Commentary by Cindy Benedict
Boy, do you ever despair that the world is going crazy and people don’t care about each other? I do almost every day after listening to the news. But hold on- I’ve got an antidote for you!
Local businesses, churches, nonprofits, and others come together every summer for the SERVE Noblesville week. This year it is from June 24 to 27 and it will be crazy-busy with wonderful people serving each other. They are all dedicated to “connecting compassionate neighbors.” In four days multiple teams will:
- Partner with Habitat for Humanity to build two homes on Cherry Street.
- Partner with Keep Noblesville Beautiful to beautify over 10 homes along Hannibal and Division, as well as spruce up the Noblesville Post Office. Special thanks to the 40+ Helmer Scientific employees for helping with this!
- Repair 17 homes for at-risk families.
- Provide 50 scholarships for a Spring Hill Day Camp at White River Church with the help of a grant from the Indiana Department of Child Services.
- Provide hand-crafted blankets and clothes for local and international groups.
- Spruce up a nursing home, school, and the Boys & Girls Club.
- Hold a Community Giveaway, Blood Drive, and Health Hub event on Saturday, June 27 at the Boys & Girls Club from 9 am – noon.
- And finally, teens will be “Sweeping the Square” on Friday to thank downtown businesses and prepare for the July 11 Street Dance.
Now, don’t you want to be a part of this movement? They need A LOT of volunteers to make the event a success. All you have to do is log on to http://servenoblesville.com/, click “Registration & T-Shirt” at the top of the page, and sign up for a project. Pick a couple of hours, or an entire day, but please sign up. It is the best antidote to a crazy world that I know of.
Cindy Benedict is the community engagement manager for the City of Noblesville. She may be reached at 770-2007 or cbenedict@noblesville.in.us.
