Hands On Central Texas Maximizes Impact with Teamwork
Armando Rayo
Director, Community Engagement
Hands On Central Texas – United Way Capital Area

Hands On Central Texas formed “United We Serve – Austin” and invited multiple partners to engage in service throughout the 81-day campaign, including United Way Capital Area, OneStar Foundation, University of Texas Volunteer & Service Learning Center, Keep Austin Beautiful, Communities in Schools of Central Texas, College Forward, UCP Texas and Texas Campus Compact. This group activated volunteers, organized projects, hosted Volunteer Project Leader trainings and coordinated Austin’s most meaningful volunteer events, including “9-11 Day of Caring with United Way.”

The 9-11 Day of Caring on Friday, September 11 was truly one of the most memorable commemorations of the annual event in history. Hands On Central Texas began the day with a volunteer breakfast, followed by a tribute to those whose lives were lost on September 11, 2001.

The Civil Air Patrol Pegasus Squadron Elite Color Guard presented the colors during the memorial, and local artist Tanya Winch brought tears to the eyes of many volunteers when she sang the national anthem. Guest speakers including Will Matthews, representing the Athletes for Hope Organization, shared their passion for giving back and spoke about the crucial role service plays in strengthening communities.

Volunteers scattered to project sites across the city after the breakfast and tribute, turning remembrance of tragic day into a day of inspiration and action. At the conclusion of the day, more than 1,100 volunteers had spent time at 50+ project sites throughout Central Texas. Volunteers completed a variety of tasks to benefit the region, including upgrading childcare centers, training for disaster response and beautifying community gardens, just to name a few of the many high-impact activities.

“[As I visited] projects throughout the day, it was encouraging to see all of the diverse work taking place all over the region and the common goal volunteers had that day: to give a little bit of their time and themselves to help others and support our community. Volunteers serving at important agencies on the Day of Caring helped to support the things that make Austin and Central Texas such a great place to live,” said Hands On Central Texas staff member Greg Bennett.

Overall, more than 1,200 new volunteers were engaged in the campaign, and Austin is a better place because of this effort.