Make A Difference Day gives opportunity to volunteer

Helping the needy, providing a boost to the military and putting a priority on good family values ... it all sounds like a cheesy, lip-service political campaign platform.

But real people from three Cape Girardeau organizations are putting those ideals into action this month as they plan to participate in Make A Difference Day on Saturday, Oct. 26.

Make A Difference Day, sponsored by the USA Weekend newspaper insert in partnership with The Points of Light Foundation, is an annual national promotion to encourage volunteering.

In Cape Girardeau, Community Counseling Center employees will donate cleaning and hygiene supplies to First Call for Help; the Girl Scouts of Otahki Council is collecting phone cards to send to military personnel; and the Cape Friends of Traditional Music and Dance will offer free participation for those who would like to try contra dancing, a line dance from the 18th century that has become popular in recent years.

Cleaning and hygiene

When generous people think about donating goods to the needy, often the first thing they think of is food and clothing.

But according to Denise Wimp, program coordinator at First Call for Help, there is a shortage of hygiene and cleaning supplies.

First Call for Help is an organization in Cape Girardeau that provides a hotline for people who need assistance. First Call refers callers to the appropriate social service organizations in the area, including the Community Counseling Center.

"One of our goals in our mission statement is to try to find gaps in the services," Wimp said. "We ask where our needs are and one of the things we identified is we needed help purchasing these types of supplies. Food stamps don't cover hygiene products and some of these products can be expensive."

Ruth Ann Mier with the Community Counseling Center said the employees there will collect the supplies for a week, beginning Oct. 21.

The donations will be made in honor of those who died in the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001, Mier said.

Free minutes

In celebration of the Girl Scouts' 90th anniversary, the Girl Scouts of Otahki Council Inc. has set a goal to collect 90,000 calling card minutes to send to military troops.

Laura Hinkebein, development and communications director for the Otahki Council, said the scouts have collected 3,000 minutes in two months, but such fund raisers usually pick up heavily in the final week or two.

Hinkebein said the American Red Cross will help get the calling cards to the military.

"Most of the scout troops have used their troop money from cookie and calendar sales to purchase phone cards," she said.

Family affair

Contra dancing is like square dancing, but in a straight line.

"It's the type of dance that was done in the early days of this country," said Judy Hubbard, dance organizer. "It's popular in the larger cities and throughout the state. It's kind of a subculture."

Hubbard said the dance, often done at social gatherings like a barn raising, can make a difference in lives today because it provides a chance for clean, fun family entertainment.

"We'd like for children to come," she said.

On Oct. 26, the dance group, which consists of about 30 to 40 people who meet once a month, is providing free participation to anyone who hears of the dance through the Make A Difference Day promotions.

The normal cost for the dance is $4 for adults and $2 for children.

bmiller@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 127

Making a difference

Created by USA WEEKEND Magazine, Make A Difference Day is an annual event that takes place on the fourth Saturday of October. In 2000, 2.2 million people volunteered, accomplishing thousands of projects in hundreds of towns and helping an estimated 25 million people. Here is how you can participate locally:

The Girls Scouts of Otahki Council, Inc., are collecting long-distance, prepaid calling cards to send to military personnel. You can drop them in a collection box at the Girl Scout service center or mail them to 1432 Kurre Lane, Cape Girardeau, Mo., 63701.

The Cape Friends of Traditional Music and Dance will offer free participation for individuals or families who would like to learn contra dance from 7:30 to 10 p.m. at the Hanover Lutheran Church Activity Center, 2949 Perryville Road.