The Los Angeles-based Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation is recruiting volunteers to participate in its annual Week of Giving.

The eight-day volunteer program, held nationwide, will run from Oct. 8-15 and will feature more than 250 volunteer projects in 70 cities.

This year, the foundation said it will recruit more than 8,500 insurance industry professionals from more than 85 companies who will serve local nonprofits through a broad range of volunteer events assisting at-risk women, children and youth, the homeless, people with disabilities, and senior citizens. Some events will also focus on education, food, health and disaster preparedness programs.

“Through events like the Week of Giving, IICF has united insurance professionals from across the industry to generate more than 218,000 hours of volunteer service,” said Bill Ross, the foundation's CEO. “It’s special to witness the industry come together and help change lives across the entire country. We look forward to expanding the industry’s volunteer reach even further this year with the addition of volunteers in the United Kingdom.”

The foundation's Week of Giving also promotes a personal “giving” campaign. Donations directly benefit the foundation's Early Literacy Initiative and its "Every Day is a Reading and Writing Day" program, which is part of a partnership between the foundation and Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit behind the "Sesame Street" children's television program.

Began in 2013, the partnership started as a significant push by the insurance industry to improve literacy development among underserved children.

Throughout the month of October, people can make an online donation of any size by visiting the Week of Giving website. Donors can also show their support to help drive awareness and grassroots donations by participating in the foundation's social media campaign by using the "#5forELI" hashtag.

All donations from Week of Giving and the #5forELI program will go toward the Early Literacy Initiative. Volunteers can visit the Week of Giving website or contact the foundation at (925) 280-8009 for more information, to register a volunteer team or to make a donation.

NU-PC editor-in-chief Shawn Moynihan's perspective on volunteering

Special Reports /

IICF recruits volunteers for this year's Week of Giving

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