Representatives of United Way of Calvert County announced plans for a traditional day of hard work and fun. The organization’s annual Day of Caring will be held Wednesday, Sept. 12. This will be the 18th such event the local organization’s history. The summary of the annual event was presented Tuesday, Aug. 28 during the weekly meeting of the Calvert County Commissioners.
“This organization gives back to the community,” said Calvert County Assistant Sheriff Col. Tom Hejl, who is the current chairman of the local United Way’s board of directors.
The 2012 Day of Caring will kickoff at 8 a.m. Sept. 12 inside the Bayside Toyota showroom. According to United Way of Calvert’s Director of Operations Sherri Gedridge, this year’s event has 37 projects providing work for the one-day volunteers. Gedridge said the projects involve 18 local agencies under the United Way banner and currently 13 county government workers have volunteered. Additionally, 40 local businesses are giving workers the day off in order to participate in the Day of Caring.
This year, two agencies—Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Southern Maryland and Farming 4 Hunger—will collaborate to harvest and pack produce for distribution to the region’s families in need. The project could involve as many as 50 volunteers.
Calvert Hospice will have four separate projects, which involve washing windows, garden work, stuffing envelopes and painting a logo. The local hospice is seeking someone with artistic talent to tackle the latter task.
The Chesapeake Cares Food Pantry has five projects for the Day of Caring volunteers. The work includes gardening, off-loading approximately 14,000 pounds of food, housekeeping and preparing microwavable meals for homebound/disabled seniors.
Hejl, who thanked the commissioners for their support of United Way and its partner agencies, invited the elected officials to join the bus tour which will include stops at many of the projects.
For more information on the full list of projects or to register, call United Way of Calvert County at 410-286-0100 or visit their web site www.unitedwaycalvert.org.
Contact Marty Madden at marty.madden@thebaynet.com
