A Message from the Office of Community Partnerships

 Where will you serve on October 22? 

By Bruce Adams

Director, Office of Community Partnerships

Twenty-five years ago, Montgomery County held our first Community Service Day. Now, that day is celebrated nationwide as Make a Difference Day.

This year, in celebration of our 25th anniversary, we have set an ambitious goal of 25,000 volunteers. We are going to kickoff a week of community service at our World of Montgomery Festival on Sunday, October 16th, from noon to 5 p.m., in the heart of Wheaton. And we will conclude with a Silver Anniversary Celebration of Community Service Day on the Veterans Plaza in downtown Silver Spring on Saturday evening October 22nd from 5 to 7 p.m. 

I hope you will roll up your sleeves that week and be one of our 25,000 volunteers. We are going to do a census of volunteering during the week. This snapshot of service will document the extraordinary impact that volunteers have in helping our neighbors in need and making Montgomery County such a special community. Please make sure that your community nonprofit, PTA, business, civic association, union, or faith congregation participates in our survey. I believe the report we will compile will help our nonprofit and other partners demonstrate to grantmakers the impressive manner in which their dollars are leveraged by volunteers in Montgomery County. 

To share your experiences as a volunteer in our survey, go to
 www.montgomeryserves.org/community-service-week-2011#Survey.

Or, contact Molly Callaway at the VolunteerCenter to ensure your participation in this important survey:  molly.callaway@montgomerycountymd.gov.      

I look forward to seeing you at the World of Montgomery Festival on October 16th and at our Silver Anniversary Celebration in Silver Spring on October 22nd.