 |
|
 Letter from the President/CEO
...At the Heart of Embracing Stillness
When was the last time you found yourself with nothing to do? For many of us, our days are over-scheduled as we race from one thing to the next. If we do find ourselves with a spare moment, we immediately fill it with activities on our devices.
We claim to be expert multi-taskers, checking our texts at red lights, sending emails in the doctor's waiting room or scrolling through social media while walking the dog. However, studies show we're also unable to focus, and many of us have lost the chance to let our minds wander or experience boredom.
We may want to rethink this frenzied pace, since there are actually many benefits to boredom, especially for youth. Here are 5 Reasons Why Having Bored Kids Can Be A Great Thing For Their Development:
- Boredom readies the mind to learn new things.
- Embrace boredom for better screen time habits.
- Bored people look for connection.
- Boredom stimulates creative thinking.
- Bored? Time to do chores.
You can read more in the full article here, and you can find more tips to help you reduce your family's screen time by visiting the Helpful Resources on our website here.
May we all embrace more moments of boredom and look for the unexpected gifts they provide.
|
Help Us Reach Our Campaign Goal!
...At the Heart of Making an Impact Together
Thank you to everyone who supported us during our year-end campaign! Your generosity will educate more youth and families about how to really connect and build resilience through our new strategies, as well as continue to instill empathy through our existing programs (read more about that below!).
We are still trying to reach our financial goal and you can help! Be a part of making our new mission a reality - encouraging and supporting social and emotional wellness for youth and families in our community.
You can also learn more about our plans and how we're
Engaging Hearts and Minds
by helping youth, families and the community gradually reduce screen time and increase face-to-face connections, self-care, empathy and resilience in our new brochure
here
.
|
Lessons in Empathy
...At the Heart of Creating Compassionate Youth
We recently hosted a group of Daisy Scouts from Torrance's Girl Scout Troop 9075 to participate in a new addition to our popular volunteer-driven programs aimed at increasing empathy and resilience in local youth. When the troop visited the Volunteer Center, we talked with the first graders about how we help local students their age through Operation Teddy Bear, which included a hands-on demonstration of one of the program's in-class exercises - hugging bears, taking deep breaths and talking about our feelings!
We then introduced them to Food For Kids by reading "Maddie's Fridge" by Lois Brandt, taking a tour of the pantry, talking about how it feels to be hungry, and relating those feelings to the families we help through the program. The visit ended with another hands-on activity - packing bags of food, and an opportunity for the girls to pick out what went into each bag in order to create meals for the families we serve.
The girls and their moms (and one grandmother!) helped us pack 75 bags, and everyone left with a greater sense of empathy, understanding and tools they can use to calm their worries. It was a truly heart-warming experience for everyone involved!
|
An Opportunity for Kids to Practice Kindness
...At the Heart of Spreading Cheer in the Community
Do you find yourself looking for ways to give back with your kids and spread kindness in the community? Join South Bay Mommies and Daddies by making Valentine's Day cards for local hospital patients now through Sunday, February 9. This is also a great opportunity to have conversations with your kids about kindness and helping others!
Click here for complete details, including helpful prompts for those conversations, suggested card content/phrases to avoid, drop-off locations (including our headquarters in Torrance*), and more!
*You can leave completed cards in the box in the lobby of our Torrance office (1230 Cravens Avenue) Monday through Friday between 8:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., or put them through the mail slot after hours. |
Operation Teddy Bear's 25th Anniversary
...At the Heart of Community Efforts and Impact
We recently celebrated Operation Teddy Bear's 25th Anniversary at a Torrance City Council Meeting, where Mayor Pat Furey presented the Volunteer Center with a proclamation honoring this momentous occasion, the program's impact and our continued service to the community (thanks to so many of you)!
President/CEO Sara Myers thanked the City for their ongoing support and specifically acknowledged the Economic Development Department for the way they support and connect businesses in Torrance, which also led to a beautiful example of the community-wide effort and impact that makes Operation Teddy Bear possible.
Thanks to a new relationship with the Sares Regis Group, all of this year's Operation Teddy Bear preparation and packing activities took place in a fantastic, donated warehouse space conveniently located in Torrance - right up the road from the Volunteer Center. Members of the Sares Regis team also volunteered at our packing event, visited schools to help teach our signature lesson in kindness and identifying emotions, and distributed the bags they helped pack!
|
The Latest Food Donations
...At the Heart of Filling Shelves and Warming Hearts
We are grateful to the members of our community who continue to show generosity and compassion by making donations to our Food For Kids program!
- Janie Cracchiolo in San Pedro donated 53 pounds of food.
- The members of Haddasah South Bay collected and donated 77 pounds of food, delivered by Food For Kids volunteers Joe and Sheila Millman.
- Various medical departments at HealthCare Partners' Torrance Specialty Office collected and donated 406 pounds of food.
- The Muller Company in Torrance collected and donated 422 pounds of food.
- Peninsula High School's Service Learning Class collected and donated 64 pounds of food.
Click here
to learn more about Food For Kids, including a downloadable copy of our Shelf-Stable Shopping List, and learn about the latest Food For Kids donations by following us on
Facebook
,
Instagram
and
Twitter.
You can also donate food using our Amazon Wish List!
|
- Quote of the Month -
"You don't always have to be strong. You could totally be weak, You can have a good cry, and be down. It's OK. Everything is never going to be perfect at all moments, and we're perfect when we're vulnerable when we're off and a little bit down. When you cry about it, let it out."
- Alicia Keys as told to Lauren Rearick
|
Featured Kindness Opportunity
|
|
Join the City of Torrance for the second year of Torrance SERVES and help them reach this year's goal of 150,000 pledged community service hours by February 15!
Launched earlier this week in honor of the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service, the Torrance SERVES campaign celebrates service leaders and empowers volunteers to come together for
community service projects that honor the spirit of giving, public service and volunteerism.
Click here for complete details and to pledge community service hours that you'll complete before the end of the year.
|
|
THANK YOU TO OUR MAJOR SPONSORS:
|
|
The Volunteer Center
South Bay-Harbor-Long Beach
|
Recognizing the value of empathy and service to others, the Volunteer Center has been "at the heart of helping" for more than 50 years. The heart of our mission lies in knowing the most urgent, local needs. We learn these needs by regularly listening to the members of our community. When we discover a critical need is going unmet, we lead the response by assembling a team of caring, talented volunteers to create signature programs, such as Operation Teddy Bear and Food For Kids, offering members of our community the opportunity to contribute to the solution. Click here to learn more about our new Youth Mental Health focus and how we're helping youth, families and the community gradually reduce screen time, while increasing face-to-face connections, empathy and resilience.
|
|
|
|
|
|
