Ford ACTS Community Service Volunteer Program

Members of the Ford ACTS (Assisting the Community Through Service) Community Service Volunteer Program have been coming to the Dare to Care Food Bank in Louisville, KY since November 1990. Dare to Care is a community agency dedicated primarily to providing food, training and technical assistance to people in need. The work of the Ford ACTS retirees enables the agency to fulfill its mission of feeding over 150,000 people each year.

On May 15, 1998 this dedicated group of volunteers sorted their two millionth pound of food for Dare to Care. They are presently working hard toward reaching their goal of three million pounds. Group members also drive trucks to pick up bread from local grocery stores, help with special events, coordinate mailings and answer the phone.

In addition to the work they do for Dare to Care, they work for New Directions, repairing homes for the elderly. They also work for the Dream Factory, planning dream vacations for critically ill children. Each Christmas, they assist with the Salvation Army Angel Tree. Many of the Ford ACTS members are also members of the Kentucky Truck and Louisville Assembly Plant Crusaders who sell T-shirts to help the Crusade for Children, a local fundraiser for disabled children.

The Ford ACTS retirees certainly do much more than sit around in rocking chairs. On a daily basis, they are giving of their time, energy and talents to the community. They do the work with a sense of humor and have a good time working together. Of the fifty signed up to work with Dare to Care, an average of 25 members assist with the program twice every month. The work the Ford ACTS groups performs goes toward keeping the administrative costs at Dare to Care under 2% of the total budget and helps to solve the problem of hunger and other social problems in our community.