Totally Frenched Out

From the blogger formerly known as Samdebretagne

Monday, December 3, 2012

Giving back during the holiday season

Every Christmas, I try to find someway to volunteer and give back.  I am so blessed on a daily basis, and it is important for me to take time to 1) acknowledge that and 2) helps others who haven't been as lucky as I have. For a myriad of reasons, C & I will be staying in France this year for Christmas, and I wanted to continue on with the tradition here.

As a side note, France, why do you gotta make it so hard?? I used to do a lot of volunteering in the US, but France's darn red tape has made it almost impossible for me here. Pretty much every place you contact wants you to commit to the same day(s) every single month, and with my travel schedule, it just isn't possible.

It was pure luck then today that I came across an ad for Les Petits Frères des Pauvres, an association that helps out low-income folks over 50 who are lonely and/or ill. They have a center not too far from our place, so we decided to sign up to help out with their Christmas holiday dinner.  They are still looking for other volunteers, so I wanted to post their contact info here.  (FYI, another option is bringing gifts to people who are not physically able to make it to the dinner, from 2-6pm on Dec 24th). 

If you are around over the holidays and interested in helping out, you can call them at 01 45 48 34 46 Monday and Wednesdays from 2:30-6pm or Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:30-12:30 for more information.


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5 Comments:

Blogger Sarah said...

They haven't got volunteering sussed here really.

A friend of mine wanted to help out at the local hospital and was told she'd be taking the job of someone who could be paid and so depriving them of income. WTF! So she went home and found something else of the non volunteering type to do.

December 3, 2012 at 4:12 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

How sweet of you! Speaking of giving back, do you know where in Paris one could take gently-used clothes that they don't wear anymore?

December 3, 2012 at 4:36 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Ednatravels- I just tried to do that, myself. My French friend told me to look up Emmaus, which I guess is like Goodwill. Except that there are very few drop-off centers. Which is how my bag ended up on a bench by the bus stop......

December 4, 2012 at 10:22 AM  
Blogger Mary Kay Bosshart said...

Good for you for finding a way to help those who are less fortunate on Christmas! For others who are looking for ways to help, the Salvation Army always needs volunteers to pass out meals to the homeless. Their number is 01.43.62.25.42.

A really good place to get rid of gently used household objects, clothes, etc. is at the Apprentis d'Auteuil

December 7, 2012 at 11:09 AM  
Blogger Crystal said...

Kudos to you Sam for volunteering! I wish more people would give back in some way.

Happy holidays to you and C :)

December 8, 2012 at 8:12 PM  

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