It’s June and the kids will be out of school in a few days. Time to suggest simple summer mitzvahs that you can do with or without kids. Here are my top ideas for summer mitzvahs to do with kids.
- Collect cans and bottles from around your neighborhood and donate them through your supermarket to a local school.
- Have a lemonade stand or bake sale and give the proceeds to a non-profit that your kids might know, for example, a Humane Society or a local food bank or to a charity collecting after a natural disaster. If donating locally, arrange to have your kids deliver the money in person and maybe even get a tour of the place where you have donated.
- Start a recycling project. Compost bins or worm bin are something kids love.
- Bring lemonade or cans of water or juice to the folks at a construction site.
- Volunteer to collect children’s books. We have an organization called The Children’s Book Bank in Portland, maybe there is one in your town that collects children’s books and gives them to needy children.
- Visit a senior center/retirement home. Contact the activities director and see if you can bring the kids in to visit during a meal or a game time.
- Bake something and give it to someone, perhaps an elderly neighbor who would probably enjoy the visit as well.
- Offer to mow a neighbor’s yard or water their flowers while they are away on a summer vacation.
- Arrange a carpool with another family for any summer camps you might attend, alternately watch another child for a working parent.
- Visit someone in the hospital. Do you know of anyone who is in need of a visit? Children can often cheer up someone sick in the hospital.
- Pull weeds. We helped at our school garden. My kids loved getting dirty and muddy more than I did. There is probably somewhere in your city that would love your gardening help.
- Still not sure where to volunteer, check out: Hands On Network. If you have a Hands On in your community, it is a great place to start. This organization keeps a calendar of volunteer opportunities and what specific ages can volunteer in hundreds of cities across the US.
1,000 Mitzvahs 