You can make a difference

CHANUKAH may still be more than a week away, but you don’t need to wait until then to spread some light.

Mitzvah Day – the international day of doing good deeds – takes place this Sunday, with Jewish community members and organisations across the country doing their bit to make a positive difference to the world.

Among the many initiatives taking place in Melbourne are the collection of non-perishable groceries to be donated to the needy, preparing and distributing sandwiches to the homeless, a blood drive, cleaning up local wetlands, writing letters to essential workers, collecting art materials for kids with life-threatening conditions, packing gifts for women in refuges fleeing domestic abuse, visiting the elderly in housing commission flats, and providing activities and entertainment for residents of care homes.

There are dozens of projects listed on the Mitzvah Day website you can register to take part in.

Last year, across the globe, more than 40,000 volunteers from 21 countries participated in over 1200 social action projects.

For more information on how you can get involved, visit mitzvahday.org.au.