REMEMBERING OUR TOP 10!

By: Generation SERVE Staff

We’re turning 10 on June 28th, and there’s no better way to celebrate the best decade ever than by remembering our 10 favorite moments in Generation SERVE history!

#1: Our First Activity (2009)
 
When Marissa Vogel founded Generation SERVE -- then Little Helping Hands -- to engage her daughters in volunteerism, it was the height of the financial recession. Throughout the summer of 2009, we partnered with Dream Dinners to prepare three months' worth of meals for families hit the hardest.

#2: The Governor's Volunteer Award (2011)
 
In 2011, we were honored with the Community Leadership Award, presented by the OneStar Foundation and the office of the Texas Governor to one outstanding nonprofit each year!

#3: New Office Space (2014)
 
We finally moved out of our founder's home and into an office space of our own in 2014! A dedicated headquarters allowed us to pilot programs like Service Learning and Youth Leadership, host new volunteer opportunities, identify new partners and, ultimately, serve more youth!

#4: Launching the Youth Leadership Program (2015)
 
As our organization grew, so did the kids we were serving. Teens were asking for more challenging opportunities to give back and lead...and we answered their call! Our inaugural class of Youth Leadership Program engaged 8 high schoolers to lead our volunteer activities over the summer.

#5: Presidential Service Awards (2015)
 
By 2015, our programs had grown significantly and some participants had racked up enough hours to be honored by the President! We became a certifying organization to give our volunteers the recognition they deserved. That year, we honored 7 kids with Bronze Presidential Service Awards.

#6: Launching the Service Learning Program (2016)
 
We heard from our upper elementary-aged volunteers that they were itching to dive deeper into service, too. In response, we piloted a program to teach 3rd-5th graders about how they could help the environment. Today, our Service Learning Program offers seven service topics!

#7: Visit from Texas' First Lady (2017)
 
First Lady Cecilia Abbott visited our Youth Leadership participants as part of her "Texanthropy" initiative, which encourages Texans to get involved through volunteerism and philanthropy. The First Lady spoke to our middle schoolers about her passion for service and was even made an honorary Junior Leader!

#8: Generation SERVE (2017)
 
We started off as Little Helping Hands, but as the organization grew...so did our volunteers! We needed a name that better represented who we were and how we had evolved. Generation SERVE emphasizes our vision of impacting generations of kids who are passionate, engaged, and community-focused leaders.

#9: Family Volunteer Day (2017)
 
In November of 2017, we hosted our inaugural Austin Families Give Back event, celebrated in conjunction with national Family Volunteer Day. This massive service fair brought together over 200 families to complete service projects for dozens of nonprofits across Central Texas!

#10: Our 10th Birthday (2019)
 
We have spent the past decade serving our community and building a movement to involve youth and families in volunteerism. In the past ten years, we have engaged over 40,000 youth and their families in over 90,000 hours of community service...but we're just getting started! Thank you for helping us make this the best decade ever!

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In celebration of our 10th birthday, please consider a donation of $10 to launch us into the next decade of service! Your gift will help us bring the youth volunteerism movement to even more kids and families. #10for10

MAKE A BIRTHDAY GIFT

The Miura Group is generously matching up to $2,500 in donations, so your gift goes twice as far!

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