“I’m expanding my work to include younger children in ALL my programs. Parents have been particularly supportive of our efforts. They seem to have been looking for a way to teach children to help others.”
Molly Pruitt
Facilitator, Kids Care Club of the Volunteer Center of Morgan County

The Kids Care Club of the Volunteer Center of Morgan County in Decatur, Alabama is a really BIG club with LOTS of members who do LOTS of great projects. Each week, 250 members, Kindergarten through fifth grade get the opportunity to work on Kids Care Clubs projects. One young member said enthusiastically, “I had to try to do something good for someone else every week. After a while it wasn’t hard anymore!”

The Volunteer Center of Morgan County (VCMC) sponsors the Club. Molly Pruitt, the Youth Services Administrator at VCMC and Cassandra Thrower, the Service Learning Coordinator at VCMC, facilitate the Club, which began during Kids Care Week in October 2007.  They quickly expanded it to encompass children from six of Decatur City School’s extended day programs. The site directors from the six schools also help facilitate the Club.

The Club started “small” with an easy project -- making “no sew” blankets to donate to a shelter for battered women. Molly and Cassandra want the children to understand why they are doing the projects so at this meeting, the issue of domestic violence was discussed and why the moms and children needed the blankets. The next week the children decorated socks for kids and moms at Lexi House, a shelter for homeless young mothers and their children. After these two projects the Club was off and running. Members heartily agree with the sentiments of one young member who said, “It’s fun to make things for other kids.”

Other projects have included making posters to prevent runaways, bookmarks to prevent hunger and homelessness, and “Take a Stand” badges against bullying. They have written letters to soldiers, and made Valentine’s cards and pinecone birdfeeders for seniors. Projects are often tied into national theme weeks and months. During Native American Heritage Month, the Club made friendship bracelets for kids in foster care. Molly says, “It is wonderful to see how much empathy and compassion children have when they are made aware of the plight of others.”

Their two biggest projects to date for this busy group were the Global Youth Day “Library Lock-In” literacy project and Kids Care Clubs Snack Attack Sacks. The goal of the “Library Lock-In” was to show kids that reading is fun. Each of the six schools volunteered for a different task. One school created games, another handled food, a third did flyers and posters and the other two schools were responsible for publicity including inviting local notables to take part in the “Lock-In”. On the night of the event the library opened from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. for families to come and play games, hear stories, do book related crafts and eat. At 10 p.m. the doors were locked. The group spent the night; some slept while others watched book-based movies. In the morning a book-themed breakfast was enjoyed by all.

In 2008, the Club received a mini-grant for the Kids Care Clubs Eat Wise-Exercise! Project (thanks to the Kids Care Clubs' premier partner, Quaker). In honor of National Nutrition Month, they decided to make Kids Care Clubs Snack Attack Sacks. The project was the culmination of 3 weeks of learning activities revolving around the good nutrition theme taken from the Eat Wise – Exercise! Project. After learning about healthy eating from the Eat Wise – Exercise! project, including understanding the Food Pyramid, how to read food labels and eating correct portion sizes, they were ready to assemble the Snack Attack Sacks for seniors served by Meals on Wheels. The members decorated paper lunch bags and filled them with 6 snacks that they chose because they were healthy and tasty, including Quaker Chewy Bars. Eat Wise – Exercise! Brochures were also put in the Sacks. The Director of Meals on Wheels spoke to the Club and gratefully accepted over 350 Snack Attack Sacks. These were more than enough to provide each of the 335 seniors who were registered with the Morgan County Meals on Wheels program. 

The Kids Care Club of the Volunteer Center of Morgan County has been in existence for less than a year, but through their weekly service learning projects and the number of members, they have made a huge impact in Morgan County by putting their compassion into action. A club member summed up their experience of reaching out to others, “We had fun and learned something, too!”

We commend Molly and Casandra for organizing and coordinating a club of 250 children in six different schools and for inspiring their members to serve the community.

Volunteer Centers such as the Volunter Center of Morgan County can help your Kids Care Club find local opportunities and provide contacts for agencies.  To find a Volunteer Center near you, go to 1-800-Volunteer.org

Kids Care Clubs is pleased to be joined by Quaker in providing special recognition for the Club of the Month. Members of the Kids Care Club of the Volunteer Center of Morgan County will receive a special gift directly from Quaker to share with their families and friends.