welcome to the hands on atlanta High Five Party and our 35th birthday celebration

We’re so thrilled to celebrate 35 year of mobilizing the Atlanta community to tackle our city’s most pressing needs, specifically today, (April 18) National High Five Day! From service trailblazers like Michelle Nunn and Bill Bolling to Mayor Shirley Franklin, Ann Cramer, and so many others, our work exists because of individuals who embody the example of the saying, “it takes a village.”

Y’all, our village has grown to 1,000,000!

Volunteering and service is in the DNA of Atlanta. While across the country volunteer numbers are down, here in the “City too busy to hate,” we’re growing. This year we’re going to engage more than 50,000 people, doubling where we were at just 5 years ago. We’ve still got a lot of work to do, as we’re only filling 1/3 spots on our opportunity calendar, but with the time, talent and treasure shared, we can close that gap.

And the awards go to…

Founder’s Award

Gayle Kahn

Presented by: Kent Alexander - Author, Attorney and Co-Founder of Hands On Atlanta

Gayle emerged as a standout/leader from our Discovery program - our Saturday program offered at 10-schools across Metro Atlanta, run by dedicated volunteers and AmeriCorps members. This program is the cornerstone to our educational equity work and the longest-running program.

School Legacy Award

Desmond Bright-Davies
Deja Johnson
Jessika Prayor

Presented by: Dr. Tameka Allen, Dean of Students, Charles Drew Charter School

These outstanding service leaders have made a lasting impact at one of our partner schools through service in our AmeriCorps program. AmeriCorps is basically a domestic peace corps and with over 50 members serving 1,700 hours over the course of the school year, Hands On Atlanta runs one of the largest AmeriCorps programs in the state.

Nonprofit Legacy Award

Jeff Cantin

Presented by: Jadrien Grimes, Community and Civic Engagement Manager at Hands On Atlanta

We’re celebrating Jeff, a volunteer who has really made an impact with one of our 150 nonprofit partners. As part of our Civic Leadership Program, Jeff isn’t your average volunteer --- he represents the best of Atlanta. This year, our Civic Leadership Program participants have completed 225 service projects and engaged over 3,000 volunteers, while also raising $27,000!

1,000,000th Volunteer

Sydney Williams

Presented by: Andre Dickens, the 61st Mayor of the City of Atlanta

We’re thrilled to recognize Sydney, a dedicated volunteer with several of our nonprofit partners and our Discovery program, as our 1,000,000th volunteer. It’s a testament of how far we’ve come since 1989’s humble beginnings, and how our vision for making Atlanta the most engaged and equitable community is being realized.

JOIN THE SPRING FOR SERVICE

We hope you’ve been inspired by the incredible impact presented at our High Five Party! Ride the wave of momentum throughout April and join our Spring for Service. We have even more incredible individuals you can learn about/from, marquee events (including Earth Day, National Volunteer Week and Global Youth Service Day) or to join our peer-to-peer giving campaign.

GET INVOLVED WITH OUR SPRING FOR SERVICE