I am not a teacher, but I volunteer in many different ways, sometimes all at the same time. I help at my kids’ schools from classroom reading to delivering meals during parent-teacher conferences. I donate time to Cub Scouts as a den leader. I help at church with service meals and youth organizations and sometimes I even teach. And during Little League this year, my volunteer portion will simply be to get my kiddo to practice on time and buy snacks at the concession stand (Whew!).

How to Celebrate National Volunteer Week

This week is a dedicated time to recognize all the amazing people who volunteer in their schools and communities, making a difference and doing good!

Celebrate National Volunteer Week by finding time to volunteer with your family with simple, yet meaningful, tasks like:

• Beautifying a neighbor’s yard or walkway—think raking leaves, planting flowers, or watering their garden.
• Collecting and delivering canned goods to the local food bank or gently used items to a local shelter.
• Creating service out of the hobbies your family already enjoys.

Or take a moment to personalize a token of THANKS & appreciation for the volunteers in your own life:

• Shout out those ultimate school volunteers on Twitter, Facebook, or in the school E-newsletter (Check out 5 Volunteer Recognition with Social Media Ideas).
• Write a meaningful Thank You note to snail-mail or hand-deliver.
• Hop on over to Pinterest for inspiring gifts, sweet treats, and homemade volunteer recognition ideas.

And don’t forget, our friends at VolunteerSpot want to celebrate volunteers—and teachers during National Teacher Appreciation Week beginning May 7^th—with a $500 Do Good sweepstakes and Starbucks gift card giveaway. You can win for yourself and for your favorite school or charity.

Please join us in spreading the word and saying Thank You to those who make an extraordinary difference in our schools and communities.

VolunteerSpot’s DoGood Sweepstakes includes $500 for your favorite school or charity and Starbucks gift cards for you. They are giving away a Starbucks gift card every day from April 9-29 and one school or charity will win a $500 cash prize on April 30^th. BONUS: if more than 50 people from the same organization enter and tell Volunteerspot about their favorite school or charity on the VolunteerSpot Facebook wall, they’ll pay out $750! The cash prize can be used to sponsor an appreciation celebration, purchase equipment or supplies, or to fund a needed program. (Must be 18 to enter. Promotion is U.S. and Canada only.)

How will you thank volunteers or teachers in your area?

 Featured image courtesy of Flickr.

In a former life, Carissa Rogers was a molecular biologist. In her current life, she is the chief researcher of bloggy karma, parenting dos (and some don’ts), new recipes, and for spice she pretends to be a photographer. Carissa writes freelance for the ‘goodncrazy’ of it! She started blogging in February of 2008 and publishes her good & crazy thoughts on GoodNCrazy.com. Also find her on Twitter and Facebook.

Visit Hands On Network to learn more and to find volunteer opportunities in your community.