Handwritten Note Project

A warm welcome to Heart of Dinner's Handwritten Note Project—where words of love and care transcend language and cultural barriers to bring connection and comfort to our beloved Elders.

​

At Heart of Dinner, handwritten notes are at the heart of our care packages—providing emotional connection and belonging. Inspired by our founders’ personal love stories—love notes exchanged as romantic partners of 10 years and letters from a mother to her child—the project reflects a shared belief that small, thoughtful gestures can make someone feel truly seen and cared for, even across generations and cultures. 

​

Every handwritten note is a bridge, fostering connection and showing our Elders that they are loved and remembered. Whether or not you speak the language, your participation makes a meaningful difference. Like our founders, who began by using translation tools, we believe that showing up with your time and heart is an act of love that transcends language and makes people feel seen, connected, and cherished.

​

For our current needs in 2025, we are fully stocked on handwritten notes in all different languages except Traditional Chinese. Your contribution of handwritten notes in Traditional Chinese is especially needed and deeply appreciated. Scroll to the bottom of this page for sample phrases in Traditional Chinese that you are welcome to copy by hand. 

​

Please follow the instructions below to adhere to Heart of Dinner's guidelines to make sure that your efforts will bring joy, warmth, and comfort to our beneficiaries. Thank you for your time and effort in making a meaningful difference in our communities!

​

DOs:

• Please supply your own materials and supplies.

• Please use note cards that are either 3" x 5" or 4" x 6" in size. Use 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. Fill up as much of the blank space with colorful decorations! 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.​​​​​​​​​​​

​

DON'Ts:

1. In order to maintain the personal touch of handwritten notes, we kindly ask that each note is handwritten. We do not accept 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 reduce food insecurity, loneliness, and isolation through our care packages. Handwritten notes 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.

​