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Area Volunteers Clean Up Local Park
On Saturday, April 14, volunteers with the Frederick County Chapter of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans joined with youth from 4-H, Girl
Scouts and many local churches to clean up Mt. Tabor Park in preparation for hundreds of people who enjoy this park each summer.
 The activity was part of the eighth annual Join Hands Day, which is sponsored by America’s fraternal benefit societies and is the only national day of service specifically focused on
bringing youth and adults together to form lifelong relationships while improving their communities through neighborhood volunteering.
“This year’s Join Hands Day project accomplished what we set out to do,” said Viola Noffsinger, Thrivent Financial member and project coordinator. “We made a difference in the
community while sparking new relationships among volunteers of different age groups. Both adults and youth who participated in our project experienced firsthand the gratification and
impact of volunteerism.”
During the Join Hands Day activity, members of 4-H, Girl Scouts, many churches and the Thrivent Financial Members formed small teams to pick up garbage in Mt Tabor Park. Following
the massive clean-up, the team spent several hours, scrubbing pavilion floors, and painting picnic tables.
“Thrivent Financial for Lutherans and its members are proud to participate each year in Join Hands Day,” said Julia Glendenning, manager of Lutheran community services for the
Thrivent Financial Mid Atlantic Region. “This national volunteer day reinforces the outreach fraternal benefit societies, like Thrivent Financial, and their members provide each and
every day throughout the year.”
Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, the nation’s largest fraternal benefit society, has nearly 3 million members who belong to one of 1,362 local chapters. Thrivent chapters meet
regularly in order to plan and execute benevolent, social and educational activities enabling members to support their local communities through fund-raising and service projects.
In 2006, Thrivent Financial contributed $138.4 million to communities across the country through its charitable outreach programs. Through their participation in those programs,
Thrivent Financial members raised and donated an additional $177.8 million to help not-for-profit organizations, individuals in need and Lutheran congregations. In addition, the
organization’s members contributed 21.7 million volunteer hours in 2006.
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