Monica "Mo" Janzen

Pandemic Care Packages for Low Income Families

For my project, I decided that I wanted to make care packages for low-income families living in shelter homes. I chose to do this because I know that the pandemic has been very hard for everyone, especially those without a home. They’ve already had it tough, but now they struggle even more because they lost their jobs or got laid off due to COVID-19. I knew that these families needed our help more than ever, which is why I decided to organize a GoFundMe page and ask my friends and family for help. I set the goal at $500. The money would be going to creating the care packages which would include snacks and hygiene products.
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Bringing Baseball to the Community

Cole has a love of baseball and is part of the baseball community near where he lives. So, how could he take this interest and make it into organizing an activity? Cole decided to gather a group of volunteers and clean up the local fields. They cleaned, painted, hung up nets, mowed the lawn, and striped the field. Wow! Continue reading →

Movies for the US Navy

When the idea of organizing his own activity first came up, Lucas wasn’t sure what to do. We talked about what he loves and his interests: movies. Lucas even works at a movie theater! During a pandemic how could he gather people to watch a movie safely? But, then the idea came to him: he could collect people’s old Dvd’s and BluRay movies that they don’t need anymore because the have streaming services. Lucas researched and found out that service people in the US Navy can’t stream shows while they are on ships. He could donate the movies he collected to help show his appreciation for the service of those in the Navy. Continue reading →

Donation Drive for Veterans

Stephen initially thought he could organize a park clean up or do a fundraiser to engage his community. But, with Covid restrictions, these seemed like risky activities. With a former career in the armed forces, he was linked to the veteran community. When he got an email from Disabled American Veterans (DAV) asking for help with a donation drive, Stephen decided this was an activity he could help organize. He writes, “Finding communities in need is never a problem when we slow down long enough to look past ourselves and own needs.” Continue reading →

Teaching Meditation for Human Flourishing

In this organize an activity, Tommy lead a a class on meditation to share techniques he had learned and help others flourish. Learn more about this unique organize an activity! Continue reading →

Fundraiser for Rooster Redemption (Rooster Rescue and Sanctuary)

Kenzie’s commitment to both utilitarianism and veganism inspired her project: raising funds for Rooster Redemption. Kenzie raised $565 dollars and also helped raise awareness about the treatment of animals! Continue reading →

Organizing a Blood Drive with the Red Cross

Jaycee admits, “When Bella and I first started this activity our goal was to have around 11 donors. We really didn’t think that we would be able to promote the event effectively. We only had two weeks to promote and we didn’t think that would be enough time to get a lot of donors. Weston [our textbook author] says, “Don’t expect that you will always know what difference you are making or have made. The ways of this world can be subtle and circuitous. Have some faith” (Weston 463). Obviously, we did not have faith at the beginning. It wasn’t until the second and last week we promoted the event at her church where our faith grew really high. We ended up having around 25 people asking to sign up for appointments. Which was awesome! ” Continue reading →

Organizing a Donation Drive for Veterans

“Although I volunteer quite frequently it was new to me to actually organize the whole activity and execute every piece of the puzzle. It really warmed my heart to see our (meaning the staff, students, and faculties) donations go to a place that was in dire need of these things.” Kylie wanted to do more than collect items for veterans by herself. See how she organized students, faculty, and staff at the elementary school where she worked to make her donation drive a success. Continue reading →

Making Breakfast for Hospitalized Families

“My group cooking a meal for them may seem simple, but it contributes to the larger impact the Ronald McDonald House is going for. They strive to make parents and their children across the country feel like they have a safe, warm place to be even in the darkest of times. I’ve known children who have been extremely ill, and their families continuously talk about the care and hospitality the Ronald McDonald House provides. The entire world may not have been affected by our activity, but for the families we and RMHC, it meant everything.” –Makenna Continue reading here Continue reading →

Sharing a Love of Reading: Collecting Books for Middle-Schoolers

“…I saw this as my way to give back, I have no use for those books I had and I wanted people to get joy out of them like I had and I wanted to encourage reading.” See how one student was able to collect and distribute approximately 200 books to middle schoolers! Continue reading →