August 31 (Day 184) Be A S*O*M*E Buddy!

So Others Might Eat (SOME) is an interfaith, community-based organization that exists to help the poor and homeless of our nation's capital. We meet the immediate daily needs of the people we serve with food, clothing, and health care. We help break the cycle of homelessness by offering services, such as affordable housing, job training, addiction treatment, and counseling, to the poor, the elderly and individuals with mental illness. Each day, SOME is restoring hope and dignity one person at a time. We invite you to join us.

SOME helps clients to maintain long-term stability through the provision of safe, supportive-service affordable housing, and currently operates more than 250 units for single adults and 43 units for families. More than 300 additional affordable units are in the pipeline as part of SOME’s Affordable Housing Development Initiative. Through the Initiative, and with the leadership of William E. Conway, Jr., Co-founder and Managing Partner of the Carlyle Group, SOME aims to create 1,000 new units of affordable housing for more than 2,000 of the District’s homeless and poor.

 
By the Numbers:

In 2009, SOME provided:

• 288,390 meals for hungry children, women, and men in our Dining Room for the Homeless
• 13,215 medical and dental care visits to homeless people who could not afford a doctor or dentist
• 17,525 showers and free clothing for homeless men and women
• 546 homeless children, women and men with safe permanent and long-term housing
• 103 homeless and low-income women and men with intensive job training at SOME's Center for Employment Training

 Your support helps SOME provide food for the hungry and homeless, medical care for the sick, safe, affordable housing for families and single adults, and other services that protect and transform the lives of the homeless and poor in our community.

Get Involved:

Donate to SOME.

Volunteer opportunities with SOME.

Gifts for SOMEone Special Catalogue.

Honor a special person in your life with a symbolic gift from SOME's Gifts for SOMEone Special catalogue.

40 Ways to Help the homeless in your community.


Source:  So Others Might Eat

August 30 (Day 183) Everyone has a wish...anyone can be a Hero.

Be a hero!

 

Wish Upon A Hero is a unique venue for any individual, organization, or company looking to make a difference in someone’s life, or the lives of countless people. Heroes come in all ages and from all walks of life. All of us, from our nation’s most powerful corporations to individual philanthropists, and those with limited financial means, can be someone’s hero.  Wish Upon A Hero has been called the "eBay of philanthropy" because it matches people with wants or needs to those willing to fulfill them: 

• A man who buys uniforms for his town’s little league team.
• A plastic surgeon brings his skill to the aid of an uninsured breast cancer survivor.
• A national appliance retailer that donates a refrigerator to a single mom with a newborn.
• A groundskeeper at Yankee stadium who helps a woman fulfill her father’s lifelong dream of throwing a single pitch across home plate.
• A group of 8th graders that rally behind a fellow student whose home was lost in a fire.
• A woman who writes to a man in Seattle to say, “I think I’m the sister you’ve been looking for since we were separated 21 years ago.”
• A female soldier stationed in Iraq who says, “yes, I will.”

 

No wish too large. No hero too small.

Wish Upon A Hero was first conceived by founder Dave Girgenti shortly after the September 11th attacks on New York City. From his home in NJ, Girgenti watched as thousands of people posted pictures of missing loved ones throughout the city. He thought there had to be a faster, more organized way to connect people in need. That was the moment in which the idea was born.  

 

Other than content that is prohibited by the website’s rules of decency, users are free to wish for virtually anything they like. Some wishes will be based on genuine need, while others might be considered quite extravagant. Wish Upon a Hero is designed to allow those posting wishes plenty of options to provide descriptions, photos and video to support their appeal for a Hero. In addition, the Wish Upon A Hero email system will allow registered users to communicate questions and answers regarding each wish. In the end, users of the Wish Upon A Hero site are encourage to use good judgment and common sense when it comes to posting and granting wishes.

So, what do you say...Feel like being someone's Hero?! You can search the wishes by state, catagory or wish type.  The wishes are varied and range from someone requesting prayer for a sick loved one, a birthday card for a relative needing encouragement, clothing for children to larger medical issues.  You decide how you can help! 



Get Involved:

Become a Hero -  Click here to register at Wish Upon A Hero.

Browse Wishes waiting to be granted.

Wish Upon a Hero on Facebook.



Source:  Wish Upon A Hero

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August 28 (Day 181) Action Against Hunger

"It is a poverty to decide that a child must die so that you may live as you wish."           --Mother Teresa

Take a moment to consider these powerful words spoken by Mother Teresa. Born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu, a Catholic nun of Albanian ethnicity and Indian citizenship. She founded the Missionaries of Charity in Kolkata, India in 1950. For over 45 years she ministered to the poor, sick, orphaned, and dying, while guiding the Missionaries of Charity's expansion, first throughout India and then in other countries.

Individuals and organizations have chosen to celebrate the 100th year anniversary of her birth (August 26th) in varied ways.  Mother Teresa left a powerful example for the rest of us to follow.  A legacy of caring love and commitment to those who possess so little and need so much.  Today's post highlights an organization who is working to alleviate hunger  - Please consider how you can make a difference today.

Action Against Hunger (ACF International) is a global humanitarian organization committed to ending world hunger. Recognized as a leader in the fight against malnutrition, ACF saves the lives of malnourished children while providing communities with access to safe water and sustainable solutions to hunger. With 30 years of expertise in emergency situations of conflict, natural disaster, and chronic food insecurity, ACF runs life-saving programs in some 40 countries benefiting five million people each year.

 
Global hunger now afflicts more than a billion people worldwide. Severe acute malnutrition, however, is the more immediate killer: it threatens the lives of 19 million children. Every year as many as 5 million of them die from malnutrition-related causes. From rural mountain villages to the confines of refugee camps to ethnically divided cities, Action Against Hunger treats and prevents malnutrition in over 40 countries around the world. Our programs are launched most often during times of crisis and focus on the most vulnerable, including young children and women who are pregnant or nursing.

Almost a billion people on the planet don’t have access to clean drinking water. A third of the world’s population lives without basic sanitation infrastructure like a toilet. Every day 4,000 children die from illnesses like diarrhea, dysentery, and cholera caused by dirty water and unhygienic living conditions. We can’t fight malnutrition without tackling the diseases that contribute to it. As part of our integrated approach to hunger, we’re getting safe water, sanitation, and hygiene services to communities in need all over the world.

Action Against Hunger’s food security & livelihoods programs tackle the root causes of hunger: problems of access, income, and production. Our food security & livelihoods activities aim to prevent outbreaks of life-threatening acute malnutrition by helping some of the most vulnerable communities around the world regain nutritional self-sufficiency. While our programs encompass a wide array of activities, all are customized to meet the specific needs of each community.

Get Involved:


Donate to Action Against Hunger.

Other ways to give.

Support the work of Action Against Hunger - check out volunteer, social networking and event opportunities.

Action Against Hunger on Facebook.




Source:  Action Against Hunger

August 29 (Day 182) Solidarity Not Charity

On August 28, 2005, Hurricane Katrina was in the Gulf of Mexico where it powered up to a Category 5 storm packing winds estimated at 175 mph.  At 7:10 a.m. EDT on August 29, Hurricane Katrina made landfall in southern Plaquemines Parish Louisiana, just south of Buras, as a Category 3 hurricane. Maximum winds were estimated near 125 mph to the east of the center.  Katrina will be recorded as the most destructive storm in terms of economic losses.

It's hard to believe it was 5 years ago that Hurricane Katrina devastated the gulf area.  There is still much work that needs to be done - many areas are still trying to recover from the devastation and destruction. Today's post highlights a charity that is still working to rebuild those areas affected by Katrina.

Common Ground Relief's mission is to provide short term relief for victims of hurricane disasters in the gulf coast region, and long term support in rebuilding the communities affected in the New Orleans area. Common Ground Relief is a community-initiated volunteer organization offering assistance, mutual aid and support. The work gives hope to communities by working with them, providing for their immediate needs and emphasizes people working together to rebuild their lives in sustainable ways.

Common Ground Relief rose out of the immediate crisis created by Hurricane Katrina when tens of thousands of residents lost their homes, their possessions and their way of life. In the Lower Ninth Ward where approximately 14,000 people lived and 4,800 homes were located, this devastation represented the loss of a community where over 54% of the residents had lived at 25 years and roots in the neighborhood had resulted in the highest percentage of African American home ownership of any city in the United States. The loss of these homes represented the disappearance of a family’s major asset, economic livelihood and, as a result, their future.

Through Common Ground Relief, we have provided a vehicle for nearly 25,000 people of all ages and backgrounds to volunteer in the recovery of the area. We have gutted over 3,000 homes, provided for the basic needs of thousands of New Orleans residents and founded a, now independent, health clinic and women’s shelter. We meet the residents who need help in rebuilding their flood damaged homes and offer assistance for new construction at our Anita Roddick Advocacy Center. The Center also houses our free Legal Clinic, staffed with law school student volunteers and supervised by a Louisiana licensed attorney, we continue to provide free legal services that now encompass wrongful demolition, succession documentation, mortgage application assistance and contractor fraud.

Additionally, we strive to re-create historic levels of agricultural self-sufficiency in the Lower Ninth Ward through the fiscal sponsorship for and as co-founder of the Lower Ninth Ward Urban Farming Coalition. We conduct soil testing, build raised garden beds for residents, organized a local garden club and provide gardening advice throughout the community. Our Wetlands Restoration program, combined with an educational partnership with Martin Luther King, Jr. Charter School, strives to rebuild the destroyed buffer of wetlands of coastal Louisiana and create awareness of its historic importance to local residents. We have established a tree farm in a partnership with Nichols State University, the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry, EPCO Construction and Bayou Rebirth to grow hardwood trees and grasses for wetlands plantings and landscape plants for the yards of returning residents.
Finally, our Job Training program, in partnership with EPCO Construction, a Louisiana licensed, bonded and insured general contractor is teaching construction skills to residents and at risk youth. This salaried program provides gainful employment and training that will lead to successful careers for the participants.

With your support, Common Ground Relief will continue to provide grassroots, environmentally aware and politically conscious assistance to this beleaguered community and allow us to help this important area not only survive, but thrive.


 
Get Involved:

Donate to Common Ground Relief

Volunteer with Common Ground Relief.  (Short term & Long term opportunities)

Common Ground Relief's Wish List.

Common Ground Relief on Facebook.



Source:  Common Ground Relief

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August 27 (Day 180) Brown Dog Foundation

Welcome to Four Legged -Friend Friday!  Today I am highlighting an organization that is working to help families who are facing financial hardships for whatever reason provide veterinary care for their sick pets.  Below is an excerpt of an article written by Kelly Gilfillan for the Brentwood Homepage.  Click here to see the entire article.

Love this dog story
Everybody loves a good dog story, especially one with a happy ending. Carol Smock’s story started off in September, 2000 when she read Chip's heart-wrenching story on a Lab Rescue website. Chip’s previous family had abandoned him at a shelter when they found a tumor.

Smock decided to arrange a meeting to become his adoptive parent. The introduction went very well and after his surgery, Smock brought him home on October 16, 2000. Over the next few years, Chocolate Chip, a loyal and loving companion, moved with Smock to Dallas and Chicago, and in 2003 they made their permanent home in Nashville, TN.

Six years later, Smock again found a lump on Chip. When the veterinarian recommended surgery, Smock was forced to pause due to her unemployment. She needed time to save the money for the surgery. Before surgery could be scheduled, Chip awoke very sick and passed quickly. But this sad story does still have a happy ending because Chip inspired Smock to do something great.

As a result of this experience, Smock along with five friends and her sister, created Brown Dog Foundation as a 501c3 public charity. Brown Dog Foundation provides funding to families who find themselves in similar situation.

“We want to partner with a family instead of a token gift,” said Smock. “The families pay what they can and we fund the rest.”  Some families face a long term care situation for a sick pet that would likely respond to treatment. Her hope is that knowing this foundation exists, dog-owners will have their dogs tested for cancer more frequently.

Brown Dog finds itself in a situation to grow and expand throughout the country through the Pepsi Refresh Grant. The foundation could receive a grant of $250,000 if it gets the most votes in one month. There are three ways to help by voting and you can click here to find out how to do all three at this link.

Smock says her research shows that there are 600 families across the country that are in need and cannot be helped. “Our goal is to provide resources for families who have fallen on hard times who have a pet. These families are in the situation of having to choose whether to put food on the table or getting the pet the care they need.”




Locally, Brown Dog Foundation has made a difference in many lives. One special story is about Ashland City’s Daisy. Daisy was swept away in the May floods and her hip was badly damaged and pulled out of socket. Daisy literally dragged herself home seven days later.  The family had just used all their savings to repair the damage to their home caused by the flood.  Brown Dog Foundation stepped up and helped this family and Daisy is on the mend.

During the weekend of the flood, the foundation raised $5,000 and used it to help 50 pets. Besides Daisy’s family, others had help in replacing Heartguard and flea medicine.

Wow!  Awesome work Brown Dog Foundation! 



Get Involved:


Donate to Brown Dog Foundation.

Brown Dog Foundation 2010 Wish List.

Brown Dog Foundation's Adopt A Family Program

Brown Dog Foundation on Facebook.




Sources:  Brown Dog Foundation
               Kelly Gilfillan 
               Brentwood Homepage

August 26 (Day 179) deworm the world

I hope the title of today's post has not scared anyone away.  The issue is exactly as the title suggests - I hope you will read today's post and thoughtfully consider how you might help Deworm the World  make a difference. 

Four hundred million school-age children are infected with parasitic worms worldwide, which both damage their health and limit their access to education. These worms are detrimental to children’s health, their cognitive development, their education and a brighter future. Chronic illness caused by worm infections reduces literacy and thus adult productivity thereby impacting on the economic development of low and middle income countries.



This problem has a simple and inexpensive solution...

Mass deworming programs based in schools are recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) and cost just pennies per child. Studies prove deworming is the most cost-effective way of increasing education. Deworming in schools is easy: programs can be plugged into existing school infrastructure at low cost.
Deworming drugs are safe and can be delivered orally without the need for diagnosis. Under the direction of local health professionals, teachers can be easily trained to deliver the drugs on their own. School-aged children are most at risk of worm infections, so targeting through schools is a highly effective method for achieving widespread coverage of treatment.

Deworm the World is working to implement school-based deworming wherever it is needed worldwide, and we invite you to join us. A key barrier to the implementation of mass deworming programs is access and availability of medication. Feed The Children, a key partner in Deworm the World, has donated all of the over 40 million tablets used in programs in 2009.



Get Involved:

Donate to Deworm The World.




Source: Deworm The World.

August 25 (Day 178) Mission: Accomplished. Day Brightened!

We can all take a page from the "Secret Agent" playbook of Laura Miller. Laura has been making a difference in the lives of her fellow Pittsburgh, PA residents for the past year! She has been called "The Secret Agent of Kindness" and she certainly lives up to the nickname.

Laura began Secret Agent L or SAL in response to a request made by a close friend.  Instead of a birthday gift, her friend requested that Laura honor her birthday with an act of kindness. And so it began, a single lavender hydrangea bloom tucked under the windshield wipers of a random vehicle, and Secret Agent L was born.


Laura used her friend's birthday idea to launch a new blog, where she documents each secret mission and posts photos of the inexpensive gifts that have included $5 Starbucks gift cards, a roll of quarters at a laundromat and uplifting decorative cards. The project has blossomed into an international phenomenon of anonymous acts of kindness, with Affiliated Agents sharing in the fun and selflessness all over the world, including Germany and Denmark.


Laura goes all over Pittsburgh and leaves little acts of kindness and day-brightening for an unsuspecting person to find. She hopes her anonymous gifts will help at least bring smiles to those going through a tough time -- though she never sticks around to see who finds them, but that's the point: it doesn't matter who finds it, because everyone, no matter who they are, could use a little kindness. "I think that's part of the fun -- it's just sort of putting the gift there and leaving, and just knowing that somebody's going to get it and it doesn't matter who," she says.


Laura tries to do at least one mission a week, but notes " I would do it every single day if I had the money," calling the project "one of the greatest honors of my life." 


Whenever a new person registers as an Affiliated Agent, they are assigned a random act of kindness and given a copy of Miller's calling card that explains to the recipient of the gift what it is they're holding. When the assignment is complete, she'll post about it on her blog. The gifts can be anything from a roll of quarters at the laundromat to an inspirational knick-knack that is guaranteed to spark a smile.



How it works....

If you're interested in getting in on the kindness, let me know! It's easy! And it doesn't matter where you live: North America, Africa, anywhere!  Click here to learn how to become an affiliated agent and take part in your own kindness mission.




Source:  www.secretagentl.com

August 24 (Day 177) The Elephant Sanctuary

They loaded up their trunks.... and they moved to Tennessee!

The Elephant Sanctuary in Hohenwald, Tennessee, is the nation's largest natural-habitat refuge developed specifically to meet the needs of endangered elephants. It is a non-profit organization, licensed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, and accredited by the Association of Sanctuaries, designed specifically for old, sick or needy elephants who have been retired from zoos and circuses. Utilizing more than 2700 acres, it provides three separate and protected, natural-habitat environments for Asian and African elephants. Our residents are not required to perform or entertain for the public; instead, they are encouraged to live like elephants.

The Discovery Channel, PBS, 20/20, CNN, and many others have made people aware that elephants are majestic creatures who are highly intelligent, complex, social, and sensitive individuals.  In the wild, elephants are migratory, walking 30 to 50 miles each day, and form intricate family structures. They grieve for their dead in a more-than-instinctive way. They show humor and express compassion for one another with intense interactions. The reality of their lives in captivity is that many are in chains up to 18 hours a day. They are enclosed in steel pens—often alone—broken and controlled by fear and intimidation.

As a true Sanctuary we are not open to the public. The public's affection and fascination for elephants is shared by many. This fascination to see elephants up-close and personal has resulted in disastrous consequences for captive elephants. Facilities exhibiting elephants have put the needs of the public before that of the elephants in their care. As a direct result of the public's desire to get closer, elephants live a miserable life; confined to small places, forced to submit to human keepers and fed only processed food due to restricted living space. We strive to raise public awareness about the needs of elephants that includes their right to privacy from a curious public.

 
 
Get Involved:

Donate to The Elephant Sanctuary.

The Elephant Sanctuary's Wish List.

Sponsor an Elephant.

Feed An Elephant for A Day.  Searching for the perfect gift for the person who has everything (or want a certificate to show your friends)? For $30 you can feed Lottie, Minnie, Ronnie, Debbie, Frieda, Liz, Billie, Tarra, Shirley, Sissy, Winkie, Dulary, Misty, Tange or Flora for a day. The recipient will receive a picture and biography of the elephant(s) chosen, along with a certificate and a full year's membership, making this gift a great way to educate friends and family about everyone's role in helping needy elephants.

Other ways you can help.

 
 
 
Source:  The Elephant Sanctuary

August 23 (Day 176) Helping Pakistani Families

Up to 21 million Pakistani children and women are affected by the worst monsoon flooding ever in northern Pakistan. Over the past four weeks floods have damaged, destroyed or cut off thousands of villages and communities and caused extensive damage to roads and bridges. Tens of thousands of children and families remain marooned in villages without clean water, adequate shelter, medical care and dangerously low supplies of food.

Children are always among the most vulnerable during emergencies. They are watching their family’s livelihoods wash away, leaving their parents with the difficult task of rebuilding their lives and feeding children. The UN also reports that some 5,600 schools have been damaged and that over 4,000 others are being used to shelter displaced families. Children’s access to education has suffered a major blow.


Pakistan's worst flooding in 80 years has claimed at least 1,600 lives and left more than 4 million people homeless. The Pakistan flooding disaster is going from bad to worse, especially for millions of children and vulnerable elderly people who are at risk of cholera and other deadly waterborne illnesses.

Continued rains hamper access to Pakistan's northwest region, leaving entire villages cut off  from relief efforts and raising the level of urgency to reach many in desperate need of basic supplies. With more rain on the way, officials fear that the flooding will extend  further into the more populated provinces of Sindh and Punjab over the coming days.



Please support one of the organizations working to bring help and hope to Pakistan.

AmeriCares has mounted disaster relief efforts to help sick and injured people affected by the floods. Hospitals and clinics report rapidly depleting existing stocks of medication, wound care supplies and hygiene items. In response, AmeriCares continues to deliver medical aid to local partners and the airlifted aid is en route to health care providers helping flood survivors.

Since 1990, AmeriCares has delivered nearly $57 million in assistance to Pakistan including relief supplies ranging from medicines, medical supplies, equipment, health care facilities and nutritional support.

 
Donate to AmeriCares Pakistan Floods Relief Fund.

With the monsoon season expected to continue though September, Save the Children’s highest priority for the coming weeks is to save children’s lives and rush food, water, shelter materials, medical care and other essentials to affected communities. Once our recovery phase begins, we plan to address children’s longer-term needs in shelter, health and nutrition, education and child protection. We will also help families regain incomes and help restore their ability to produce food. Our goal is to reach 2 million children and adults within the next six months.

Save the Children is working with national, district and local governments and is using all means of transportation available, including helicopters, mules and boats, to send health staff and supplies to communities that have been cut off.



Donate to the Pakistan Children in Emergency Fund.
 
You can donate any amount through the link above, or by calling 1-800-728-3843 or 1-203-221-4030.
 
Donate $10 by Texting  "FLOOD" to 20222 (U.S. Only).





Source:  Americares
               Save the Children

August 22 (Day 175) Gilda's Family Walk & Health Fair

I received an email from Nancy who works with Gilda's Club Metro Detroit, asking if I would mind posting about Gilda's Family Walk and Health Fair.  Gilda's Club is a network of affiliate clubhouses where men, women and children living with cancer, as well as their friends and families, meet to learn how to live with cancer, whatever the outcome.  Gilda's Club seeks to provide an emotional and social support community for people living with cancer as well as their friends and families, as an essential complement to medical care. Fundamental to the Gilda's Club philosophy is that membership is completely free of charge, and that the clubhouse environment is warm, welcoming, and non-institutional.

If you are in the area gather friends, family, co-workers and neighbors to honor those impacted by cancer and support our great community program of emotional and social support.  If you are not in the area, consider making a donation to one of the teams participating in the walk.

DATE: Saturday, Sept. 11, 2010 -- 9 a.m. to noon

LOCATION: Lawrence Tech, 21000 W. 10 Mile Road, Southfield 48075

======================================

To understand the impact Gilda's Club has on those it serves,

read the excerpt below written by By Tom Murphy Jr. -

As John Ricco once again prepares to lace up his walking shoes to raise money for Gilda’s Club Metro Detroit, he reminds himself that his journey is a positive one.
Ricco, 63, of Farmington Hills, is a 10-year cancer survivor. He was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in June 2000, three days before his 53rd birthday. About six months after his diagnosis, Ricco discovered Gilda’s Club Metro Detroit.

In 2003, he participated in his first Gilda’s Family Walk. He had a three person team of walkers who raised $300. The next year his team increased to nine walkers, raising $700.

Ricco said that the process began with members of his family joining him in the first year, and expanded to include friends the second year. In his third year, Ricco recruited from the multiple myeloma support group, which meets at Gilda’s Club once a month. The group is one of 100 support groups offered by the cancer support community in Royal Oak.

"I said, ‘For everything Gilda’s gives you, maybe you could give back something by becoming a member of the team or making a donation to the Ricco Myeloma Team." The group responded. The Ricco Myeloma Team grew from nine walkers to 33 in 2005. Their numbers grew with each passing year. In 2009,  The Ricco Myeloma Team had 110 members and raised more than $10,000, money that is spent locally on the program that is available at no charge to men, women, teens and children impacted by all types of cancer. The program includes wellness and support groups, educational lectures, creative arts workshops and social activities.

“Gilda’s Club has done so much for me and my family in terms of support, information, friendships and social events,” Ricco said. “So I consider the whole effort for the walk a give-back for all that my family and I have received from being involved with Gilda’s Club.”

Ricco recalls being devastated when his doctor first told him he had cancer. “My father passed away five months after he was diagnosed with cancer so that played heavily into the trauma,” Ricco said. “There was so much I still wanted to do like walk my daughters down the aisle, travel with my wife, Jan . . . just so many things. I knew I couldn’t give up.”

Ricco was determined not to let cancer stop him. He had too much he wanted to do with his life; in fact, he says, his battle with cancer has given him a new perspective. “Cancer is a gift,” Ricco said. “Because when you have cancer, you have this opportunity to do better things with your life, to focus on the meaning of life and what you want to do with your life. And when you discover that, it’s like, wow this really a positive and a gift to have this fresh, new page to turn on to. I never would have had this view and done these things if it wasn’t for being diagnosed with cancer.”

Ricco continues to stay positive even during relapse, which he went through in 2008 and is in the process of going through again. He is convinced that a good attitude is a major factor in his survival. So much so, that he has written a book titled “The Ride of Your Life: Fighting Cancer with Attitude.” The book took him six years to complete. It is about his journey through his battle with cancer. Ricco said that his book is a tool kit for others dealing with cancer or for anybody who is going through a difficult situation. 


In the book, Ricco explains how he was able to keep a positive attitude despite his disease and how he was able to turn a negative situation into a positive opportunity.  “I believe it is God’s plan for me to go through this and to have written the book so that I may help others going through similar situations.”

The Gilda’s Family Walk & Health Fair is being held on Saturday, Sept.11 at Lawrence Tech University in Southfield. Ricco said that he hopes to come close to the same results the team achieved last year, but with the shape of the economy, he foresees a challenge.  If we can raise $8,000, that would make me very happy,” Ricco said.

Ricco and his wife, Jan, have three grown daughters one of whom was recently married with Ricco happily walking her down the aisle.
For more information about John Ricco or to purchase his book “Ride of Your Life: Fighting Cancer with Attitude,” go to www.johnriccobooks.com. To donate to the Ricco Myeloma Team please visit www.firstgiving.com/johnricco.
“In this economy, non-profit organizations like Gilda’s Club are really squeezing,” Ricco said. “Every donation counts, no matter how small or big.”
 
 
 
Get Involved:

Register to participate in the walk or make a donation.

Other ways you can support Gilda's Club.




Source:  Gilda's Club Metro Detroit       

August 21 (Day 174) One Heartland

In 1991, Neil Willenson, a native of Mequon, Wisconsin, was 20 years old and a senior at the University of Wisconsin- Madison. He was majoring in TV/Film and, upon graduation, had plans to seek a career as a feature film producer in Hollywood. All that changed, however, when Neil read the headline in his hometown newspaper: "AIDS hysteria in Mequon." A young boy with AIDS named Nile Sandeen was entering kindergarten in the small town of Mequon, and the community was up in arms. Fear and prejudice filled the air. At the center of all this controversy was a five-year-old boy who only wanted to go to school, who only wanted a chance to make friends.

  

A Simple Act of Kindess:

When Neil read this story in his hometown paper, he knew he had to get involved. For the next two years, Neil got to know Nile. He got to know Nile's brother, Sean, and his mother, Dawn Wolff; an entire family affected by AIDS in the center of America's heartland. Neil compared his own life-history in Mequon to Nile's. On the sidewalks, streets and in the schools of Mequon, where Neil had found joy and friendship, Nile had found only isolation and despair. Fear, ignorance and prejudice had turned what had been a heartland for Neil Willenson into a wasteland for Nile Sandeen.

In 1993, Nile turned seven years old. Like millions of other children, more than anything, he wanted to go to summer camp. He wanted to run; to play in the sun with kids his own age. He wanted to sit around a campfire at the end of a day filled with fun activities and sing silly summer camp songs in the dancing firelight - to eat breakfast in a dining hall ringing with joy and activity.

A Life-Changing Mission:

And so in 1993, inspired by Nile Sandeen, Neil Willenson founded Camp Heartland - a summer camp program that accepted both children infected with AIDS and children who were affected by the disease. The camp was equipped with state-of-the-art medical facilities able to handle the special needs of immuno-compromised campers. It was a summer camping program where children living with HIV/AIDS could step out of the shadows of secrecy into the light of openness and honesty - a place where they could have the best week of their lives.

During that first summer, 73 children with AIDS were welcomed to Camp Heartland at a rented campsite in Wisconsin with funds raised by Neil Willenson and a few dozen college students. After five years of renting campsites around the country, Camp Heartland in 1997 purchased its own, permanent home: The Camp Heartland Center in Willow River, Minnesota.

Set amidst 88 wooded acres in Northern Minnesota, with access to three lakes and miles of wilderness trails, the Camp Heartland Center is an extraordinary haven. It is a light in the darkness for children who live every day of their lives in a thickly shadowed world of chronic illness and discrimination.

Making a Year-Round, Life-Long Impact:

What began as Neil's quest to give one little boy a week of friendship and summertime fun, has now become a year-round community making a life-long impact for hundreds of children and their families. Year-round programs such as camp reunions, newsletters and holiday mailings, youth retreats and life enhancement programs reinforce young people's sense of belonging and well-being on an ongoing basis. As we look to the future, we're confident that with your help, the number of lives we can touch will be countless.

One Heartland Quick Facts:

• In 1993, Camp Heartland was founded by then 22-year-old Neil Willenson of Wisconsin
• Camp Heartland is the largest camping and care program for children who experience HIV/AIDS. Over 75 percent of Camp Heartland's participants live in poverty.
• Camp Heartland is a national program that welcomes children from 40 different states
• As most of the children cannot afford tuition, through the generosity of thousands of individuals, corporations and foundations, Camp Heartland's programs and services are provided free of charge to all participants
• One Heartland operates camps in California, New York and Minnesota and has begun an international expansion.
• Since 1994, One Heartland's Journey of Hope AIDS Awareness Program has traveled throughout the United States on a mission of increasing HIV awareness, prevention, education and testing. The speakers on the tour are children affected by HIV, poverty and other challenges.
• One Heartland annually serves thousands of suffering and at-risk children in the United States including those who experience poverty, HIV/AIDS, grief, foster care, Tourette's Syndrome, and other obstacles.

 
Get Involved:

Donate to One Heartland.

One Heartland's Wish List.

Volunteer opportunities with One Heartland.

Party for our Cause.

One Heartland on Facebook.




Source: One Heartland

August 20 (Day 173) Hannah's Socks

 

On a chilly Thanksgiving Day in 2004, 4-year-old Hannah Turner was helping serve dinner to the needy at Toledo's Cherry Street Mission. In the middle of the hustle and bustle of doing her part to fill plates, she tugged on her mother Doris' sweater.

"Mommy, won't his feet be cold?"
Hannah had focused on a man in line wearing shoes that had split open to reveal he had no socks on, and her small face reflected concern.

Doris tried to reassure her: "His shoes will keep his toes warm." She didn't know how they could help with all staff focused on the meal, and she didn't want her daughter carrying a burden.


Hannah — too smart, too big of heart — was unconvinced.

"Mommy, he can have my socks," she said.
That next day, Doris took Hannah to purchase and distribute socks to local shelters. They were able to collect and donate over 100 pairs around Toledo. Over two more years, and with amazing support from friends and family, they distributed nearly 10,000 total pairs of socks to partner shelters.

Doris and husband Vic quickly discovered that of all the materials donated to shelters, new socks and undergarments are given the least and needed the most. They created Hannah's Socks with the goal of addressing that problem, and they need your help.

Hannah's Socks is a non-profit organization focused on providing clothing necessities to the less fortunate in a growing number of Midwest states including Ohio, Michigan, and Kentucky. Hannah's Socks collects donated materials in the form of men's, women's and children's socks and undergarments, then leverages partnerships with local shelters for distribution to both the homeless and to victims of domestic violence. In addition, we support programs serving under-privileged children.
Hannah's Socks firmly believes that in a country as prosperous as the United States, no man, woman or child should want for something as basic as a warm pair of socks.



2010 Sock Count:


Collected: 68,163 pairs
Our Goal: 150,000 pairs

Hannah Turner is another awesome kid that can teach us adults a thing or two about making a difference and caring for others. Thank you Hannah for your tender caring heart for others!  You inspire us to be better!
 

Get Involved:
Donate to Hannah's Socks.

Donate Socks / Host a Sock Drive.

Hannah's Socks Wish List.

Hannah's Socks on Facebook.



Source:  Hannah's Socks

August 19 (Day 172) Love Our Children USA

AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH!!!! My head is about to explode! What is going on - I cannot understand this! The mother who slapped her crying infant on the airplane - the South Carolina mom who killed her 2 babies and then pushed her car in the water to make it appear as if the children died in an accident. The sad recent headlines have caused me to change my post for today.

We have all seen this scene played out too many times before. I understand that people feel overwhelmed. I understand that desperation is real... I just don't understand harming your child. I have 2 children and I can't imagine doing anything to intentionally harm them. Today I have chosen to highlight a charity that is working to make a difference in the lives of many children and parents.

In the USA, Children are more apt to die from abuse than from accidents. Each year 18,000 children and youth are permanently disabled and 565,000 are seriously injured. Child abuse kills more than 3 children every day in America.

Love Our Children USA was founded on a promise to America's children to keep them safe. Our commitment is to break the cycle of violence against children. Empowering the public with knowledge … giving children and youth a voice by speaking for them… advocating for their safety and taking their message to the media and to our communities … a liaison between those with no power and those with power. Practicing safe and positive parenting in every home … every school ... every community across America ... for all children ... creating successful families. Getting to the root of the cause of child violence ... and breaking the cycle — before it starts. And by doing this we can stop domestic violence which begins with the victimization of children.

WHY LOVE OUR CHILDREN USA?

• Because each year over 3 million children are victimized and neglected and those are only the ones that are reported! The actual number of child victims is estimated to be three times greater.
• Because each year almost 1.8 million children are reported missing – many of them abducted from their own homes and front yards.
• Because over 580,000 children in this country live in foster care.
• Because 1 out of 7 kids and teens are approached by online predators every day.
• Because 1 out of 4 kids are bullied
• Because 42% of kids have been bullied online  

When children are victimized, neglected and abandoned they suffer in various ways … ways that only they know in their private world of pain. They often have poor self-esteem and self-worth, are often out of control. They feel violated, victimized and damaged. They feel guilt, humiliation and shame. They feel unloved.

And what are the long-term effects of being victimized, neglected and abandoned? Best case … an abused child's foundation is undermined! Worst case … A child dies! Children who are victimized, neglected and abandoned are likelier to become:

• School dropouts
• Runaways
• Pregnant teenagers
• Substance abusers
• Gun Users
• Juvenile delinquents
• Adult criminals
• Violent
• Unemployable
• Argumentative
• Out of control
• Prostitutes
• Low Achievers
• Abusers to partners, spouses and children - and the circle of violence continues.

Violence against children only ends when a child comes forward or a concerned person recognizes the warning signs and reports the abuse. Sometimes, people may fear getting personally involved or they may be in denial of a child they know who is being hurt. Making a call to the hotline where the child is being harmed can generate help a family needs but is unable to seek. Child violence is a problem on the national and local levels that requires action in the form of caring individuals in each community.   

Children are our dreams and hopes. They will reflect their childhood as an adult. They are never at fault for the violence that adults inflict upon them. You can help replace the hate, hurt and fear of a child victim with love, understanding and security by taking an active role. A person’s actions, or lack of action, not only affects the abused child, but everyone in our country. Even if you just suspect abuse … Report it!  

Please, if you have issues with anger or violence against your spouse or children, talk to someone and get some help. There is help out there for you. Or, if you suspect Child Abuse or Domestic Violence, or you know a victim of abuse who lives with the pain of their terror … Please make that call! You may be saving a life and at the very least saving someone from the pain and terror of being abused!

Click here for a list of National 24 hour toll free help line numbers.

Get Involved:

Donate to Love Our Children USA.

Shop Love Our Children USA online store.

Other ways to get involved.

Source: Love Our Children USA

August 18 (Day 171) Dog Meets World

This blog is all about the many varied ways we can make a difference in the world.  Sometimes those ways that seem less conventional have a deeper meaning than what we see on the surface.  If we look deeper, we can learn something.

The need for affirmation is a basic need... we all need to feel like we matter, that we are important.  We all want to be acknowledged as a person.   Today's post highlights an organization that is doing just that!

While traveling the world, Carolyn Lane frequently photographed children as they played with Foto, a small stuffed toy likeness of her dog that she carried along.  Witnessing the children's delight seeing their image on the digital screen, she imagined what it would be like to actually print their picture and hand it out right then and there.  This concept forms the basis of Dog Meets World and the advent of Take and Give Photography.  Today's small portable battery operated printers make it feasible, fast and fun!

Can you imagine your life without treasured pictures?  It is eye-opening to discover just how many people do not possess a single picture of their children, or even themselves.  Smiles erupt when they see their images, often for the first time and realize "that is me!"  Giving a photograph is a simple act of kindness.  It says "I see you and I acknowledge you, for all time." 


Why photos and not food?

Dog Meets World is designed to provide relief of the poor. Mazlov’s hierarchy places physiological needs of food, shelter and housing as the most primary. A photograph of one’s self addresses a higher need. By providing permanent recognition, a photograph contributes to self-esteem. In the poor neighborhoods visited by DMW emissaries, the experience revealed that needs at different levels are not exclusionary and lower needs to do not necessarily need to be fully met to have a desire to reach higher.

The natural light, natural setting photographs offered acknowledgment of each recipient as a human being worthy of documentation and to be remembered and chronicled. When they gazed at their images they could see themselves as glorious and with richness. To have your human dignity celebrated is a need frequently left unaddressed. DMW aims to enrich the lives of impoverished children (and families) by providing them with self-portraits that reflect their uniqueness and beauty. DMW intends to feed the souls of peoples hungry to be seen and acknowledged.


The Vision for Dog Meets World

The vision is to establish a movement to photograph the children of the world. To seek children in their own settings, print their image to keep for a lifetime. We have replicated Foto, the stuffed dog, to enable scores of world travelers to participate with this intentional project. The dream of Dog Meets World is to empower travelers to make real connections to people in other cultures, in essence to become photo-diplomats. A picture makes anybody a “somebody”.  Dog Meets World clothes people in acknowledgment and affirmation and feeds their souls, which indeed is priceless


Who can participate in Dog Meets World?

Anyone who travels for whatever reason to the developing world or to pockets of poverty in the developed world, can add Take & Give photography to their trip. Whether you are a tourist, on business, joining a volunteer vacation or mission trip, on a service trip, taking a university-led study trip, member of the Peace Corps, or on responsible travel tour, you name it, Dog Meets World can be added to provide a great entry point for interactions with local peoples. All it requires is bringing along the small compact printer with supplies and your own Foto dog. It’s guaranteed to bring joy to those on both sides of the lens!

 
Check out the Dog Meets World Photo gallery.
 
 
 
Get Involved: 
 
Donate to Dog Meets World.  (Take home your own stuffed Foto)
 
Become a Phodographer. 
What is a Phodographer?   Using little stuffed "Foto" to unite the images & pose with the kids, a Phodographer brings Take & Give Photography to those in need around the globe. A Phodographer acknowledges others with a simple act of kindness and affirmation, by giving them a personal photograph. Foto the dog, is the recognizable symbol and ambassador of this international global effort.
 
 

 
Source:  Dog Meets World

August 17 (Day 170) Operation Injured Soldiers

One of the things I have been learning through writing this blog is that there are some inspiring kids out there! Giuseppe Gottfried is one such kid!!  I was reading an article in my local newspaper highlighting this awesome 7 year old!  In honor of Giuseppe and his example of selflessness, I am dedicating today's post to his chosen charity.... Operation Injured Soldiers.

Seven Year old Giuseppe Gottfried has done it again. This amazing little boy does not want presents at his birthday parties, he wants his friend and family to donate money to injured soldiers. Last year Guiseppe raised $500.00 for our soldiers, this year he raised $800.00! Wouldn't you love to be the proud parent of this amazing little boy!  (Read Guiseppe's story here.)

The organization helps physically and emotionally disabled soldiers return to their civilian life through recreational activities they enjoy. Donations to OIS have funded fishing or hunting trips, tickets to sporting events or transportation or lodging for veterans traveling long distances.

Operation Injured Soldiers was founded by a veteran of the war in Iraq who was wounded in the line of duty. During his recovery, he dreamed of helping other veterans with disabilities get back to the normal activities of life.

Today, we have more than 2 million disabled veterans who have been severely wounded in the line of duty. This figure does not include the growing number of soldiers who suffer from PTSD. All of these soldiers had dreams about what their future would be like. These dreams were shattered for many in the line of duty.

The volunteers who dedicate their time to Operation Injured Soldiers have a very important goal; and that goal is to connect with individuals and corporations wishing to provide a token of appreciation to the brave men and women who have fought for our nation's freedom. This "thank you" is a small price to pay for all that they have given to us. Without them, the U.S. would not be the great country that it is today.



THEY GAVE MUCH MORE THAN THEY RECEIVE FOR OUR FREEDOM

Wounded veterans of the present War on Terrorism and the past wars must struggle every day to overcome life-changing sacrifices such as the loss of a limb, significant burns, and the reality of being in a wheelchair. The mission of Operation Injured Soldiers is to help the people who have given so much on our behalf overcome these obstacles and resume a productive and fulfilling life through programs that help them get back into their personal hobbies.



NOW IT'S OUR TIME TO SHOW OUR APPRECIATION

Operation Injured Soldiers partners with corporate sponsors, individual contributors, and volunteers to provide an easy and meaningful way for individuals and corporations to help these veterans and their families carry out meaningful lives.

You can help by means of direct tax-deductible donations, participating in programs that raise money, giving your time, as well as corporate sponsorships. One-hundred percent of all money contributed goes directly to service-members and their families.



IT TAKES ALL OF US

When we work together, the results of our efforts are clear. The men and women who are heroes from the battlefield return home to be heroes to their families and communities.




Get Involved:
 
Donate to Operation Injured Soldiers.
 
Other ways to help out.
 
Shop the Operation Injured Soldiers online store.
 
 
 
 
Source:  Operation Injured Soldiers
               www.annarbor.com

August 16 (Day 169) Knowledge is power, compassion is giving.

Books For Africa. A simple name for an organization with a simple mission. We collect, sort, ship, and distribute books to children in Africa. The mission of Books For Africa is to end the book famine in Africa. With your help, we will help create a culture of literacy and provide the tools of empowerment to the next generation of parents, teachers, and leaders in Africa.

Books For Africa is the world’s largest shipper of donated books to the African continent. Since 1988, Books For Africa has shipped over 22 million high-quality text and library books to children and adults in 45 African countries. Millions more are needed.

Books donated by publishers, schools, libraries, individuals, and organizations are sorted and packed by volunteers who carefully choose books that are age and subject appropriate. We send good books, enough books for a whole class to use.

They are shipped in sea containers paid for by contributions from people like you. It costs about 50 cents to send a book from the United States to Africa. Since 1988, Books For Africa has shipped more than 22 million books to 45 African countries. They are on once-empty library shelves, in classrooms in rural schools, and in the hands of children who have never before held a book. Each book will be read over and over again. When the books arrive, they go to those who need them most: children who are hungry to read, hungry to learn, hungry to explore the world in ways that only books make possible.

To learn more about groups currently fundraising to ship books to specific African countries, view the Current Projects page


Get Involved:

Donate to Books for Africa.

Donate Books or Computers to Books for Africa.

Books for Africa on Facebook.





Source:  Books for Africa

August 15 (Day 168) Greater Good Network

The very first post on this blog highlighted The Breast Cancer Site. I chose that site to honor my sister who we lost to breast cancer in 2008.  (You can read more about that on the Inspiration page) If you have clicked on The Breast Cancer Site, you have probably noticed that there are several other ways that you can "click to give."  I have always intended to revisit highlight the site as a whole and spotlight some of the alternate ways you can make a difference.

The GreaterGood Network of websites offer the public a unique opportunity to support causes they care about at no cost to them. Each person's daily click on the Click To Give™ sites displays sponsor advertising. One hundred percent (100%) of sponsor advertising is paid as a royalty to charity through the non-profit, tax-exempt GreaterGood.org.

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The Greater Good Network's websites include:  (Click on the link to visit each site.)

The Hunger Site -  The staple food funded by clicks at The Hunger Site is paid for by site sponsors and distributed to those in need by Mercy Corps, Feeding America (formerly America's Second Harvest), and Millennium Promise. 100% of sponsor advertising fees goes to our charitable partners. Funds are split between these organizations and go to the aid of hungry people in over 74 countries, including those in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Latin America and North America.

The Child Health Site -  Each click — free to the visitor — generates funds paid by site sponsors. The funding goes to The Child Health Site's charity partner, Partners in Health , who use it to:

• Distribute vitamin A, strengthening young immune systems and improving resistance to disease. Vitamin A supplementation also prevents as many as 400,000 cases of childhood blindness each year.
• Administer oral re-hydration therapy to children with severe dehydration, often due to diarrhea, a serious killer of children under five worldwide.

The Literacy Site -  The Literacy Site is dedicated to funding free books for children. On average, over 80,000 individuals from around the world visit the site each day to click the "Click Here to Give - it's FREE" button. To date, more than 87 million visitors have helped provide more than 2.5 million books to children who need them the most.

The Rainforest Site - The Rainforest Site is dedicated to the preservation of rainforests around the world. Your daily click funds the purchase of rainforest land by The Nature Conservancy, The Rainforest Conservation Fund, World Land Trust-US, and Rainforest2Reef. These organizations work to preserve rainforest land in Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, Paraguay and other locations worldwide.  To date, more than 150 million visitors have preserved more than 66,400 acres of land.

The Animal Rescue Site -  The Animal Rescue Site focuses the power of the Internet on a specific need; providing food for some of the eight million companion animals relinquished to shelters in the U.S. every year.  Over four million animals are put to death each year in the U.S. because they are abandoned and unwanted. Each click on the purple "Click Here to Give - it's FREE" button at The Animal Rescue Site provides food and care for a rescued animal living in a shelter or sanctuary.

The Breast Cancer Site -  Your click on the "Click Here to Give - it's FREE" button helps fund free mammograms for women in need — low-income, inner-city and minority women whose awareness of breast cancer and opportunity for help is often limited. Your click is paid for by site sponsors, and mammogram funding is provided to clinics throughout the U.S. through the efforts of the National Breast Cancer Foundation

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Also, on each page you will find a "Free Ways to Help" link that will provide you additional opportunities to help each cause.  You can send e-cards to raise awareness or you might want to play a game or two.  There are plenty of opportunities to make a difference.   Each page also has a "results" link that will show you exactly how you are helping. 

Supporters can also contribute directly to charity by purchasing Gifts that Give More™, where one hundred percent (100%) of their donation is given to charity, or by purchasing one of the 4500+ products that we carry, including jewelry, apparel, and gifts. There is a charity royalty of from 5-30% paid on every item purchased from any of the GreaterGood Network's online stores.

In 2009, GreaterGood.org gave over $3.07 million to charity.* Over $1.7 million was made in the form of royalty payments generated by advertising sales, product sales and miscellaneous donations from the CharityUSA.com network of websites. And over $1.3 million was generated by the sales from the Gifts That Give More™ program.  Click here to see a breakdown of specific charity donations for 2009.

This is an easy way to make a difference and it doesn't cost you a thing...
So... Let's Get Clicking! 



Source:  Greater Good Network

August 14 (Day 167) World Community Grid

The next time you step away from your desk for a quick latte at your local coffee bar, your computer can get to work....doing calculations for AIDS research. Or genome comparisons for drug development. Or sample analyses for better cancer treatments. In fact, your computer can do the calculations while you’re actually using it for something else.

It’s possible when you volunteer your PC or laptop’s unused time to World Community Grid (WCG), created by IBM. Grid computing joins together thousands of individual computers, establishing a large  system with massive computational power equal to a supercomputer. Because the work is split into countless tiny pieces and done simultaneously, research time shrinks from decades to months.

So why not donate something you don’t need, use or even think about-your idle computer time-and help make the world a better place? Here’s how it works.

Ready to volunteer?

Your first step is to go to worldcommunitygrid.org and download a free, small software agent onto your PC. It is similar to a screensaver. An icon will appear in your lower right-hand icon tray. Your computer is ready to go to work. Then, this agent will request a set of data-or an assignment-from World Community Grid’s servers, located at an IBM facility. These servers send out the “job” assignment (in the form of a data packet) in triplicate-to three separate PCs-as a security measure.

 The World Community Grid enables individuals like you and me to donate the idle or spare power of our computers to groundbreaking environmental and medical research. Since inception in November of 2004, the Grid has completed over 200,000 years worth of research and analysis thanks to over 350,000 members in more than 190 countries.

Grid Computing: The Basics

Grid computing joins together many individual computers, creating a large system with massive computational power that far surpasses the power of a handful of supercomputers. Because the work is split into small pieces that can be processed simultaneously, research time is reduced from years to months. The technology is also more cost-effective, enabling better use of critical funds.


Changing Our World Now

Grid computing is not a futuristic technology. World Community Grid is at work right now applying this technology to exciting research projects that can benefit us all. Our first project, Human Proteome Folding, is identifying the proteins produced by human genes. With this information, scientists can understand how defects in proteins can cause disease, making it easier to find cures. In 2003, with grid computing, in less than three months scientists identified 44 potential treatments to fight the deadly smallpox disease. Without the grid, the work would have taken more than one year to complete.

How You Can Help

Donate the power of your computer when it is turned on, but is idle, to projects that benefit humanity! We provide the secure software and system that does it all for free, and you become part of a community that is helping to change the world. Once you install the software, you will be participating in World Community Grid. It's that simple!

  A few of the current projects running include:

1. FightAIDS@Home, of The Scripps Research Institute is identifying drugs that have the right shape and chemical characteristics to block HIV protease, which stops the virus from maturing, and helps prevent the onset of AIDS.
2. In collaboration with The Cancer Institute of New Jersey, Rutgers University and UMDNJ – Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Help Defeat Cancer is examining tissue micro arrays which will determine how to improve treatment of cancer with earlier and more targeted diagnostic tools.
3. Help Cure Muscular Dystrophy involving researchers supported by Decrypthon, a partnership between AFM (French Muscular Dystrophy Association), CNRS (French National Center for Scientific Research) and IBM are investigating protein-protein interactions for 40,000 proteins whose structures are known, with particular focus on those proteins that play a role in neuromuscular diseases.
4. The Human Proteome Folding Project of the Institute for Systems Biology, tests the structure of proteins, thus helping doctors and scientists better understand how they work and how they are vulnerable to attack… critical steps in future prevention and cure of diseases such as malaria, Lyme, and Alzheimer’s.

Get Involved:

Click here to learn more about the process. 

Join World Community Grid.

WCG on FaceBook.



Source: World Community Grid