What’s Indy DO Day, anyway?
Indy Do Day consists of several days when the people of Indianapolis get to know their neighbors, take ownership of their neighborhoods and take care of one another. Over October 1-3, thousands of Indianapolis residents will volunteer to get engaged and do something to improve their community.
Indy Do Day is decentralized, ground-up, people-powered community improvement. It’s about pride, shared ownership, and building stronger relationships. And, perhaps most importantly today, it’s about building the most civically engaged community in the nation where every day is a Do Day.
Why does Indy DO Day matter?
A recent study by Leadership Indianapolis and Walker Group benchmarked Indianapolis against Louisville and Austin and found “no significant advantage (or disadvantage) when it comes to Hoosier’ willingness to engage in community service.”
For as much as I love Indy… and you probably love Indy… when it comes down to it, we’re not really better in regards to civic involvement as similar cities. It’s time we step up and step ahead, and Indy Do Day is one place we can start.
Why should you participate as a young professional?
Please get involved to disprove every article and social media dig that touts Millennials as disenchanted slacktivists who are ruining the fabric of America. It’s simply not true.
Today’s young professionals are some of the most socially aware and intrinsically motivated of any American generation. Young professionals are also connected to their communities and know that strong communities are built from the inside out…by people who are personally invested and can see their investments matched and multiplied by others.
What you can do
Participating in Indy Do Day is as easy or complex as you want to make it. Be creative in how you participate and give back to the community – follow your interests or use your skills. Gather your friends, family or coworkers and make plans to DO something.
Like cooking? Prepare and deliver baked goods to your local first responders. Handy with a hammer? Help a neighbor repair their gutters. Tech saavy? Offer your social media planning skills to your favorite nonprofit. Love animals? Call a local shelter and see how you can help that day.
Through Indy Do Day, we hope that committed residents and organizations build and renew partnerships to improve the quality of life in their neighborhoods.
Once you figure out what you want to do, let us know about it so that we can include you in our volunteer count for the day. (Metrics matter!) Fill out this super simple form here.
If you’re not sure what you want to do or need some ideas to jump start your DOing, check out our list of projects you can sign up for. Some of the opportunities on the list include Cultural Trail Clean Up, American Red Cross smoke detector installation and helping label library books at several local IPS schools.
