“You likely don’t remember me,” began a letter by Jim Gourley to Pam Landwirth a couple of years ago, “…but I work at Coca-Cola Bottling Company Consolidated, and was led to the Village by your website (and the Princess!) and thought it would be a great opportunity to enhance my servant leadership abilities through helping (click for more)
Tucked away in Miss Pitty Pat’s Garden of Hope is a special place called Bethany’s Garden, named after a special little girl, wish kid Bethany. It’s a place where our very own Mayor Clayton and Ms. Merry call home. Bethany’s wish trip was in April of 2004 and according to her grandparents Kerry and Diane Slaven who are lovingly known around the Village as Mama Bear & Papa Bear, Bethany loved Give Kids The World more than any of the amusement parks. While she enjoyed all the Village activities, she always gravitated to her favorite place, Mayor Clayton and Ms. Merry’s house. (click for more)
One day at the beginning of junior year in college, I received an email of campus weekly announcements. I quickly scrolled through the email, when all of a sudden I saw the heading “Apply to Give Kids The World Alternative Spring Break Trip.”I had never heard of Give Kids The World before, so I went on their website and started to learn more. I instantly texted my roommate from sophomore year, who is also an education major, and said “We have to apply for this service trip.” This trip encompassed two of my favorite things: working with children and helping others. I wound up not getting a spot to go to Give Kids The World that year but was determined to make the cut senior year. I applied as soon as I could the following year, was accepted, and could not wait to spend my senior spring break 2020 volunteering at Give Kids The World. (click for more)
Happy National Volunteer Week! The past month has certainly been surreal. With Give Kids The World temporarily empty of guests, we’ve been challenged to think of innovative, yet virtual, ways to celebrate this year. It’s been difficult. Not because there aren’t a ton of wonderful things we can and will do… but because it means we won’t be together in-person at the Village. Our volunteers are more than just the heartbeat of Give Kids The World, they’re the lifeblood of our Village family. (click for more)
I started volunteering for Give Kids The World Village around 2011. One night in 2013 when I was closing out the office, I met Josh, who was volunteering that night in Katie’s Kitchen. We found out we both worked for The Walt Disney Company and had a few things in common and soon started dating. (click for more)
