October Team of the Month: Flagstaff Freethinkers

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October Team of the MonthCongratulations to the Beyond Belief Network’s October Team of the Month: Flagstaff Freethinkers! Flagstaff Freethinkers were chosen for this honor because of their recent volunteering and fundraising activities, which really go above and beyond in terms of involvement by members and the community at large. In addition to their monthly commitment to volunteering at the Flagstaff Family Food Center (where they help with food preparation, serving, and clean-up), they have incredible fundraising projects.

In September, they helped Seráh Blain’s Blistering at the Margins project raise money and awareness to combat homelessness in Arizona. Seráh lived on the streets and blogged about her experiences and the stories of the homeless people she met. The project attracted quite a bit of media attention and raised nearly $30,000 for the Women Veterans Section at the Madison Street Veterans’ Association.

The teenaged Freethinkers are inspiring, too! Julian Wallace, a teenaged Flagstaff Freethinkers member, devoted her September birthday to fighting homelessness and hunger in her hometown. Julian invited the entire Flagstaff community to knit or crochet with her on her birthday and canvassed for hourly pledges for each hour volunteers spent knitting or crocheting. They collected more than $900 and a whopping 115 pounds of food for the Flagstaff Family Food Center. They also collected 55 pounds of hygiene/toiletry products, thirty winter coats, and dozens of socks, hats, gloves, and scarves, including hats and scarves made at the birthday party for Flagstaff Shelter Services.

Flagstaff Freethinkers

In October, Flagstaff Freethinkers have already held a Family Dance Party fundraiser to benefit One New Education, a group that provides educational opportunities for women in developing countries.

Team of the Month recognition is the latest benefit provided by Foundation Beyond Belief to our Beyond Belief Network teams. In order to be considered, your group must be a Level One Beyond Belief Network team and you must submit at least one event report during the month. Team of the Month selection is based on the number, length, variety, and documentation (e.g., submitted pictures, blog posts, videos, etc.) of events.

Teams can only be Team of the Month once per calendar year. If your local group does great service work, but isn’t a member of BBN, you can join anytime! In addition to recognition, your team can qualify for free t-shirts and grants. If your local humanist group doesn’t volunteer, but you’d like to start, we’d love to help! For teams new to secular service, we offer tons of ideas, event guides, and advice.