Good Dog Deeds

TGIFYGDF…Thank Goodness It’s Feed Your Good Dog Friday!

November 27, 2009 by Rose Caplan

WAYS TO MAKE YOURSELF FEEL GOOD THIS WEEKEND (continued from TGIFYGDF dated November 6 )

These good deed ideas (11 through 20) make “feeding your good dog” as easy as taking a walk in the park. Source: 50 good deeds for 50 days, By Daniela Payne

11. Put together a basket of treats for a friend who had a death in the family. Deliver it after the funeral has taken place, when most friends have gone back to their day-to-day lives.

12. Drive your grandparents, elderly parents and their friends to church, doctor’s appointments or the movies. They (and their aging bodies) will value the gesture.

13. Volunteer for a charity. Pick a cause that’s near and dear to your heart and donate your time to them.

14. Sit down with your family and estimate what you’d spend on each other for gifts. Instead of buying each other gifts for birthdays or holidays, donate the estimated amount to a charity.

15. If you head out of town, drop off your monthly public transit pass at a youth or job centre. They’ll pass on the pass to someone who is in need of it to job hunt or attend school.

16. Take your neighbors trash to the curb while you’re taking yours. Imagine their surprise when they see that the chore is already done.

17. If you’re in line at the grocery store with a full cart, let the person behind you who only has 5-10 items go in front of you.

18. Offer to take care of a neighbour’s pet when they go away on a small vacation. They’ll be comfortable knowing their pet is in good hands.

19. Make dinner for friends with a newborn baby (or, if they’re far away, send a gift card for the grocery store or a favourite restaurant so they can pick something up).

20. Pay for the person behind you at the drive thru. It will make someone’s day!

And, remember…Feed Your Good Dog, so your good dog always wins!
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TGIFYGDF…Thank Goodness It’s Feed Your Good Dog Friday!

November 6, 2009 by Rose Caplan

WAYS TO MAKE YOURSELF FEEL GOOD THIS WEEKEND

These good deed ideas make “feeding your good dog” as easy as taking a walk in the park. Source: 50 good deeds for 50 days, By Daniela Payne

1. Make a double-batch of something delicious and freezable and give it to an older neighbour who doesn’t cook for him or herself as much anymore.

2. Buy a bag of good groceries – high-quality coffee, whole-grain pasta, a box of decadent cookies or other treats you’d normally buy for yourself – and donate it to your local food bank or shelter.3. Cut an armload of fresh flowers from your garden and bring them to your local nursing home so the residents can enjoy the smells of spring or summer.

4. Bring your well-behaved dog for a visit at a local nursing home. There’s nothing like a happy pup to raise someone’s spirits.

5. When out shovelling your walk or raking your leaves, it’s not too much more effort to do the same for a neighbour. Consider it good exercise as well as a good deed.

6. Hold the door for people behind you, especially if the person behind is carrying packages, bags or kids.

7. Volunteer at a local breakfast program. A warm smile and a friendly welcome go a long way.

8. Bring someone less fortunate a plant or some fresh flowers. This is something they might not want to spend money on.

9. Make soup for a friend recovering from surgery or an illness. Cooking is the last thing you feel like doing when you aren’t feeling 100 per cent.

10. Take your sibling’s kids out for the day – to the movies, apple picking, for a hike. The parents could probably use a break and the kids will love it.

And, remember…Feed Your Good Dog, so your good dog always wins!
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Wednesday Wide Smile

October 28, 2009 by Rose Caplan

COLLEGE STUDENTS COMMUNITY SERVICE EXTENDS BEYOND DAY OF SERVICE

The mission of the new Office of Civic Engagement and Scholarship (OCES) at College of William & Mary results in William & Mary students and alumni serving local community and learning about the community they serve.

According to Erin Zagursky’s article Students make a difference, learn about the community posted on October 20, 2009 to the College of William & Mary’s website…

Approximately 200 William & Mary students and alumni ignored the gray weather and spent Saturday, October 17, 2009, serving the local community as part of the annual “Make a Difference Day.”

This year, approximately 15 student groups and organizations signed up to participate in Make a Difference Day. Additionally, two alumni groups volunteered to help out.

“With over 200 students, two groups of alumni, and 13 different community partners, Make a Difference Day was a huge success,” Anoll said. “Helping it line up with the mission of the new Office of Civic Engagement and Scholarship, Make a Difference day for the first time combined students’ day of service with issue education and reflection on topics ranging from poverty to biodiversity.”

Shannon Michel ‘12 and Stephanie McGuire ‘12 served as co-leaders for the group that volunteered with the Community Action Agency. Though the group had originally planned on doing yard work, the weather forced them inside where they ended up cleaning and organizing offices and compiling a student directory. The group also learned a lot of about the agency’s programs and how they could help out in the future.

“It was very successful and I feel like we accomplished a lot and really helped out the agency staff,” said Michel.

And, remember…Feed Your Good Dog, so your good dog always wins!
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Monday Motivational Quote

September 28, 2009 by Rose Caplan

It is not by accident that the happiest people are those who make a conscious effort to live useful lives. Their happiness, of course, is not a shallow exhilaration where life is one continuous intoxicating party. Rather, their happiness is a deep sense of inner peace that comes when they believe their lives have meaning and that they are making a difference for good in the world. ~ Ernest Fitzgerald

And, remember…Feed Your Good Dog, so your good dog always wins!
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TGIFYGDF…Thank Goodness It’s Feed Your Good Dog Friday!

September 25, 2009 by Rose Caplan

AARP’s CREATE THE GOOD.ORG MAKES FINDING VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES IN YOUR COMMUNITY THAT FITS YOU AS EASY AS ENTERING YOUR ZIPCODE!

Simply delete the zipcode in the widget below, add yours and hit the enter key, and you’re own your way to creating the good in your community!

Create The Good.org is where good people get connected to opportunities to create good, in whatever way works for them. Nothing could be more simple:

5 minutes? 5 hours? Find good that needs doing that fits you and your community.
Every day, you can find new opportunities to do service in your community that fit your life and interests, and that will connect you to like-minded goodnicks. Only have 5 minutes? Follow Create the Good on Twitter for a daily feed of ideas.

Simple, fun ideas for how to create good.
Find how-to-videos and guides at Create the Good.org to help you create the good in your own way and on your own time. Reform Your Health, Operation Energy Save, Women’s Giving Initiative, or Rx Snapshot – it’s all here. And if it’s not, suggest a topic of your own and Create the Good.org offers to try and make it happen.

Making good even better.
Do you need volunteers? Post your opportunities and they will be seen by one of the largest and most skilled group of volunteers out there. Want to get your organization more involved? Create your own search widget for your site – it is easy (promise) and one of the best ways to spread around the good.

And, remember…Feed Your Good Dog, so your good dog always wins!
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Wednesday Wide Smile

September 9, 2009 by Rose Caplan

A 5 YEAR OLD LEARNS THE VALUE OF RECYCLING AT HOME AND TURNS IT INTO DONATIONS TO FEED 18,000 SAN FRANCISCANS

After seeing a person holding a cardboard sign begging for food, Phoebe wondered, “Why does that man look so sad, and why is he holding a sign in the street?” That question to her parents, during her daily ride to daycare, sparked an idea that has helped feed nearly 18,000 hungry San Franciscans. Phoebe is five years old! ~charityfocus YouTube

Phoebe request for donation letter recycled cans

And, remember…Feed Your Good Dog, so your good dog always wins!
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