Additional Resources

Raising Charitable Children

In her warm, welcoming, and often funny book, Weisman shares real-life stories collected from all over the world of how parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, teachers, Scout leaders, friends, next door neighbors, and her own family have either initiated or supported ways to teach children how to give back to those in need.

Brief Excerpt

Getting Past Gimme-Gimme
When I heard my youngest son say his first word— "Donalds," short for McDonald’s—I knew I was in trouble. When he was two, he told me he wanted a Walker mobile home and a Remington electric shaver for Christmas. He could barely walk, yet already Jono was latching onto the consumerist, "gimme-gimme" mindset that permeates our society. I could see that some major values education was needed—otherwise, my angelic, golden-haired child was going to turn into a materialistic, selfish little brat. . . .

Children today are inundated with all kinds of messages about being consumers—to want for themselves rather than to give of themselves. But putting a cell phone in their pockets and the right shoes on their feet will never provide the long-term happiness fix children crave. What they need even more is the warmth of human contact—the warmth that comes from giving more than receiving.

 

The Youth Volunteer Audit

Supporting youth and helping them develop into life-long volunteers is no small task. Donna Lockhart has provided a tool for successfully assessing youth engagement in our volunteer programs.

 

Brief Excerpt

As Managers of Volunteers, we are in the business of nurturing and promoting the benefits of voluntarism not just for today but with a keen eye to what resources will be needed in the future. Successfully engaging youth today may mean resource sustainability in the years to come. This is the true meaning of the term "gift" that I was trying to relate. We need tools and strategies that enable us to support youth and build them into life-long volunteers. Not a small or simple task.

This is the purpose behind The Youth Volunteer Audit. We need to understand, develop and implement best practices for dealing with young people as volunteers. They are a unique target group that deserves our attention. I believe this tool will assist organizations to work with youth in non volunteer experiences as well – those school directed activities like "community service," "co-operative programs" and "placement."

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