands On last year when Vanessa Diamond and Elaine Summerfield and Kristin Kaplan were honored as part of the publication's annual "40 Under 40" list:
Their brainchild, Hands On Greater Richmond (first known as Activate Richmond), came together during after-work hours and a series of major moments — weddings, children, three master’s of public administration degrees and three full-time careers in the helping fields. These women were busy, and they understood the constraints that stop some people from volunteering: It’s hard to schedule; it’s daunting; it might require a commitment.
So they became matchmakers by building a network of like-minded people, and their impact on the city is getting noticed.
In 18 months, the network has grown from a 10-person Yahoo group to an army of 600 who work as teams for dozens of area nonprofits. “If given the opportunity and the avenue,” Kaplan says, “we can give you that entry point and see it become something we never could have imagined.”
That home-grown effort has blossomed into a region-wide day of community engagement this Saturday. Head over to Hands On Greater Richmond and sign up now.
