We host a service event once a month to help our community.
Our volunteer service events are our way of giving back to our community and supporting the resources we benefit from.
As parents, we strive to teach our children about compassion, generosity, and social responsibility. We demonstrate these values through our volunteer services.
WAM & Fam recognizes how fortunate we are to have access to several free facilities—parks and playgrounds, recreation centers, libraries, and nature centers—that consistently provide excellent programming and resources for our families.
Our volunteer service events are our way of giving back to our community and supporting the resources we benefit from.
Our external volunteer services benefit low-income families, victims of abuse, refugees, and others in need of assistance. Organizations that we have worked with assist local Wheaton and Silver Spring residents. For example, we’ve worked with A Wider Circle, Meals on Wheels of Central Maryland, the Greater DC Diaper Bank, Lutheran Social Services of the National Capital Area, and the Montgomery County Family Justice Center.
Past initiatives have included the following:
- Donating books to our local libraries and hospitals
- Packing wholesome meals for the weekend for low-income families
- Knitting blankets and hats for sick children
- Collecting clothes and other household items for survivors of domestic abuse
To achieve this level of outreach, WAM & Fam aims to host one service event per month that benefits our community. We work with various local non-profits, organize drives, and sponsor hands-on events that take place mostly during the weekdays. All of our volunteer service events include a group playdate, which allows our children to enjoy themselves while learning about community service.
WAM & Fam members can participate in any or all service events that interest them. But we do expect members to participate in at least one volunteer service per year, which can be done through donating time, items, or money.
Our service coordinator organizes these events and posts them to WAM & Fam’s shared Google calendar, so members can see what events are next.
Note: We do not publish our current calendar on the Internet to protect the privacy and safety of our members.
No one should have to go it alone. Thus, we strive to help our fellow WAM & Fam members. Through our Helping Hands program, we assist our internal community when members are in need of extra help.
Welcoming a new baby? Moving? Dealing with a major medical situation? When one of our own needs a little extra support, we want to help.
How it works
Through Helping Hands, our members can either request help or offer help to other WAM & Fam members in need. Our Helping Hands coordinator can match you with other members who can assist with meals, playdates, or errands.
Members who sign up to deliver a Helping Hands meal usually provide a family with dinner for one night. If members wish to provide additional servings, that’s very kind but not expected.
Easy ways to give a meal
We all know that managing to get dinner on the table for your own family can be a challenge. As such, here are a few ways to make preparing an extra meal easier:
- Order delivery for the family via DoorDash or order pizza.
- Pick up a rotisserie chicken and heat-and-eat sides from the grocery store.
- Save take-out containers, large yogurt containers, or GladWare to use for delivering meals.
- Double the servings of whatever you are making for dinner.
- Make use of that slow or pressure cooker.
If you are interested in receiving or providing Helping Hands assistance, please contact us. State in the subject line “Helping Hands inquiry.”
WAM & Fam partners with Manna Food Center on its Smart Sacks program. These sacks provide weekend food for school kids from low-income families. Twice a month, WAM & Fam holds Smart Sacks events, which any of our members can attend to help pack bags of food while our kids play together.
A sample bag would include a pound of dry pasta, a can of beans, a can of vegetables, a bottle of milk, two packs of oatmeal, a snack bar, a fruit cup, and possibly more. Basically, it is enough food to prepare a complete meal for breakfast and lunch on both days of the weekend.
Our past volunteer services have included working with the following:
- Friends of the Library, White Oak Chapter: book donations
- Greater DC Diaper Bank: diapers, wipes, formula, etc. donations
- I Support the Girls: bra donations
- Knots of Love: knitted hat donations for sick children
- Lutheran Social Services of the National Capital Area: toiletry donations for local refugees
- Meals on Wheels of Central Maryland: goodie bag donations with snacks and toiletries
- Mid-County United Ministries Food Pantry: cereal donations
- Montgomery County Family Justice Center: stuffed animals for victims of domestic violence
- Project Linus: knitted blankets for sick children
- Red Cross: blood donations
- Second Chance Toys: plastic toy donations
- Shepherd’s Table: casseroles donated to help feed the homeless
- Troopons: snacks, coupons, and thank you cards to support U.S. soldiers
- A Wider Circle: time, professional clothing, and toy donations
- World Wildlife Fund: monetary donations