December 25 - Kindness the J Way
Make and deliver meals, drop-off gift bags to home-bound seniors, donate blood, donate food, assemble and deliver hygiene kits, and deliver holiday cheer to our community heroes and those in need.
Take a look at the grids below for
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Deliveries
| Family Shelter | Orange | 11:30 a.m. | 2 | Pick up sack lunches from the JCC and deliver to the Family Shelter |  |
| Someone Cares | Costa Mesa | 11:30 a.m. | FULL | Pick up sack lunches from the JCC and deliver to Someone Cares Soup Kitchen on Friday, December 26 | FULL |
| Southwest Community Center | Santa Ana | 11:30 a.m. | 1 | Pick up sack lunches from the JCC and deliver to Southwest Community Center on Friday, December 26 | |
Throughout the month of December
| Activity | Location | Date and Time | Volunteers needed | Description | Registration |
| Blood Drive | JCC | December 10, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. |
30 | Donate blood at the JCC to benefit the Southern California Blood Bank. | |
| Assemble stockings | Your home | December 12, 4 - 6 p.m. | 1 | Volunteers will pick up stockings and supplies to decorate at home and then return filled stockings to the J. | |
| JTeens Day of Service | JCC | December 14, 12:30 - 3 p.m. | unlimited | Prepare breakfast burritos and magic bars for December 25. This is a TEEN Event. | |
| Donate Baked Goods | JCC | December 22, 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. | unlimited | Make baked goods at home and deliver to the JCC. | |
December 25
| Organization | Location | Time | Volunteers needed | Description | Registration |
| Adopt a Family | Around OC | 9 a.m. | FULL | Pick up holiday gifts at the JCC and deliver them to a family in need. | FULL |
| Baking Brownies | Irvine | 9:30 - 11:30 a.m. | FULL | Baking brownies and decorating cookies for firefighters. This is a great event for families with little kids. | FULL |
| Casa Teresa | Orange | 9 - 11 a.m. | FULL | Volunteers will prepare and serve breakfast to shelter guests. | FULL |
| Covenant House | Anaheim | 2 - 4 p.m. | FULL | Volunteers will drop off brunch for residents. Must be 25. | FULL |
| Family Shelter | Orange | 8 - 10 a.m. | FULL | Volunteers will be serving breakfast. Must be 13. | FULL |
| Friendship Shelter | Laguna Beach | 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. | FULL | Prepare holiday lunch items at the JCC with other young professionals and deliver the ready-to-eat item to the shelter. | FULL |
| Donate Brunch Foods | Irvine | 7 a.m. - 8 a.m. | Unlimited | Make brunch foods at home and deliver to the JCC. | |
| Heritage Pointe | Mission Viejo | 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. | FULL | Volunteers will make sack lunches with residents. Great for families. | FULL |
| Heritage Pointe | Mission Viejo | 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. | FULL | Volunteers will replace waitstaff for the lunch shift. Must be 18. | FULL |
| Illumination Foundation - Carnegie Shelter | Santa Ana | 7:30 a.m. - 8:30 a.m. | FULL | Volunteers will be making breakfast for the residents. Minimum age is 18 years old. | FULL |
| Illumination Foundation - Recuperative Care Center | Fullerton | 7:30 a.m. - 8:30 a.m. | FULL | Volunteers will be making breakfast for the residents. Minimum age is 18 years old. | FULL |
| Jamboree Housing - The Meadows | Irvine | 9:00 a.m. | FULL | Prepare and serve breakfast to residents. | FULL |
| JCC | Irvine | 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. | unlimited | Participate in a variety of community service projects on-site at the JCC. This is a great event for families with little kids. | |
| Ronald McDonald House | Orange | 7:30 - 9:30 a.m. | FULL | We will be making breakfast for the residents. Minimum age is 10 years old. | FULL |
| WISE Place | Santa Ana | 12:30 p.m. | FULL | Prepare holiday breakfast items in the comfort of your own home and deliver the ready-to-eat item to the shelter. | FULL |
Gift cards for veterans
We are collecting $10 gift cards (Ralph’s, Target, WalMart and gas cards) to go with stockings for veterans.
Drop off in an envelope at the front desk, attention Heather Zucker. Or, we are happy to charge member cards on file.
Items from our Amazon wishlist will be sent directly to the Merage JCC. Items will be put into stockings for shelter guests. Any quantity of items will be appreciated.
| Item | Quantity Needed | Link |
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Candy Canes
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Complete | Complete |
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Chips
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6 |
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Combs
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6 |  |
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Cookies
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4 | |
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Hand Sanitizer Gel
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10 | |
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Chap-stick
|
Complete | Complete |
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Granola Bars
|
14 | |
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Toothbrushes
|
Complete | Complete |
|
Toothpaste
|
Complete | Complete |
|
Shampoo
|
8 | |
|
|
8 | |
1. Bake yummy treats. We are looking for muffins, breads, and cookies…anything that can be enjoyed as an individual bite (no pies or cakes please) to share with local shelters on Christmas Day. Drop-off baked goods at the JCC ‘s front desk on Monday, December 22, 8am-6pm. Register here.
2. Blaze it Forward. Blaze It Forward is a local movement encouraging our community to show kindness on a daily basis. It can be as simple as a wave and a heartfelt smile.
Make someone’s day with a surprising act of kindness. Paint rocks and place them around your community for other people to find.
3. Assemble Care Kits for homeless individuals. Your family can make a Care Kit (or a few), collecting items below in a Ziploc bag and including a card or handwritten note of encouragement. Drop-off Care Kits curbside at the JCC.
• chapstick
• travel-size sunscreen
• deodorant
• playing cards
• journal
• pen
• salty snack (chips, pretzels, trail mix, jerky)
• sweet treat (not chocolate to avoid melting)
• $10 gift card to Walmart, Walgreens, or CVS
4. Write a letter to a hero. Check out dearhero.org for tons of templates and ways to send letters to various heroes.
5. Become an organ donor. Designate that you’re a donor on your driver’s license and share your wishes with your family. https://donatelifecalifornia.org/
6. Volunteer digitally with The Smithsonian Institution. While they are the world’s largest museum and research complex, even they can use a little help. Volunteer online to transcribe historical documents or edit Wikipedia articles related to their artifacts and research. Smithsonian
7. Connect with a senior. Reminding seniors they are special goes a long way. Email artwork, letters, cards or photos to [email protected] or mail to Heritage Pointe at 27356 Bellogente, Mission Viejo, CA 92691.
8. Take the Green Menorah pledge. Make a pledge while lighting your candles, naturally, to make one aspect of your life greener – and inspire friends, family and your community to do the same!
9. Host a neighborhood food drive. Your family can organize a drive to help feed local families. Families Forward will provide a letter explaining why you are collecting food and a flyer listing their most needed food items. Then, you arrange a time to collect food donations from your neighbors and drive them over to their Food Pantry.
10. Use your workouts for good. Download an app like Charity Miles to earn money for great causes just by going on your morning jog or walking the dog.
11. Write a letter to an Israeli soldier. Cards/ letters can be dropped off at the JCC.
12. Clean out your closet. You are likely decluttering—but don’t trash those items so fast. Goodwill has a donation location near you.
If you have any purses, scarves or jewelry that you are donating please drop them off at the JCC. We are collecting them for a February project to benefit women living in shelters.
13. Sign up to donate blood at the JCC on December 10.
14. Cook a dish for one of our shelters. Do you love to cook? As part of our December 25 Kindness the J Way programming, we will be preparing many meals for various shelters. Click here to see how you can help.
15. Knitting for others. Do you love to knit? Knit a blanket for babies in the NICU. https://www.knotsoflove.org/how-to-donate-caps-or-nicu-blankets
16. Learn how to recycle properly. Recycling is important, but it can be complicated. What can and can’t go in your curbside bin? Find out how and where!
17. Send thank you cards to our heroes at local hospitals.
CHOC : Please write thank you notes/cards to the staff of the pediatric Mental Health Inpatient Center.
Attn: Dr. Dani Milliken, 1201 W. La Veta Ave. Orange, CA 92868
Hoag Hospital
One Hoag Dr., P. O. Box 6100, Newport Beach, CA 92658
18. Use your social media accounts for good. Organize a service project, start a food drive, raise awareness of a cause. https://getschooled.com/article/2133-10-ways-to-use-social-media-for-good/
19. Show some love on the sidewalk. Leave kind or inspiring messages on the sidewalk for your neighbors.
20. Pick up litter on the beach. Gather your family to clean up our local beaches and neighborhoods.
21. Advocate for your favorite causes. Find out who your Congress people are here https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/map and send a kid-friendly postcard.
22. Make Paracord “Survival” Bracelets for Troops and First Responders. Not only do these bracelets look cool, they can actually be used to save a life in an emergency situation. They include them in our Care Packages because they’re both functional and meaningful, as they are handmade by an American who wants to show their appreciation to our Troops and First Responders. Operation Gratitude
23. Connect homeless and community members to nonprofit resources they need desperately. 2-1-1 Orange County connects the vulnerable with the health and human resources they need when they need it most. They are looking for volunteers to work the phone lines from home. www.211oc.org
24. Switch to LED bulbs. Chanukah is the festival of lights, after all. So make the switch to LED light bulbs which, according to Energy Star, use about 75% less energy than incandescent bulbs and last 6 times longer.
25. Count your blessings. Discuss with your family five things you are grateful for this year.
If you have any questions, contact Heather Zucker.