Some 800,000 Israelis to give back to the community on ‘Good Deeds Day’

Good deeds day is a day that connects people of all ages, cultures and religions.

By LIDAR GRAVÉ-LAZI
‘Love Trees’ in Eilat’s Botanical Gardens (photo credit: Courtesy)
‘Love Trees’ in Eilat’s Botanical Gardens
(photo credit: Courtesy)
Some 800,000 Israelis are expected to do some good on Tuesday as part of the ninth annual Good Deeds Day, a project encouraging people to volunteer and give back to the community.
Good Deeds Day was initiated by Ruach Tova (“Good Spirit”), a nonprofit organization that is part of the Ted Arison Family Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the Arison Group.
“Good Deeds Day is a day that does good for the heart. This is a day that connects between people of all ages, cultures and religions. This is a day that has become a national day, and I hope that everyone will take part, with the understanding that it is possible to think well, speak well and do good throughout the year,” said businesswoman and philanthropist Shari Arison, initiator of Good Deeds Day.
This year, Arison is expected to officially kick off the day’s activities with a “Making the Streets” event in Beersheba.
The project - a collaborative effort of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, the Beersheba Municipality and the Negev Development Authority - will see some 300 students volunteer together with residents from the Gimmel neighborhood in the city to renovate the main street by building new benches, painting walls, and planting gardens.
Additional projects are set to take place around the country as schools and youth groups, businesses, soldiers and students are expected to participate in over 10,000 good deeds activities planned, with participants expected to give back a record-breaking three million hours of volunteering.
Among the various projects, volunteers will clean up forests and beaches, renovate and paint welfare institutions, hold “fun days” for underprivileged or special needs populations, engage in activities with Holocaust survivors and with the elderly, and plant community gardens.
Last year more than 550,000 Israelis participated in some 9,000 volunteer projects nationwide, and tens of thousands participated in volunteering activities in some 50 countries around the world, including Italy, Germany, Argentina, Russia, Panama and the US.