Families
Active in
Volunteer
Enrichment
Past F.A.V.E. Projects
April 2024: Create Welcome Home bags for Alexandria House
FAVE Fam members will receive a family kit to create items to be placed inside the Welcome Home bags for residents at Alexandria House. Alexandria House provides safe and supportive housing for women and children in the process of moving from emergency shelter to economic stability and permanent housing. Depaul USA Casa Milagrosa provides a warm and welcoming refuge for up to 140 homeless people daily near MacArthur Park.
March 2024: Cultivate soil and crops with Grow Good
FAVE will be on site at Grow Good to help cultivate the soil and crops at their Urban Farm adjacent to the shelter in Bell, CA. We will also be making starter pantry kits for those transitioning from the adjacent shelter esrved by Grow Good to permanent housing through our at-home kits.
January 2024: L.A. Works MLK Volunteer Festival
MLK Day is a great opportunity for individuals, families, groups, and friends looking to serve the community on this national holiday. At the LA Memorial Coliseum in 1964, Dr. King passionately and persuasively addressed 15,000 Angelenos on the issues of race relations and human dignity. In 2023, L.A. Works will continue our long tradition of honoring Dr. King’s legacy by empowering Angelenos to take collective action in the fight for food and climate justice. While the root cause is systemic white supremacy, the symptoms are that Black, Brown, Indigenous, and low income people have access to the unhealthiest foods and are bearing a disproportionate impact from climate disruptions.
December 2023: Winterfest at CalVets
Make gifts and visit veterans! Spread cheer by making cocoa, gifts, and cards while visiting with residents housed at CalVets. CalVet has a residential program that offers affordable long-term care to aged and disabled veterans as well as their eligible spouses and domestic partners. Honoring these non-profit partners reminds us that while Veterans’ Day is in November, veterans’ issues are ongoing and deserve attention all year. We will meet in person on Saturday, December 9th for this outdoor event to put together cocoa kits with mugs, make scarves and key chains, and visit with the veterans who live at CalVets. It was a great event for all of those who participated last year, and the vets cannot wait for us to return!
November 2023: Stuff-a-Bear for Kids at Hope in a Suitcase
Dress and stuff teddy bears! This project will help children connect with other children and build empathy. Parents and children will hear from employees at Claris Health and Hope in a Suitcase about their work.
October 2023: At-home Project
Volunteers will make cute and creative teddy bear t-shirt and cards with bear biographies for use during out November Stuff-a-Bear event. The tees will be part of a holiday gift for children recovering from trauma or family spearation as well as those in the foster care system.
September 2023: Fall Arts Festival by Allies for Every Child
This volunteer opportunity allows families to give back to other families in a meaningful way. Allies for Every Child cannot host this festival designed for family bonding without the help of volunteers! Seeing children laughing and enjoying a day of art is an invaluable experience. Volunteers will also learn about the important work that Allies for Every Child is doing every day to help our community!
July 2023: Snack Packs for Bridge to Home
Volunteers will create snack packs to be placed in sack lunches for unhoused individuals being served by Bridge to Home. They will decorate the snack bags with inspirational messages.The mission of Bridge to Home is to provide shelter, support services, and permanent affordable housing and to advocate for sustainable solutions for Santa Clarita. They are currently serving 70 meals daily and working on a new facility that will provide 60 beds and 8 separate apartment-style units that can accommodate up to 32 people. They anticipate serving over 1,000 unduplicated individuals every year at this new facility. By preparing hygiene kits, volunteers are helping the unhoused and those vulnerable by providing them with essentials.
June 2023: Hygiene Kits for Bridge to Home
FAVE members will be making hygiene kits for our partner Bridge to Home. The mission of Bridge to Home is to provide shelter, support services, and permanent affordable housing and to advocate for sustainable solutions for Santa Clarita. They are currently serving 70 meals daily and working on a new facility that will provide 60 beds and 8 separate apartment-style units that can accommodate up to 32 people. They anticipate serving over 1,000 unduplicated individuals every year at this new facility. By preparing hygiene kits, volunteers are helping the unhoused and those vulnerable by providing them with essentials.
May 2023: Baby Bundles with Custom Onesies at Community’s Child
Volunteers will create baby bundles containing custom-decorated onesies, wrapped up with an encouraging card to the new moms. These baby bundles will go to our non-profit partner Community’s Child, a residential living program open to unhoused, single mothers with an infant under the age of one.
April 2023: Garden Revitilization and Student Garden Kits
This Earth Day, FAVE will be on site at a school site in Pasadena to weed and beautify an existing garden! The extra TLC that FAVE members will give to the garden will allow it to become a hands-on outdoor classroom for students! Our at-home kit project is to assemble garden kits that will be donated to students.
March 2023: Snuffle Mats for Dogs
We will be making snuffle mats to create an item that provides function and fun to shelter dogs. Snuffle mats are a fabulous way to let dogs sniff which is something they need to do! Snuffle mats and scent games indoors are perfect for shelter dogs. Scent games are mentally stimulating for dogs and keep their superpower (their nose) in top form. Plus, it’s fun! Click on this video to see this instructional video on snuffle mats!
February 2023: Tree Planting in Cheeseboro Canyon with NPS
With support from California Volunteers, L.A. Works has expanded its capacity to serve organizations addressing climate issues! As part of this initiative, join us for a day of wildfire mitigation through habitat restoration by planting trees in Cheeseboro Canyon with the National Park Service and Santa Monica Mountains Foundation!
January 2023: MLK Day
In honor of the national MLK Day of Service holiday, more than a thousand volunteers came together to take collective action in our fight for food and climate justice. Even the youngest volunteers will rotate through eco-action stations in our FAVE zone filled with non-profit partners and projects!
December 2022: Winterfest at CalVets
For December we'll be hosting a hot cocoa station for elderly veterans at Cal Vets, decorating mugs, making scarves, keychains, and handmade cards. These Veterans are going to love the handmade gifts and the smiles this holiday season!
December 2022: Winterfest at CalVets
For December we'll be hosting a hot cocoa station for elderly veterans at Cal Vets, decorating mugs, making scarves, keychains, and handmade cards. These Veterans are going to love the handmade gifts and the smiles this holiday season!
October 2022: Halloween Treat Bags
These treat bags will go to the youth at A Place Called Home (APCH). APCH provides the youth of South Los Angeles with a safe, nurturing environment to develop healthy lives. These bags will be given out at their Halloween Festival.
September 2022: Book Drive Part II.
This is a two-part project featuring an August book drive of culturally diverse books which we will donate to Inglewood-based Urban Scholar Academy. We are looking for books with representation so we can get students excited about reading! We will also be learning about the importance of representation in a classroom library and accessibility to diverse literature. In September we will meet in person to clean and organize the library–labeling all of the donated books and organizing the entire library.
August 2022: Book Drive Part I.
This is a two-part project featuring an August book drive of culturally diverse books which we will donate to Inglewood-based Urban Scholar Academy. We are looking for books with representation so we can get students excited about reading! We will also be learning about the importance of representation in a classroom library and accessibility to diverse literature. In September we will meet in person to clean and organize the library–labeling all of the donated books and organizing the entire library.
July 2022: No Sew Baby Blankets
These baby blankets will go to our non-profit partner Community’s Child, a residential living program open to unhoused, single mothers with an infant under the age of one.
June 2022: Assemble Backpacks with School Supplies for Students
Our 2022 focus has been on Education Equity. We have created a number of projects for 2022 helping to address this national program by focusing on local Los Angeles schools and supporting non-profits working to close the achievement gap and make education equitable. We will place these backpacks with students who need them through those non-profit partners.
May 2022: FAVE at ImagineLA event Celebration of Families
Volunteers will help set up for the event and set up a FAVE-sponsored craft table where children can create gifts and cards. This is an event designed to provide a fun, family event for ImagineLA families. The at-home gifts of games will be included in a gift bag provided for each family and will promote more family time to help strenghten family relationships.
April 2022: Creating Kids' Content at AAFFM
Volunteers will tour ther museum and create a “Kids’ Corner,” expanding educational family-friendly activities at the African American Firefighter Museum. Volunteers will also refresh some outdoor spaces at this Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument.
March 2022: Garden Beautification
Volunteers will be cleaning, weeding, and replanting an existing garden space on site at Neighborhood Youth Association (NYA). The garden is cared for by students from the after school program as a way to enhance understanding of how to cultivate fresh, sustainable produce and expose students to an array of new fruit, vegetables, and herbs to help promote nutrition. This project will help revive the garden so students can resume their outdoor learning!
February 2022: LEGO STEM Kits
Volunteers will learn about the importance of emphasizing STEM from an early age by assembling LEGO STEM kits. STEM Lego Kits are donated to the Inglewood location of I Have a Dream Foundation to the cohort of 4th and 5th grade students in their after school program. “I Have a Dream” Foundation, Los Angeles provides long-term support to youth living in under-resourced communities to help them reach their full potential.
January 2022: Teacher Supply Bins
Learn about education equity while assembling Teacher Supply Bins! These bins are being donated to volunteer teachers working through Reading Partners, a non-profit that trains volunteers in under-resourced schools in order to support learning loss and close the achievement gap–something that is certainly timely given the demands of students returning from distance learning during the pandemic.
December 2021: Cozy Cocoa Cups
Learn about Veterans, and why they need our help. For December we hosted a hot cocoa station for elderly veterans at Cal Vets, decorating mugs, making scarves and hand made cards. Veterans received handmade gifts and the smiles during the holiday season!
November 2021: Holiday Meal Kits + Recipe books
Learn about Food Insecurity in Los Angeles while assembling Holiday Meal Kits + Recipe Books. We donated them through Inner City Law Center's program Homeful LA. With generous support from donors, foundations, and dedicated volunteers, ICLC’s diverse and talented staff fights for justice for individuals experiencing homelessness, low-income tenants, working-poor families, immigrants, people living with HIV/AIDS or other disabilities, and homeless veterans." - From Inner City Law Center
October 2021: Dia de los Muertos Treat Bags
Learn about Dia de los Muertos and Hispanic Heritage Month. For October we made Dia de los Muertos treat bags for an amazing organization: Mujeres de la Tierra. They have an annual procession and alter installation for Dia de los Muertos - our treat bags will be a part of their community outreach.
September 2021: Dog Toys
Learn to advocate for animals. We partnered with K9 Youth Alliance who bring together teens from under-resourced communities to help train shelter dogs in need to make fleece dog toys.
August 2021: Assemble Backpacks for Kids in Need
Learn about Operation Teddy Bear and how to help build empathy in children along with education equity. We're partnering with the Volunteer Center and their program Operation Teddy Bear, centered on helping kids emotionally and educationally to assemble backpacks for donation.
July 2021: Build-A-Bear for Kids in the Foster System
Learn about the ways the foster system is helping kids and learn a bit about the struggles foster kids go through. For July we'll be making amazing gifts for kids in the foster system. Stuffed animals bring joy, creativity, and comfort to all, and for these kids they'll come at a time when they really need a friend.
June 2021: PRIDE Rainbow Cookies
June is PRIDE month so we'll be making rainbow cookies to show our love and support for homeless youth served by Safe Place for Youth in Venice.
May 2021: Mental Health Self-Care Kits
Learn about mental health during Mental Health Awareness Month. This year Mental Health America chose the theme Tools 2 Thrive. We chose Self-Care as one of the tools shown to improve mental health and our kits will contain Tools 2 Thrive!
April 2021: Clean Up for Earth Day!
Learn about the impacts of trash on our streets. This month we will be cleaning up our own neighborhoods, parks, trails, and beaches. You choose the location and make an impact that will have a positive effect on the whole world. We'll be learning about how trash on our streets flows to the ocean and can end up across the world. Plug into advocacy actions with Heal the Bay or even consider their Adopt-a-Beach program.
March 2021: Making Edible Garden Kits
Learn from students at Environmental Charter School about how to plant a garden. We'll also be discussing Cesar Chavez and the importance of farm workers.
March 2021: Making Edible Garden Kits
Learn from students at Environmental Charter School about how to plant a garden. We'll also be discussing Cesar Chavez and the importance of farm workers.
February 2021: Making STEM Kits
This Black History Month we are making STEM Kits for youth served at the Watts Empowerment Center. We'll be learning about the amazing contributions of Black individuals to the STEM fields.
Questions?
Email: fave@laworks.com
Become a F.A.V.E. Corporate sponsor!
We know that there are many small businesses looking for a chance to provide a day of service for their employees. Sponsoring a FAVE project is a great way to enable your small business to be a part of a day of service. There are many ways to donate to FAVE, reach out to learn more!