Final numbers are in for Secular Week of Action!

We just finished our final report on Secular Week of Action, which happened earlier this month. We surveyed as many teams as possible to ascertain their collective impact. While not everyone responded (and there have been events not formally registered on the SWoA site), here’s what we can tell you:

Volunteer teams registered 59 events on the SWoA site, including 19 from our Beyond Belief Network (BBN). Coincidentally, 59 individuals also pledged solo action.

SWoA activities were documented in 25 US states, plus Washington DC, the Philippines, Canada, and South Africa.

From the reports given to us by the 19 participating BBN teams — plus one SWoA team outside our network — we know that at least:

• 367 beneficiaries were directly served
• 300 households were impacted overall
• 3,780 meal kits were distributed
• 53 in-kind items were collected for charity
• 6 trash bags  were filled with litter or hazardous debris
• $965 was raised for charity
• 108 volunteers clocked 357.48 volunteer hours — $10,202 in donated time.

Activities performed included:

• Preparing and distributing kits of food for people experiencing food insecurity
• Mass giveaways of essentials to people experiencing homelessness and other forms of distress
• Volunteering at local food banks, kitchens, and the Ronald McDonald House
• Charity craft-a-thons
• Cleaning up public areas (including those in historically neglected communities)
• Drives for food, diapers, hygiene supplies, clothing, and books
• Activism and visibility campaigns for civil rights causes
• Registering voters
• Collecting financial donations for various charities
• Educational opportunities

These are exciting results, especially considering the obstacles placed in our path by COVID-19 for a second year. We’re honored to have been trusted to coordinate this year’s event, and look forward to continuing to grow our impact!