National Make a Difference Day

An unofficial secular holiday that’s held annually on the fourth Saturday of October, National Make A Difference Day was founded in 1992 – just shy of three decades worth of service, kindness, and human goodness! It is a day inspired by the now-defunct USA Weekend, although at the time it was the second-largest national newspaper. 1992 was a leap year, so USA Weekend suggested to its readers that they should take the extra day to make a difference by doing something good for their communities or for those in need. Alongside Points of Light, USA Weekend helped sponsor the largest national day of community service for more than twenty years! Now, the ‘national holiday’ is celebrated by those communities, organizations, and individuals who remember the positive changes it fostered while it was actively sponsored and promoted. 

So continue this beautiful, giving day by offering kindness, your time, your services, or donate to those in need near you. Looking for a volunteer event near you? Be sure to try Facebook and other social media sites, as well as look into your local news sources or organizations. Or try one of the sites below:

United Way Volunteer Opportunities Search

AARP’s Create the Good Volunteer Search

Volunteer Match established in 1998