Day of Caring a chance to provide much needed help

If you are seeking a way to lend a hand and help the Columbus area, you have a great opportunity to do so Friday.

It marks the United Way of Bartholomew County’s first Day of Caring event. The purpose is to bring volunteers together to give back to the community.

Volunteers can choose from a range of projects to which they can lend their time and talents, such as home improvement, picking up trash and distributing books to children.

Organizers expect more than 500 volunteers for Day of Caring, which would be a good turnout for a first-year event, but more could be used.

If Day of Caring sounds familiar, that’s because it is similar to another United Way event, the Day of Service, conducted on Sept. 11. The one-day community effort drew 1,700 participants and about 30 projects were tackled, much to the benefit and appreciation of residents and organizations. For example, some volunteers worked at Ninth Street Park while others worked at a Thrive Alliance home on Eighth Street, so it could be used as a rental property for a low-income family.

Columbus-area residents have been good about pitching in for these types of community improvement efforts. Another example is the scores of volunteers that have helped with the city’s neighborhood cleanup projects.

With needs across the community throughout the year, help is always needed and appreciated. If you can volunteer during the inaugural Day of Caring, it will be well worth your time.

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Those interested in volunteering for United Way’s Day of Caring can register at http://www.uwbarthco.org/volunteer-day-caring-2015 or email Joy King at [email protected].

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