Handwritten Note Project

A warm welcome to Heart of Dinner's Handwritten Note Project! 

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At Heart of Dinner, we believe in the power of love and care transcending beyond just linguistic barriers. That’s why we warmly invite everyone to join our note-writing volunteer activity, regardless of their proficiency in the languages we need. You don't have to be fluent or even familiar with the language to participate. Our founders themselves began this journey without knowledge of these languages, relying on tools like Google Translate to translate heartfelt messages to our Elders. We believe that showing up with our time and efforts is a beautiful way of sharing love and making people feel seen, connected, and cherished. 

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This year in 2024, our need has evolved. We are now fully stocked on handwritten notes in all languages except Traditional Chinese and Thai. Your contribution of handwritten notes, especially in Traditional Chinese, would be immensely valuable. Scroll to the bottom of this page for sample phrases in Traditional Chinese and/or Thai that you are welcome to copy by hand. 

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This thoughtful gesture is more than just words on paper, it's a bridge across generations, a symbol of respect and acknowledgment of their identity and heritage. Please follow the instructions below to abide by Heart of Dinner's guidelines to ensure that your efforts will bring joy to our beneficiaries. Thank you for your time and effort in making a meaningful difference in our communities!

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DOs:

• Please supply your own materials and supplies.

• Please use note cards that are either 3" x 5" or 4" x 6" in size. Us available note cards you might have at home, or purchase them at a local shop, or you can also purchase them from our shop here.

• Write on only one side of the handwritten note.

• Pen your message in black or dark ink so that it's easy on the eyes for our senior beneficiaries to read with ease.

• Write legibly, clearly, with large characters/letters.

• If you're looking for inspiration for different uplifting messages to write to our senior beneficiaries, scroll to the bottom of this page. There, you can find volunteer-contributed messages in the different languages of our Elder beneficiaries. These are perfect for letting them know that they are valued and appreciated. 

• Add cheerful visual appeal to your message by illustrating and decorating on the same note. Use bright, vivid, and uplifting colors to bring warmth and joy. Colored markers and acrylic pens are great supplies that can help you achieve vivid colors! For examples of notes with decorations, please click here.

• Write in batches of 25 notes and use rubber bands or sheets of paper to batch each set.

• If you do not read or write the languages, please use Apple Translations or Google Translate. TIP: We have recently discovered that Apple Translations is quite accurate! If you have other translation sites that you would recommend, please email your recommended translation site to us by clicking here.​​​​​​​​​​​

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DON'Ts:

1. In order to maintain the personal touch of handwritten notes, we kindly ask that each note is handwritten. Please refrain from using photocopies.

2. Businesses, corporations, organizations, and affiliations should not add their brand, logo, or tagline to the notes being attached to Heart of Dinner's care packages. These handwritten notes are not for marketing purposes and should only serve one purpose: to carry out Heart of Dinner's mission to address food insecurity, loneliness, and isolation through our care packages. Bags received with any branding, logos, or taglines will NOT be used.

3. Do not include political messages or affiliation on your handwritten notes. We appreciate your contributions in making a difference in our communities and bringing smiles to the faces of our Elderly beneficiaries. Thank you for your kindness and generosity.

4. In all language affiliated with Heart of Dinner or our mission, we only allow for inclusive language. We strictly avoid divisive language, refraining from any speech that could be construed as pitting one community of color against another. Our focus remains steadfast on cultivating a multicultural community, diverse and inclusive, dedicated to highlighting the systemic challenges faced by Asian American older adults through an ethos of care, love, and unity.

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FINISHED?

Now that you've completed your handwritten notes, please store them neatly into an envelope or small storage bag. Label it indicating the language you wrote in, as well as the number of notes in the batch and your Instagram handle if you have one. This will help us sort through the mail and distribute the batches of notes to the correct operations site, ensuring that our beneficiaries receive notes written in their native language for a personal touch. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for volunteering your time to participate in our Handwritten Note Project and help make a difference in our communities.

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