The First Week of May Marks the Celebration of “National Goodwill Week!”

Ohio Valley Goodwill is gearing up for all kinds of special community events this year which will serve to kick off the official annual celebration of “National Goodwill Week.” Held during the first full week in May, this year’s calendar of events is action-packed. Right before the official celebration begins, Ohio Valley Goodwill is excited to be hosting its first-ever “Earth Day Electronic Recycling Celebration” on Sunday, April 27th at its headquarters location. Annually, Goodwill helps in recycling more than 43,000,000 lbs. of donated items thereby diverting them from area landfills. Beginning in 2010, the organization began accepting donations of electronic equipment for recycling purposes and has recently entered into a new partnership with e-Waste Systems which served as the impetus for planning the first-ever drive.

The weekend of May 2nd, 3rd and 4th is notable in that Ohio Valley Goodwill’s Volunteer Service Guild will be hosting its Spring Mini-Fest both Friday and Saturday at its Tri-County store location. A yearly tradition, this wonderful event serves as a fund-raiser for the organization’s mission of service. The Goodwill team is also excited about this year’s participation in the Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon which will take place on Saturday, May 3rd and Sunday, May 4th. More than 70 athletes involved in the 8-week PigAbilities training program, will be poised to “fly” to the finish line on May 3rd and members of the organization’s retail and donations team will run in the Marathon itself on May 4th.

Responsible recycling is also a theme for this year’s celebration of “National Goodwill Week” and special community donation events are taking place on May 2nd and May 9th, 10th and 11th. On Friday May 2nd, Goodwill will have a donation trailer at the Forcht Bank location at 6100 First Financial Drive in Florence, Kentucky from 9-6 pm and 9-12 noon on Saturday, May 3rd. It’s Customer Appreciation days at the bank and they will be delighted to welcome you and your donations. May 9th-May 11th will mark the 2014  Clear Channel  Spring Clean event at Northgate Mall. On Saturday, May 10th, WLW, Kiss and 55KRC will be on hand and a radio personality from each station will be there throughout the day greeting donors. Stop by, drop off your stuff and get a photo with a local radio personality while doing a good thing!

This year, Monday, May 5th will serve as the official day for “Honk and Wave” events that will be taking place throughout the Greater Cincinnati community in support of Goodwill partner, Hamilton County DD Services and Issue 3 which is on the ballot this month. Being hosted by Goodwill team members at its Tri-County, Westwood, Oakley, Montgomery, Cheviot and Harrison  retail and vocational center locations, the afternoon events promise to be entertaining for passing motorists. Tuesday, May 6th is Election Day and again, Goodwill team members will be out in force acting as volunteers at polling stations and helping to promote passage of the levy, which is critical for almost 10,000 Hamilton County residents and families.

Other highlights of the “National Goodwill Week” celebration will include a look at Ohio Valley Goodwill’s almost 100 years of service for individuals with disabilities and our nation’s veterans in the Tri-State region as well as an update on its first-ever national community awareness campaign sponsored by the Ad Council. With the tag, “Donate Stuff. Create Jobs,” the Ad Council campaign was launched one year ago and marks the first national effort to share the Goodwill story in a unified message platform.

Finally, the culmination of “National Goodwill Week” will be to promote on-going donor support through an appeal designed to raise awareness that when you donate to Goodwill, you are recycling responsibly and helping to preserve our planet- a win-win for everyone.

The best part about this year’s celebration of “National Goodwill Week” is that everyone can participate! Whether you want to be part of the Spring Mini-Fest on May 2nd and 3rd, the Flying Pig Marathon on May 3rd and 4th, the Community Donation Drives on May 2nd, 9th, 10th and 11th  or the Honk and Wave events on May 5th, you can be part of the fun. To find out how, please contact (513) 771-4800, ext. 6364 or email: Shannon@cincigoodwill.org. Please join us! Your support is greatly appreciated!