What does Thanksgiving mean to the Top Agent Realty – Doctors of Real Estate team? It is all about expressing gratitude, as well as an opportunity to help others around us. Since our team is always looking to help volunteer at various charities, we thought it would be perfect to share some of these causes and events with our clients, in case they wanted to volunteer too!

Dre Project: Mission is to deliver groceries and home cooked meals to families facing hardship in the Metro Detroit community. They deliver dry goods and meals to families facing challenging times, as well as provide additional resources.

• How Can You Help? The Dre project looks for delivery drivers to deliver their dry goods and meals to the different families in need. They also look for volunteers to pack the food, as well as volunteer chefs to cook the food. The different volunteer opportunities can be found at: https://thedreproject.org/volunteer-1. Click the link and select “current volunteer opportunities” to see available slots, days, and times for volunteer work!

Play Place Autism & Special Needs Center: Mission is to provide a fun-filled, judgment-free, haven of hope for families affected by autism and other special needs. Their 17,000 Sq Ft facility provides a unique play-powered environment. They combine recreation and education activities with a variety of social, occupational and physical therapeutic overtones.

• How can You Help? They are in need of patient, caring, smiling volunteers with a passion for helping others! Volunteer 3 to 4 hours of your time and inspire for a lifetime. Sign up for one shift, multiple shifts or even the same shift each week. Volunteers must be 16 years old, have some sort of ID to bring with them on their first day, and complete 35 minutes of HIPAA compliance training. Visit link to learn more: https://autisticplayplace.org/volunteer/

Single Family Living: Goal is to provide positive guidance and outreach to single family living in the areas of finance, education, relationships, housing, family care, counseling, life skills, stress management, and economic development. They are a human services non-profit organization helping children from single families to receive assistance in education, combating homelessness and illiteracy in Michigan.

• How Can You Help? This organization is involved in several projects and is looking for more ideas! As of right now, their projects include sewing masks for adults in need, sorting through feminine products to fight against Menstrual Inequity, have shoe and pop can drives, and are looking for ideas from their volunteers as well! Get more information on their projects here: https://www.singlefamilyliving.org/volunteerproject. Fill out their volunteer application here: https://www.singlefamilyliving.org/volunteer.

Yatooma’s Foundation For the Kids Inc.: Bringing Tenderness To Tragedy and turning tragedy to triumph for the families of kids who have lost a parent by providing practical, professional, and personal assistance at each stage of the grieving and recovery process. Yatooma’s Foundation For The Kids is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing guidance, stability, and financial assistance to families with children who have lost one or both parents. This all-too-common tragedy transcends the lines of race, religion, and status and often forces children to prematurely assume the burden of adult responsibility.

In addition to immediate financial resources for living expenses, Yatooma’s Foundation For The Kids attempts to provide at least some semblance of the parent’s mentoring hand, now reduced to memories and photographs.

• How Can You Help? Through donation and physical volunteer opportunities. What this organization provides includes direct financial support, as well as professional grief counseling, legal services, accounting services, job placement, scholarships, tutoring, vocational training, mentoring, and even household services, among many others. Connect with them by messaging them or donate by visiting the following page on their website: https://forthekidsfoundation.org/

If none of the above volunteer services is how you’re looking to or able to help, that is okay! Volunteer Match is a website that can help give you more opportunities, specified by location and what areas of the community you want to focus on, such as women, animals, children & youth, and more. Visit this website by clicking the following link: https://www.volunteermatch.org/search. We hope you find the volunteer matched to an important cause to you, and wish you and your family a very Happy Thanksgiving!