A lot of people don't know about Our House, but what the staff does is amazing. Our House is a…read moreplace where homeless families can get childcare for their children as they go and seek jobs, housing and other basic needs to get themselves back on their feet again. I volunteered last summer. The first time I went, I read to some 3 and 4 year olds. I almost cried when one of the kids asked me if I lived in a house. When I said yes, her eyes lit up and she said, "Really? I want to live in one, too." If I could have put all of those kids and their families into an apartment that day, I would have. Our House always needs volunteers AND donations, so help them out however you can.

I donated clothes and money to them today and I was touched by the environment and their…read morepurpose/goals. I walked in and everyone was really nice and very appreciative. The kids were happy and that was such a delight. If you read this, please make a donation. No donation is too small and little drops of water will turn into a pond. Also, volunteer if you have the time. God bless you!

This is a great organization, run by wonderful people, doing great things. Habitat for Humanity of…read moreDeKalb County, GA provides homeownership opportunities to deserving, hard-working, low income families through partnerships with individuals, businesses, government and religious organizations. They can always use your money, time, and support.

My stay at Decatur Cooperative Ministries was difficult mainly because of the rude and…read moreunprofessional behavior I experienced from Ms. Betty Woods. In my experience, her tone toward residents was often disrespectful, and her actions made many of us feel uncomfortable and unheard. I filed multiple grievances about her behavior to the Director, Ms. White, but I did not see any action taken. Other residents and outside organizations also raised concerns, yet nothing seemed to change. During resident meetings, Ms. Woods made comments that felt like she was mocking residents for filing complaints, which added to the frustration. Overall, I felt that Ms. Woods' rude and unprofessional conduct created a stressful environment, and the lack of response from leadership made residents feel like our concerns did not matter.

Rude staff who abuses their authority with single mothers…read more Dear Cliff Richards, My name is Alexis Lewis, and I was a resident at Hagar's House with my children. I am writing to formally report and request review of what I believe was a wrongfully discharge from the shelter by my case manager, Betty Woods. Today, Saturday March 28, 2026 I was asked to leave the shelter with my children. I was not given a clear or fair explanation, nor was I provided proper notice or an opportunity to resolve the issue. Being put out in this manner has placed me and my children in an unsafe and unstable condition. As a mother with children, I believe this situation handled improperly and without consideration of our safety and well being. I am requesting: 1. A written explanation of why I was discharged 2. A copy of the shelter's grievance/appeal policy 3. A formal review of my case and the actions taken by staff 4. Possible reinstatement or assistance with immediate placement. I look forward to your prompt response. Thank you in advance.

I started volunteering at Open Hand Atlanta around last year. There's multiple jobs you can…read morevolunteer for such as meal packing, food delivery, administration assistant, etc. It's a very easy process, all you do is sign up online on their website. Upon showing up at the facility, you will sign in on a computer then if you are brand new you will have a short class before volunteering so you can learn what to wear and what not, put on gloves, aprons and beard mask so you can prevent from hair contaminating the food in the kitchen. I usually volunteer for the meal packing position where you will be packing meals for about 2 hours for people who have dietary restrictions or just people in need. I find this a great opportunity to give back to our community. This company really relies on volunteers helping in the kitchen and they truly appreciate everything. They also have group sign up options so you can volunteer with your school, church group or work event. Anyways I definitely recommend for you to check it out! :)

My wife and I visited Open Hand Atlanta to volunteer our time for a couple of hours to prep meals…read more Open Hand provides nutritional meals for those with chronic diseases, such as AIDS/HIV, different forms of cancer, etc. These nutritional meals promote and prolong healthier way of life. Once you arrive and sign in, you'll be taken to a waiting room area, where Open Hand staff gives you a rundown of their history and what their mission is. You also get the rules of the prep room and are gifted a one of a kind hairnet, plastic apron, and men with facial hair gets face masks. No jewelry may be at any time. Rings, necklaces, earrings, facial piercings, watches, etc. can NOT be worn. There are different things that you can do at this space, but I wanted to do meal prep. We washed our hands and grabbed plastic gloves. Keep in mind, the gloves are different sizes. The meal prep was like an assembly line. The meal we prepped was Beef Stroganoff on Noodles with Green Beans. With a scale, the first person weighed the appropriate number for the noodles, the second person weighed the right number of beef stroganoff, and the third person weighed the right number for green beans. There is then a fourth person who wipes off any excess food from around the rim of the food container. This is important so the plastic cover will seal appropriately. It's then put in this contraption that holds multiple containers and a person press seals it and puts it to the side. This is definitely quite a process, but once you get into the flow of it, it becomes easier. Some people make it a challenge against another group to see who can make the most meals. Side note: THIS PLACE IS FREEZING! The ENTIRE BUILDING IS COLD! Bring a jacket or hoody. Overall, this is a great place to come with a group or by yourself and do some charitable services. Fortunately, we came with a large group of my wife's coworkers, so we were able to knock out over 2,500 meals which was awesome! I'd definitely come back.

Beautiful peaceful garden with paved paths to walk through and admire the trees, flowers, and…read moreplants.

While visiting Atlanta, I was looking to kill some time…read more And I needed a excuse To write another rhyme. With a name like Woodlawn Gardens, I almost expected a cemetery. But instead what I found, Was a park fit for fairies! The area was once privately owned. But they've donated the land. The well kept grounds, I'd describe, As nothing less than grand! There's many paths to wander, And little gardens to see. There's even a makeshift playground Made from the trunks of trees! Such an adorable little park, In the middle of the city. Atlanta isn't the same as I remember, It's actually quite pretty!

It's difficult to pick my favorite thing about this store: 1) the outstanding quality of the…read moredonated goods 2) the friendly neighborhood vibe 3) the helpful, resourceful staff. I started a new job this year, after years of working from home, my office wardrobe needed a serious refresh, but with the inflation of clothing prices I had to rely on buying second-hand. Once you are a Woman of a Certain Age, you can't get away with cheap and cheerful, plus, quality is better constructed, so the fit and wear is better. Second Life was an essential to me: I found Cole Hahn and AVL leather flats (almost unworn), numerous silk blouses (Marchesa Voyage, Annie Griffin), two silk skirts (one bespoke, the other from Anthropologie), dresses, jackets, a string of cultured pearls, Chicos and Eileen Fisher trousers - oh, and my last trip there, I actually scanned the books, and the selection is equally good there. Prices are higher than your average thrift, but, as you can see, so is the merchandise. It's always fair, and they run sales on the regular. I've been inspired to start putting aside some of my almost unworn or lightly worn clothes so that I can contribute to this community treasure, and keep the cycle going. This shop reminds me of everything I love about Avondale Estates / Decatur / Scottsdale / Clarkston.

What a great store! Dog friendly and tons of really nice designer and vintage pieces of a higher…read morequality at reasonable prices. I wrote 3 stars bc sadly the place doesn't have any place to try on clothes anymore. You can technically return your clothes but for me I don't really buy clothing without checking the fit first. I hope second life figures out bringing back the dressing rooms for customers. If they did i'd for sure love shopping here.

I got the chance to tour some of the biggest, most reputable vaccine buildings across the country…read moreand by the most impressive one was the Task Force For Global Health in Decatur, right next to the Voice For Vaccines building. Fortunately, the two work hand-in-hand in the vaccine efforts, with Voices For Vaccines handling the more domestic and national efforts concentrated in the United States. It was there that I met Karen Ernst, the executive director of Voices For Vaccines. I first toured the Voices for Vaccines building, but I later toured the Task Force for Global Health's building. Needless to say, it was very impressive, as I was able to see many of the new floors as the carpeting was being done- most of the staff were on vacation during the time, so they were doing the carpeting there. But the completed parts of the building where you could walk did not fail to impress. The conference rooms were new, there were new pieces of furniture, file cabinets were being brought in and a tech crew was syncing the mainframes with the Voices for Vaccines server next door to facilitate data being shared between the two buildings. Each floor had recently renovated bathroom facilities. The break rooms each had comfy chairs along with new microwaves and fridges. The community coordinator, Mario, gave me quite the tour of the facility. Afterwards, we sat down in the backyard patio area where many employees have their lunch. We had quite the talk about the important work that went on during the pandemic, which made upgrading the facilities I mentioned difficult due to the pandemic. With all the traffic from workers, it was also difficult to so as well, so they did the renovations during the summer when I stopped by. When I finally finished, I went back to the Voices For Vaccines building to reunite with Karen so she could treat me to a lunch. My highlight of the trip was I was there definitely touring both buildings, but the Task Force for Global Health's building was really impressive. I thoroughly enjoyed how modern of a building it is. If you're a vaccine and health advocate, definitely reach out to Karen from Voices For Vaccines as well as the Task Force for Global Health staff to take a tour of the building because it was awesome!

Very high quality fresh food and a good variety! Everything from meats to milk and bread and fresh…read moreproduce. Feeding the community and cutting food waste, too. Thank you for your service!

Thank you, JT, at Food2Life for the beautiful meat, produce, and veggies from last Friday…read more Food2Life has been a very valuable addition to my shopping experience for the last few months. I always look forward to seeing what all they have to offer, and this org never disappoints. Thanks again, Food2Life.

Last month, my daughter and I visited Little Creek hoping to see the horses. I didn't realize at…read morethe time that we had gone outside their official visiting hours. We went to the office and were met by the RUDEST person I have encountered in a long time and it turned out that she, Tamara, is the barn manager. Unbelievable to be treated in such a harsh and unfriendly manner, in front of my 7 year old daughter, at a COUNTY PARK. I am a DeKalb Co resident so my tax money is paying for this kind of behavior. I worry what the horses themselves must experience as well as her staff and anyone else who has to deal with her. A personality like that should not be in the position of dealing with the public. Unbelievable!

Every few months I hear about $5 pony rides here and never went.....until this weekend!…read more This 40 acre hideaway is across from the QT on Lawrenceville. Who knew that it was this big?!? They are usually closed to the public except for these events. They had a ton of volunteers wearing matching vests which was really helpful. You parked on a residential street and got to walk through the conservancy and look at horses in the field. Then came the fun part. Kids 4 and up could ride on a pony for $5. They did 2 huge round a outs in the corral. You sign a waiver, learn about the conservancy via a waiver, and wait in line to ride the horse. In the meantime they teamed up with DH high (I think) what was selling chicken biscuits and snacks as well as doing face painting. They had 7 horses in the corral that kids were riding in. We are not talking tiny little things either. They were huge! Afterwards, you got to walk by the area at that the horses stay in and could read about them and see any awards the won. They also had free arts and crafts projects setup like making horse puppets. They offer riding lessons, but I didn't tell my kids because I am nervous that they will want a horse.

We do this every year for community service. My fraternity and our sister organization come in and…read moredo diapers and clothes and Women's Health packs and all sorts of things. We take a few months throughout the year to stack up donations. And then we just ended up sorting things and putting things in places in the warehouse. It's a really good way for us to work together, to give back to the community. All of the proceeds go to places that are in need, within the community. Giving back a super important, and helping Mama's is consistently in the Forefront of that within Gwinnett county.

From the owner: Baby Supply Bank of Georgia. Support the over 300,000 women and children living in poverty in Metro…read moreAtlanta by texting "HELPMAMAS" to 44-321.