Making a Difference in Covid Times

by Yoli

​Even though it may be challenging to find them, there are opportunities for youth to make a difference! Here are some highlighted volunteer opportunities for teens. For more options, check out this complete list made by our librarians here.

Photo from Bags to Beds Facebook page

​Make Plarn Mats for Bags to Beds
​Bags to Beds is a nonprofit organization that aims to reduce plastic waste while creating sleeping mats woven from plastic bags for individuals experiencing homelessness.
“We have instructions on our website on how to make plastic bags into plarn that we use for the mats-- it is really simple and all you need are scissors. Also if anyone is up for it we need help with people crocheting the mats. We can supply them with hooks, I can teach them over Zoom, and we can give them plastic yarn (plarn).”
​-Emily Voll, Bags to Beds.

A screenshot from Indianlaw.utahbar.org

​Gather Donations for Utah Tribal COVID-19 Relief
"Indian Country has been hit hard by COVID-19. You can help Tribal Communities within Utah. We are directing people who are still interested in donating supplies but missed previous pickup deadlines to ship the supplies directly to the Utah Navajo Health System Office, which is partnering with us to distribute supplies. We realize shipping can be costly, so perhaps teens could raise money and then purchase items on Amazon or another retailer and have them shipped down. If they’d like to pursue that option, the address is:
 
Utah Navajo Health Systems
1478 East Highway 162
Montezuma Creek, Utah 84534
 
Many children on the Navajo Reservation are currently in need of educational materials, supplies and books. Teens could do a drive to gather those, and I could check and see where they could send those materials for distribution. My daughter helped coordinate educational materials for our group, and she would be happy to be a point of contact to guide other teens (ie. helping them determine what kind of materials to gather, where to ship supplies, etc.). It is an option that would involve the teens shipping items directly to the Reservation, however, educational materials tend to be less bulky and heavy than other supplies, so might be easier/cheaper to put in a box and ship down there." -- Beth Parker at tribalcovid@learlaw.com. For more information please visit: http://indianlaw.utahbar.org/covid-19-tribal-relief-fund.html or contact Heather Tanana at tananah@law.utah.edu.
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A screenshot from the website: slccgardens.com

​Volunteer at SLCC Gardens
Volunteer outdoors with activities such as planting, weeding and harvesting as well as indoor activities such as graphic design and writing. Have fun outdoors while helping the community. The food grown in SLCC’s garden beds is donated to the SLCC pantry. Volunteers helping in the garden are encouraged to bring their own gloves, and wear masks, but masks and gardening tools can be provided. Fill out a volunteer interest form here. You can email questions to Christina at slccgardens@gmail.com

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Photo from https://www.voaut.org/volunteer-opportunities/provide-a-meal

​Volunteer with VOA (Volunteers of America)
Purchase, cook, and serve a meal at the Youth Resource Center. Group sizes of 10 or less are the best, or else it gets very cramped in our kitchen. Volunteers must be ages 16+. 16 and 17 year olds will need to be accompanied by an adult. Sign up here. Please read this document regarding volunteer information.  If you are unable to make your scheduled volunteer shift but would still like to provide your meal, you can drop it off at the center. Contact Alexis Brown-Brotherton (alexis.brotherton@voaut.org) for more information.

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We hope you're able to find ways to help out this summer. If you discover any other great opportunities for youth, please comment here with the details. 

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