Category: Charitable Opportunities

Volunteer for Laundry Love

Laundry Love began when a church group working with the homeless in California after a conversation with a homeless man revealed that if he had clean clothes people might treat him like a human.  Big problem.  Simple solution: offer to do his laundry.


It has become a movement.  Shortly after I heard about this Californian idea, I received a call for help from a woman in Duxbury who was desperate to get her laundry done, but with all of the other demands on her limited income, had been unable to do it.  Now her children were being made fun of at school for smelling.  Could we help?

We’ve been doing this for a few years now. It’s small and easy to do, but for the people who receive money for their laundry it’s a pretty big deal.

 Laundry sessions are on the 2nd Wednesday of each month, from 5 pm –  7:00  pm through the summer. Our only job is to welcome people who have laundry to be washed, put money in the machines when they are ready, provide the detergent, and tidy up a bit when we’re done.

We need volunteers! Hit the Sign Up button below. Thank you!

Sign Up!

Summer Lunch Distribution

Since the Covid-19 shutdown, all children in our school district have been offered free breakfast and lunch for every day of the week.  This has been provided by the Harwood Food Service.  That program will be ending on June 12 and the baton passed to us and the Barre School District Food Service.  

We will be coordinating volunteers to pick up the meals (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) at the Berlin Park n’ Ride and to pass them out at the church during pick up hours (9 – 10 am).

There are several other churches in Waterbury who have agreed to provide help and we will be utilizing a SignUpGenius Form to coordinate all of this.  If you can spare an hour and a half, please consider helping.  It’s a big responsibility for just a few people to bear.  Even if you can only help once, it will make this project manageable for those of us who must fill in the gaps.

Here are the details:
1) Drivers:  There are two slots for drivers.  Please only fill in the Waterbury slot.  Waitsfield has it’s own team and will be doing distribution differently in the Valley.  You must have a large vehicle to signup for this.  A pickup truck or SUV would be ideal.  A large car with fold-down back seats should work.  You will be picking up approximately 600 meals.   

The driver volunteer will stop at church to pick up the empty coolers, which will be locked together under the church’s drive-under, drive to the Park ‘n Ride and return by 9 am.

2) Servers:  We need two servers at the church.  (You can be a server and a driver if you desire). We will set up in the drive-under so that even in the event of rain, curbside pickup is still possible and efficient.  One person will hand out the bags of foods through the car window.  The other will keep the tally.  Servers will arrive 15 minutes or so before 9 to set up and be ready for the food when it arrives.  The drive-thru will end at 10 am and the servers will then clean up and be done for the day.

All servers will be required to wear masks and gloves and keep the recommended 6 feet or more distance between other individuals.

Gloves and disinfectant will be provided.

Here’s the link again to the SignUpGenius. You may sign up as far ahead as you’d like.

Feeding Children During Covid-19

While schools are closed, Harwood Unified Union School District will be providing FREE meals to all children 18 and under.

Starting Wednesday, March 18th, visit us on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at one of our pick-up locations:

Thatcher Brook Primary School – Entrance on High St.
9:00 am – 1:00 pm

Moretown Elementary School – Bus Loop
9:45 am – 10:05 am

Waitsfield Elementary School – Parking Lot
10:25 am – 10:45 am

Harwood High School – Bus Loop
11:05 am – 11:25 am

Fayston Elementary School – Parking Lot
9:45 am – 10:05 am

Warren Elementary School – Bus Loop
10:25 am – 10:45 am

On Mondays, each child will receive 2 breakfasts and 2 lunches (4 meals).
On Wednesdays, each child will receive 2 breakfasts and 2 lunches (4 meals).
On Fridays, each child will receive 1 breakfast and 1 lunch (2 meals).

Procedures:
1- Please fill our google form so we can estimate how many meals to make. If you don’t have internet access please call 802-583-8022 to place an order. An order is not mandatory, but appreciated. We don’t want to run out of meals. https://forms.gle/VdXz8QmCwkfMMk6n7
2- Drive or walk to a pick up site. Children do not need to be present. Let volunteers know many children you need meals for, no questions asked.
3- Children do not need to be enrolled at HUUSD. All children will be fed as long as they are 18 and under.
4- All meals are prepared by our culinary team at Harwood High School.

For more information:
Phone: 802-583-8022 (Thatcher Brook Food & Nutrition)
email: Erika Dolan – edolan@huusd.org
Like us on Facebook @HUUSDFOOD
Visit our Website food.huusd.org

One Great Hour of Sharing

The annual One Great Hour of Sharing offering is on March 22. We will be accepting donations starting next week. Every year, since 1948, this offering has made it possible for our partner organizations to feed the hungry, clothe the poor and provide shelter for the homeless. Every effort is made to work through member churches and missions closest to those in need. Where our churches and missions are not present, we work through respected and responsible organizations such as the Salvation Army, Habitat for Humanity, World Vision and Church World Services, all of them Christian, four star Charity Navigator recommended agencies. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be reminding you about this offering and providing real-life examples of ways in which OGHS has changed people’s lives.