Extreme Yard Rakeover: Fall 2011 Edition

Welcome to EXTREME YARD RAKEOVER 2011 Edition

2011-09-08T16:53:00.002-05:00

EXTREME YARD RAKEOVER Teams Needed!
It is that time of year again. Jewish Family Services and Shepherd’s Center Central are busy planning the 4th Annual EXTREME YARD RAKEOVER. We are looking for volunteers of all ages and sizes who want to work as a team to rake and clean up the yard of an older adult who can no longer manage it on their own.

New This Year!
Please plan on joining us on Sunday, October 30, 2011 anytime between 11:00am and 2:00pm for a fun and energizing kick-off event at Franklin Park. There will be food and fun activities for the family. You will also be able to turn in required paperwork and pick-up your t-shirt and bag.

Yard raking will be scheduled during the first two weeks of November. Your groups availability will be matched with the homeowners availability and need.

If you would like to participate in raking but are unavailable for the kick-off on October 30, 2011 please contact us at 913-327-8298 to make special arrangements. We strongly encourage you to attend the event or have someone else in your group attend, bring your paperwork and have fun!

How Do I Sign-up?
Registration is easy, simply click on the link below and it will take you to the registration page. If you have questions or would like to register over the phone please call 913-327-8298.

Yes, I want to volunteer!

We look forward to working with you to make our community a better place!

Share your experience

2010-11-03T15:45:00.003-05:00

We'd love to hear and see your experiences with Extreme Yard Rakeover. Feel free to post pictures of your group working on our Facebook page. Visit www.facebook.com/ExtremeYardRakeover to post!

Extreme Yard Rakeover 2010 Update

2010-10-19T14:49:00.002-05:00

We are pleased to bring you this update about Extreme Yard Rakeover 2010!

Yard assessments for our clients are currently underway and we are almost ready to match your volunteer group with a client(s). Beginning the week of October 25th, we will be in contact with you to give you specifics on the client whose yard you will rake during the first three weeks of November. Also, that week t-shirts and gift bags will be available for pick-up at two convenient locations. Watch your email for details to come!

To best match you with a client be sure and email us the following information if you haven't already: Number of volunteers in your group and the day or days your group wants to volunteer. Also, give us an idea of how many yards you would like to complete. (In planning your date of service, we recommend you choose an alternate or rain-out date. You never know what November weather will bring!)

In the meantime, please download the forms to be found on the right side of the blog.

1. Volunteer Guidelines-- please review! This document contains everything you need to know about being an EYR volunteer. Instructions are also given on the steps you need to follow once a yard is assigned to you.

2. Waivers of Liability- Two waivers are attached. One version is for adults the other is for children 17 and under. EACH VOLUNTEER MUST SIGN A WAIVER (if volunteer is under 18, please have guardian sign the guardian waiver on behalf of the child). The waivers should be returned to us by November 1st. Here are a couple of ways to return the waivers to us:
a. Scan the signed forms and email to extremeyardrakeover@gmail.com
b. Fax the forms to 816-444-1177 Attn EYR
c. Mail (or drop off) the signed forms to SCC, Attn EYR 5200 OAK KCMO 64112
d. Return forms to the site where you pick up your t-shirts and bags, the week of October 25th.

Please be sure we have signed forms for EVERY member of your group by November 1st.

3. Volunteer Attendance Sheet & 4. Exit Assessment- These forms are to be used on your day of volunteer service. Please be sure that every group member signs the volunteer attendance sheet and indicate the # of service hours completed.. The exit assessment is a quick survey you the group leader will complete with the client after you finish raking their yard. Both of these forms should be returned to us within 3 days of your volunteer day. Return these forms via the methods listed above.

Time is ticking!

2010-10-05T15:19:00.004-05:00

Extreme Yard Rakeover is quickly approaching! We are nearly 3 weeks away from the beginning of the project.

If you haven't already, get your volunteer team together today. Group sizes should range from 6-10 volunteers. To volunteer, call 913.327.8998 or Email extremeyardrakeover@gmail.com.

Bags and t-shirts will be ready for pick up, on a first come basis, beginning the last week of October.

Shepherd’s Center Central and Jewish Family Services partner to provide free yard cleanup services for older adults

2010-09-13T11:49:00.004-05:00

KANSAS CITY, Mo (September 13, 2010) - November 2010 will mark the third anniversary of Extreme Yard Rakeover. Extreme Yard Rakeover is a project sponsored by Shepherd’s Center Central in collaboration with Jewish Family Services to provide free yard cleanup services for older adult in Johnson County and parts of Kansas City, Mo.

Service areas on the Missouri side include residents living in the area between 46th to 85th and from State Line Rd to Paseo Blvd.

Volunteers are needed to provide this service to older adults who are financially and physically unable. Team leaders are needed to form groups of 6-10. Volunteers have the opportunity to make a difference in the life of an older adult, as well as take the yard waste for their own garden's benefit.

To volunteer: Call 913.327.8298 or email extremeyardrakeover@gmail.com.
Visit us at www.facebook.com/extremeyardrakeover, as well as extremeyardrakeover.blogspot.com for updates on the project.

How Should I Begin: Benefits of Family Volunteering

2010-09-01T09:51:00.007-05:00

Family volunteering strengthens families and strengthens our community. When you decide to become a family volunteer, you are not only contributing to an important cause, but you are also helping your family and children in ways you never thought possible. Here is a sample of benefits your family and your community can achieve through family volunteering.

Children are able to develop compassion and an understanding for others. Not only will involving children in the decision-making process and volunteer activity help them feel appreciated and respected, but the volunteer activity will also enable them to acquire new skills.

Parents can help others while spending more time with their kids, passing on important values, and sharing meaningful conversations in a positive environment.

Nonprofits are often understaffed and overstressed and need additional help. Family volunteering helps them broaden their outreach to the community while improving community image and relations -- 97% of social service agencies that involved families found it to be very effective. Depending on their interests, family volunteers may want to help many types of non-profits, including the homeless, the sick and disabled, the elderly, children, animals, and the environment.

Society benefits from family volunteering, as it is a natural multiplier of volunteers. Studies show that children who volunteer are much more likely to continue as adults and carry on the tradition with their own children.

Source: http://www.thevolunteerfamily.org/Volunteers/How/Benefits.aspx

Picture yourself...

2010-08-30T15:23:00.010-05:00

Picture yourself spending time and having fun with your friends, family members, co-workers, etc, while helping out an older adult in need.

Now picture an older adult expressing their greatfulness for the help of cleaning their yard.

Volunteer your time. Extreme Yard Rakeover begins November 1st.

Start forming your team today.

To volunteer, Call 913.327.8298 or Email ExtremeYardRakeover@Gmail.com

Benefits of Volunteering

2010-08-23T12:24:00.005-05:00

‎"Everybody can be great because everybody can serve." -Martin Luther King, Jr.

Perhaps the first and biggest benefit people get from volunteering is the satisfaction of incorporating service into their lives and making a difference in their community and country. The intangible benefits alone—such as pride, satisfaction and accomplishment—are worthwhile reasons to serve. In addition, when we share our time and talents, we:

Solve problems

Strengthen communities

Improve lives

Connect to others

Transform our own lives

Over the past two decades we have also seen a growing body of research that indicates volunteering provides individual health benefits in addition to social benefits. This research, which is presented by the Corporation in a report titled “The Health Benefits of Volunteering: A Review of Recent Research,” has established a strong relationship between volunteering and health: those who volunteer have lower mortality rates, greater functional ability, and lower rates of depression later in life than those who do not volunteer. Comparisons of the health benefits of volunteering for different age groups have also shown that older volunteers are the most likely to receive greater benefits from volunteering, whether because they are more likely to face higher incidence of illness or because volunteering provides them with physical and social activity and a sense of purpose at a time when their social roles are changing. Some of these findings also indicate that volunteers who devote a “considerable” amount of time to volunteer activities (about 100 hours per year) are most likely to exhibit positive health outcomes.

Full Report (PDF)
Issue Brief on "The Health Benefits of Volunteering: A Review of Recent Research" (PDF)
Press Release: "Volunteering Produces Health Benefits"

Source: Corporation for National and Community Service http://www.nationalservice.gov/about/volunteering/benefits.asp

Feel good about giving your time and giving to your garden!

2010-08-18T10:28:00.006-05:00

Extreme Yard Rakeover will take place November 1-21. Volunteers have the opportunity to give their time, as well as to their garden!

With over 100 clients living throughout the Metro, there are a lot of different leaf and brush pickup schedules. It is often difficult for many older adults to store the bags of leaves while waiting for their scheduled pickup. Volunteers have the opportunity to take the yard waste for their own garden's benefit!

Start forming your group of 6-10 people today!

RSVP on Facebook today!

Feel good about giving your time and giving to your garden!

Join us on Facebook!

2010-08-11T14:19:00.004-05:00

Extreme Yard Rakeover is now on Facebook! Become our fan today!

Extreme Yard Rakeover: Fall 2010

2010-08-10T10:18:00.016-05:00

It's that time of year again! Jewish Family Services and Shepherd's Center Central are partnering to provide free yard clean-up services for older adults living in the Johnson County area and a small portion of Kansas City, MO.

Volunteers are needed! Team Captains are needed to form groups of 5-10 people. Teams can be made of family members, co-workers, congregants, friends, etc. Choose one or two times to get together this November and help rake and clean yards of older adults in the community.

To volunteer, call 816.444.1121 or Email.