A few weeks ago, Activate Good was contacted by Gayle, a supporter of a neighborhood youth service group. She shared that the teens in the group loved our Signs for Good and wanted to share this message of kindness and service throughout their whole neighborhood. Read on for more about this volunteerism story!
The Junior Youth Group of Tryon Pines is a neighborhood group which meets on Saturday afternoons to discuss social issues, help us think critically about the world around us, improve our decision-making skills and channel our energy toward strengthening our own character while encouraging us to offer meaningful service to others. In the past, we have participated in food collection drives, shoe collection drives (organized by a Tryon Pines neighbor), collected toiletries for the needy, and volunteered at Rise Against Hunger and Oak City Outreach Center (an agency serving the needs of the homeless). Now we would like to explore new ways to be of service to the neighbors on our very streets.
We were introduced to Activate Good through another Tryon Pines neighbor who posted one of their Signs for Good in her front yard. We were inspired by the sign’s message since it resonates with the service theme of our group:
Do Good. Be Kind. Change The World.
We thought it would be awesome to see more of this message spread throughout the neighborhood, so we asked our neighbors if they would like to post the sign in their front yard or if there was a small service our group could do for them to actively put this message into practice right here in Tryon Pines. We offered to visit their home on a Saturday afternoon to help with a task or order and deliver a Sign for Good for them.
To help inspire others to engage in service, some of our members wrote reflections on the impact of this experience:
Meadow, Junior Youth, Age 14
“We completed our first act of service for the community the second time we went out in the neighborhood to talk about our group. A parent joined us and everyone was able to work together efficiently as a team! We were definitely able to spread the message of the Signs for Good. One of our neighbors even donated funds for two Signs in order to give one to a friend. We will remember what went well in this service project.”
Jessica, Animator, Age 19
“I feel like I’m not only speaking for myself when I say that helping others and our community also helps oneself. Many times while volunteering and helping people in and out of my community I feel as if I gained things like joy, patience, understanding, confidence, and hope just by simply helping those around me. I was so happy to see that these signs could help spread a message that our group believes in and constantly puts into practice!”
Ada, Junior Youth, Age 16
“At neighbors’ houses we introduced ourselves and gave a brief description of the junior youth spiritual empowerment program and the service we’ve done so far. We also asked about any individual service the JYG can offer for that specific neighbor, free of charge. One neighbor said she could use help starting her garden in a few weeks! While we were speaking about our service we also talked about our collaboration with Activate Good. We talked about our shared message of doing good and the Signs for Good campaign. We’ve sold a few signs and helped put up others!”
