Rain didn’t stop dozens of volunteers from completing multiple projects throughout Minden, Saturday. United Way of Northwest Louisiana’s fifth annual Day of Caring Minden provided multiple volunteer opportunities to assist a local nonprofit. This single-day, community-wide event involved about 80 local volunteers that helped fulfill a need with seven different nonprofits.
The event kicked off with a breakfast rally at the Webster-Bienville-Claiborne (WBC) Center, a satellite office of the main United Way NWLA location in Shreveport. Participants picked up their event t-shirts, won raffle prizes and took plenty photos before being briefed on the day ahead.
From there, volunteers dispersed throughout the city. The rest of the morning would be spent completing projects like encouraging students with motivational talks at Project Reclaim, clothing distribution through VEIL and assisting students with hands-on activities with Community First.
This is the fifth year United Way NWLA has hosted Day of Caring Minden. The event connects area businesses in teams as small as six up to 32 participants with agencies in need of assistance. It also offers volunteers an opportunity to see what local nonprofits do every day.
“These nonprofits look forward to Day of Caring year after year because it’s a great opportunity to have a project completed that may have been on the back burner,” said Tabitha Trewolla, Volunteer Coordinator for United Way NWLA. “They also may not have the manpower or resources to complete it. That’s where United Way steps in to help.”
This event is dedicated to encouraging year-round volunteerism throughout the community.
Participating nonprofits:
- American Legion Post #74
- The Christian Church at Minden
- Cultural Crossroads – The Farm
- Project Reclaim of Minden
- Webster Parish Council on Aging
- VEIL, Goodwill, Community First
Participating volunteer teams:
- Webster Parish School Board
- Gibsland Bank
- Minden Medical Center
- B1 Bank