Lisa Scully

What do you get when you combine National Volunteer Month (April) and HOTC’s 20th anniversary (2023)? You get the biggest and best Volunteer Week yet! From April 22-29, record numbers of volunteers came together for Thomas County’s very own Volunteer Week, presented by a grateful volunteer in honor of Angela Kiminas’ 10 years of service to HOTC! More than 1,100 individuals joined us throughout the week at select volunteer opportunities and as we recognized the many Hands On Heroes at Cheers For Volunteers! Take a look at just some of the project highlights below – and be sure to scroll through our photo gallery at the bottom of the page!

Volunteer Week is a celebration of volunteer service and the many people who make good things happen in our community! We were excited to start the week by planting roses at the Fountain of Life Rescue on Clay Street! Thirty volunteers, including many from Project Backyard, came together on Saturday, April 22 to plant roses, graciously given to us by Flowerwood Nursery, in honor of our wonderful volunteers and sponsors. This project helped brighten the entrance to the building and make it more welcoming to visitors.

This same day, a group from Synovus Bank teamed up families and individuals to host a Manna Drop at Harper Elementary School. This assorted group of volunteers bagged and distributed bread, canned goods, fresh fruit, bakery items (and more!) to more than 350 individuals! We are so proud of everyone for working so hard to provide these staples to our neighbors in need.

On Tuesday, April 25, we celebrated our Hands On Heroes (aka volunteer heroes) at our 10th annual Cheers For Volunteers awards and reception at the Ritz Amphitheater. A record number of attendees (more than 450!) celebrated our amazing community of volunteers. Get to know this year’s winners by clicking here!

In celebration of HOTC’s 20th anniversary in 2023, we teamed up with Vashti and Never Lost to create Birthday Boxes. These all-inclusive kits contain everything needed – from cake mix, frosting, candles, a card and more – to celebrate a child’s birthday! This new-to-us service project was a huge hit and our community answered the call! More than 60 complete Birthday Boxes were donated along with enough individual items to make 30 more bags. *psst…we have a feeling this project will return in October as part of HOTC Day!

Also new in 2023, we introduced 20 Days / 20 Ways Bingo, a fun way to volunteer and do good in the community,  while also completing a bingo card for the chance to win $100 Downtown Dollars!

Throughout the week, volunteers participated in rose-themed projects in honor of the City of Thomasville’s 102nd Rose Show & Festival such as Rocks and Roses which saw more than 90 volunteers who painted and hid Rose Show related rocks around places like the Big Oak, Paradise Park, The Ritz Amphitheater, Cherokee Lake and throughout Downtown. See if you recognize any of the rocks on the Thomasville Rocks FB page!  School groups and individuals also made more than 300 flower bouquets filled with paper roses and rose boutonnieres which were given to local residents at Thomasville Health & Rehab, The Residence of Oak Grove and Scott Senior Center. The seniors were so happy to receive the beautiful handmade flowers. Take a look at the pics below!

Also throughout the week, volunteers beautified their community by picking up litter and lending a hand at the Thomasville Pollinator Garden.

We ended the week with some fun at the 102nd annual Rose Show Parade themed “Where Roses Reign…Imagination Blooms“. It was fun having a few of our Hands On Heroes on board as they put on their best parade wave down Broad Street.

All in all, it was a great Volunteer Week and we are proud of our community’s response to this event! We honestly can’t say it enough – THANK YOU to all of our volunteers, sponsors, and donors who make this such a great community to be a part of. We couldn’t do it without you!