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The BIG Question!

I'm a mom. I've stood in the checkout line with kids having meltdowns, trying to stop the cart in the aisles, refusing to go somewhere, let alone do service, and have carried a toddler and a heavy box of food from the Food Bank one flight at a time because I wanted to teach my kids to serve. So why do we do all of this? Because of who our kids (and even us adults) can become. It also can help who they (and we) are today: health, happiness, and skill-wise. After I've convinced you with all of the good reasons below, visit my Pinterest page for kid-friendly ideas, or comment below with what kind of service you're looking for and I'll brainstorm for you.

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They've Got My Back

This is a cool article from the Parents Magazine blog that talks about benefits for children when they serve, as well as gives some ideas for serving. Thought I'd share. Also I thought I'd share a picture of my "baby" when we made and handed out burritos with the Burrito Project  (this one is in Salt Lake City, but the organization is found throughout the U.S.) to people who are homeless. She didn't want to get out of the car to hand them out, but since I wasn't about to leave her alone in the car across the street from the city bus depot, I made her come along. She did great and even commented on how grateful the people that we gave the burritos to were.     Volunteer With Your Kids     https://www.parents.com/parenting/better-parenting/style/volunteer-with-your-kids/

Straight-up Bribery

Sometimes we need to move to creative ideas, fun activities, or full on bribery to get kids to do service. It's not the best reason for kids (or any of us) to do service, but it gives them the chance to learn how to step up and serve. Hopefully they'll also gain some meaningful connections that will change their attitude about it along the way. Here are some suggestions for getting them started: Service can be hard work, reward yourselves with a treat that is somehow special to what you are doing. After we drop off the box we deliver from the food bank each month, we head over two blocks to  Thirst  for sodas and popcorn (after all, they have happy drinks & treats). It was also started by an 18 year-old, so we like to support his gumption.  Throw a party!  Service project party - choose a project and have your kids invite friends over to work on it. We did this once for the  Festival of Trees , a fundraiser for Primary Children's Hospital. My daughter...

Words from the (kid) President

I love this guy! I like to show this video to students to inspire them and break down what service really is. And you get to dance at the end, so what else can I say? Thanks SoulPancake for being so clever and entertaining, and putting life in perspective. See their Youtube channel for more of the good stuff  https://www.youtube.com/user/soulpancake .