This year, Fremont’s annual Make a Difference Day, created to promote community unity through charity work, falls on Oct. 27.  As a part of the nationwide program held yearly by USA Weekend magazine, Make a Difference Day offers various activities in which volunteers can take part.

This year, Fremont’s annual Make a Difference Day, created to promote community unity through charity work, falls on Oct. 27. 

As a part of the nationwide program held yearly by USA Weekend magazine, Make a Difference Day offers various activities in which volunteers can take part. Participants can assist with clean-ups of public property, graffiti removal, painting, and school beautification or opt to create their own project and register it. A number of local businesses, volunteer groups, and schools have offered their services.

Mission Possible has planned a Campus Gardening and Clean-Up Work Day, where participants will be cleaning up the creek, sweeping sidewalks, and weeding the grounds. Those who wish to contribute should meet at the horseshoe at 8 am. In addition to receiving service hours, volunteers can opt to get a $15 donation for a MSJ club or organization of their choice.

“Due to budget shortages, Fremont Unified School District only funds up to 80% of the custodial needs of each high school.   It is simply not enough to get everything done. That is why volunteer effort is so critical to our campus maintenance,” said Mission Possible Chairperson Jeanine Bickett.

Several other schools have also coordinated a plethora of activities for the occasion. Irvington High School is preparing to help restock the Sister John Marie Food Pantry of Fremont. Meanwhile, Parkmont Elementary hopes to draw volunteers to support its efforts to beautify the school by planting flowers. A socks and mitten drive is currently being held at Thornton Junior High, the donations going to the Salvation Army.

Hopkins Junior High School 7th graders Aarthi Rao and Sonam Mokha, have each come up with their own service projects. Rao will be collecting hair from local salons for Locks of Love, an association that creates wigs out of hair donations for cancer patients who have lost their hair. Mokha has organized a Toy Drive at Hopkins and will donate the toys to a charitable association.

Girl Scout troops organized a coat drive for the Tri-City Homeless shelter and will be joined by the Rainbow Girls, who will collect goods to send to soldiers in Iraq. The Eagle Scouts have consented to build a new arbor for the Tri-City Homeless Shelter. Led by Judy Lee, the Tzu-Chi Foundation, a Buddhist organization, intends to clean up the local homeless shelter and paint the rooms at Kidango, a local child care agency.

Major corporations like Starbucks Coffee and American Red Cross will run a blood drive and provide free drinks for blood donors. Hardware stores will restore selected senior homes and install emergency wheelchair ramps. Partnered with the National Bone Marrow Registry Program, Wal-Mart has promised to hold a Bone Marrow Registration Drive at its premises on Osgood Street.

This year’s Make a Difference Day Coordinator, Dr. Geeta Kadambi said, “It is a national day of volunteering and we want the community to unite, understand the diversity and help each other.”