OU CARES
Habitat for Humanity
Change Changes Lives: Red Cross

OU CARES
Oakland University, Rochester, MI

OU CARES is a resource, recreational, and educational center for families who have children with autism. MYLead volunteers are needed to work with participants under the guidance of Oakland University counselors to provide a variety of recreational activities including:

Soccer
Basketball
Baseball
Martial arts
Multi-media
Cartooning
Social groups
Sensory play
Science exploration
Movement and Dance

Basketball is on Friday nights. Soccer, martial arts and cartooning are usually on Saturday mornings. The rest of the programs are on weeknights. Most sessions run eight weeks long. The next session will start mid-April and run through the first week in June. Volunteers opportunities are also available for summer camps.

To find out more about service opportunities and programs you can help with, click here to visit the OU CARES website, click on Support, then Recreational Programs.

To volunteer - contact Shelly Nason, a MYLead alumni . Shelly will coordinate MYLead’s volunteer efforts. Those interested can email Shelly at: fsscsoccergurl5@sbcglobal.net or call her at 810-695-4015

Habitat for Humanity

Looking for a good way to spend Saturdays or Summer Break? Watch for updates in the near future for specific Habitat project dates when MYLead volunteers will join forces and work together. Or take a leadership role by contacting your local Habitat affiliate to find out how you can help . . . organize a group of MYLead Alumni to work together. Keep us informed about what you’re doing so others can help too. Habitat for Humanity Fact Sheet: http://www.habitat.org/how/factsheet.aspx What is Habitat for Humanity International? - Habitat for Humanity International is a nonprofit organization. HFHI seeks to eliminate poverty housing and homelessness from the world, and to make decent shelter a matter of conscience and action. Habitat invites people of all backgrounds, races and religions to build houses together in partnership with families in need. Habitat has built more than 225,000 houses around the world, providing more than 1 million people in more than 3,000 communities with safe, decent, affordable shelter. HFHI was founded in 1976 by Millard Fuller along with his wife, Linda.

Collegiate Challenge volunteers trim vinyl siding.

How does it work? - Through volunteer labor and donations of money and materials, Habitat builds and rehabilitates simple, decent houses with the help of the homeowner (partner) families. Habitat houses are sold to partner families at no profit and financed with affordable loans. The homeowners’ monthly mortgage payments are used to build still more Habitat houses.

Habitat is not a giveaway program. In addition to a down payment and the monthly mortgage payments, homeowners invest hundreds of hours of their own labor - sweat equity - into building their Habitat house and the houses of others.

What are Habitat affiliates? - Habitat for Humanity’s work is accomplished at the community level by affiliates - independent, locally run, nonprofit organizations. Each affiliate coordinates all aspects of Habitat home building in its local area - fund raising, building site selection, partner family selection and support, house construction, and mortgage servicing.

If you’re not sure where a local Habitat affiliate might be, use the search engine to find the names and phone numbers of affiliates in your area, or contact the Habitat Help Line at (800) 422-4828, Ext. 2551 or 2552.

How can I become a volunteer? - To volunteer where you live, use our affiliate search engine to find contact information for your local affiliate. Other opportunities to support Habitat’s work also are available - see our get involved section. List of Michigan Habitat Affiliates http://www.habitatmichigan.org/resources/thelist.shtml

The American Red Cross of Southeastern Michigan invites youth to practice and exemplify humanitarian values. Everyone can make a difference in the lives of those around them and feel good that they have contributed to their community. The American Red Cross mission is to provide relief to victims of disaster and to help people prevent, prepare for and respond to emergencies.

DID YOU KNOW?
- The Red Cross in Southeastern Michigan responds to an average of 4 home fires every day.
- Families are helped with food, clothing and shelter to begin to get back on their feet.
- Fires effect families in all of the communities in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties.
- Family fires are often not the news ‘headliners’ as are other major disasters, yet each year hundreds of local families loose their home and belongings.

Change can start with you!
- Change Changes Lives is a program designed to help youth contribute to helping local families affected by fires.
- Pocket change from parents, or the price of a snack food item from children can add up !
- Quarters, Nickels, Dimes
- Adding it up! Change Changes Lives is not intended to be a sales campaign but a simple act of dropping extra change in a container.
- If each person in a school of 500 dropped in the equivalent of .25¢ your school would collect $125.
- That’s enough to buy groceries for a family of 2 for 2 weeks or a winter jacket for an adult.
- It Starts with You.
- Help us Change Lives.
- A volunteer is available come to your school or youth group to make presentations about the Red Cross local disaster services or give out information on fire prevention.

Please contact Diane Johnson at 313-578-4610 for more information and to get started as a Change Agent for our community!

To help with Red Cross Blood Drives, contact a Blood Volunteer Specialist

Area	Contact Name	Contact Phone
Detroit Area	Nicole Brady	313-494-2862
Bloomfield Area	Ani Garabedian	248-322-4659
Riverview and Livonia Area	Debbie Berens	734-542-0459 or 734-282-4289
Dearborn Area	Merlean Cavitt	313-278-5494
Macomb Area	Carrice	586-756-7600 Ext. 4619
Other Areas	Jessie Gonyea Community Liaison	313-576-4158 gonyeaj@usa.redcross.org

www.redcross.org

MYLead is proud to be accredited by the National Society for Youth Leadership.

The Michigan General Federation of Women's Club (GFWC) endorses MYLead.

MYLead participates on GuideStar.org, the on-line standard for nonprofit accountability. Click the logo above to view MYLead's listing.

Question or comments? Please contact us. questions@mylead.org 39741 Salvatore Drive / Sterling Heights, MI 48313 Phone: (888) 269-4075 Fax: (888) 269-4075