COD Cares celebrates five years of service to District 502 community
An estimated 200 College of DuPage students, faculty and staff recently gathered to celebrate five years of COD Cares.
The April 9 event, held during National Volunteer Week, highlighted the contributions of the COD Cares program to organizations throughout District 502 and honored more than 130 volunteers, who have contributed more than 14,000 hours of community service.
Before indulging in birthday cake, partygoers continued the COD Cares tradition of service by filling bags with birthday party staples for clients of Humanitarian Service Project. Additionally, college staff, faculty and students also donated children's books to HSP for distribution to local children and their families. ()
The Humanitarian Service Project is counting on the COD Cares program!
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, research shows one of the best ways to build a strong base for language and cognitive development is to read to children and share experiences as a family.
Attendees were asked to bring one or more children's books as a birthday gift. Then, they joined in the "Birthday in a Bag" assembly activity.
Donations of books and "Birthdays in a Bag" will support essential family bonding for clients of Humanitarian Service Project.
Why does "COD Care"? Residents of District 502 believe in its mission to be a center for excellence in teaching, learning, and cultural experiences. This show of faith and giving to College of DuPage is a good reminder that, beyond its normal duties, it is valuable to find new and different ways to give back.
At the beginning of the 2018-19 school year, COD Cares hosted a "Roll Up Your Sleeves Service Day" on Sept. 11. Members of Team NM, Northwestern Medicine's employee-based volunteer program, joined College of DuPage faculty, staff, and students at 15 surprise locations. A total of over 200 people put in a good day's work including cleaning, painting, and restoration at local nonprofit organizations such as schools, nature centers, and food pantries.
In the winter, College of DuPage staff and students worked hard to "serve the needs of others" in an "Up To S.N.O.W.Good" event by fulfilling nonprofit agency wish lists, collecting and wrapping gifts for underprivileged children, and donating gift cards for family clients of Department of Children and Family Services to use on holiday meals.
For details on the COD Cares program, contact Ami Chambers, community relations coordinator, at (630) 942-3823 or visit www.cod.edu/about/cod_cares/index.aspx.
For more on the Humanitarian Service Project, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary, visit hsp.agency or www.facebook.com/humanitarianserviceproject/.
The Humanitarian Service Project's Children's Project started in 1992 as the Children's Birthday Project with the goal of creating wonderful birthday memories for children living in poverty. Today this program also provides nutritional support at critical times during the year, school supplies and a beautiful birthday box.