NSWA's ANNUAL CAMPAIGNS
addressing seasonal needs that impact low-income workers and their families.
Winter Survival Campaign
While winter weather can get into the freezing temperatures, NSWA heats up to protect the lives of low-income workers suffering from high heating costs, lack of adequate winter wear and loss of work hours due to seasonal changes. Volunteers play an important role in filling benefit requests from members and canvassing in low-income neighborhoods to check on elderly and disabled residents often confined to their homes.
How you can help:
Collect and distribute blankets, jackets, winter coats, scarves, hats, gloves and boots for NSWA members and their children.
Join the winter canvass campaign to reach members and potential members in their homes, where many risk no-heat situations or other emergencies.
Collect safe space heaters for loan and distribution.
Collect high-protein and other staple foods for distribution: peanut butter, cereal, rice, soups, vegetable oil, eggs, beans, lentils.
Join the Winter Watch phone tree to keep in contact with members in vulnerable situations.
Spring Expansion Campaign
NSWA’s Spring Expansion Campaign is a material form of hope for our collective future. Along with an expansion of NSWA’s Benefit Program and community outreach, the campaign includes NSWA’s Spring Family Brunch and Children’s Egg Hunt which features a hearty meal, games, prizes and fun for membership families.
How you can help:
Help run NSWA’s annual Spring Family Brunch and Children’s Egg Hunt to help build unity among members and allies in the community.
Help run food drives to collect cereal, rice, beans, tomato products, eggs, cooking oil and vegetables to offset expenses for food so members can pay down debts acquired during the winter.
Advocate to stop deadly utility shutoffs.
Host speaking engagements in your classroom, house of worship, club meeting or other assembly to spread the word.
Summer Survival Campaign
Outdoor workers like construction workers, roofers and landscapers face the negative health effects of increasingly hot summers. In addition to maintaining NSWA’s Office Central as a cooling center, NSWA volunteers assist with utility advocacy as bills go up while families attempt to stay cool. Volunteers also organize collections of household fans and air conditioning units as many NSWA members don’t have adequate cooling in their homes. Join NSWA’s “fan club” and help NSWA’s members beat the heat this summer!
How you can help:
Join Summer Survival canvasses and go door-to-door in low-income neighborhoods where members have invited NSWA to sign up new members.
Help organize medical education and information sessions with volunteer professionals about how workers can stay safe in the summer heat.
Collect and distribute water, light-weight clothing, fans, window AC units and dehumidifiers to help members keep cool during heat waves.
Provide transportation to cooling centers, including NSWA’s Office Central.
Back-to-School Campaign
The expenses low-income working parents face for back-to-school clothes and supplies, medical exams for school entry and immunizations can break an already over-stretched budget. Our Back-to-School clothing and supply distribution can save NSWA membership families over $600 — money that can be used to pay for rent, utilities, food and medicines these families would otherwise be forced to do without.
How you can help:
Help collect and distribute school supplies and new and like-new school clothing and children’s coats for NSWA members and their children.
Learn to advocate for members to overcome barriers to enrolling their children in school.
Volunteer on outreach at local college and university campuses to recruit students who want to get involved.
Holiday Campaign
NSWA’s annual Children’s Safe and Sane Halloween Party and chaperoned Trick-or-Treat for Seasonal Workers is the first in a series of events organized by and for low-income workers and their families through the holiday season. In addition, NSWA runs a budget-saving program for members to help other members meet seasonal needs such as holiday food basket distributions for Thanksgiving and Holiday time, and holiday toy distributions to parents for their private family gift giving to their children. Join the festivities!
How you can help:
-
Help organize a Trick-or-Treat for Seasonal Workers neighborhood food drive and a Safe and Sane Halloween Party for children.
-
Collect turkeys, all the fixings and other holiday food for Thanksgiving and Holiday Food Basket Benefit distributions in November and December and deliver them to members.
-
Collect new toys for distribution to members for their children for private family gift giving.
-
Organize a Family Holiday Party for member families.
NSWA's Campaign to Promote the SDGs
The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were adopted unanimously by all member states of the United Nations on September 25, 2015, including the US, as the Agenda for all countries to prioritize and achieve cooperatively by 2030, to ensure that all human beings can fulfill their potential in dignity and equality and in a healthy environment. NSWA endorses the SDGs and calls on the US government to implement these goals for the benefit of the people of the US and the world. You can join NSWA’s poster campaign to promote the SDGs or host an NSWA speaker to address your club, class, religious congregation, co-workers or a gathering of friends.
The March 4, 2025 official rejection and denunciation of the SDGs by the US government does not deter NSWA’s resolute endorsement, in solidarity with the rest of the 192 member nations of the UN that adopted this agenda in 2015, as necessary for the advancement of humankind.