September 14 (Day 198) Hearts United for Animals

“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated”           -  Mahatma Ghandi

Hearts United for Animals is a no-kill shelter, sanctuary and animal welfare organization dedicated to the relief of suffering. We take the creatures who are lost, afraid, hungry or ill and comfort them, give them a warm soft bed, good food, medical care and most of all, love. In many ways this is a very easy thing to do because these are lovely grateful animals who give a world of love in return. In other ways, it is very difficult because the number of animals in need is so large.


Hearts United for Animals not a typical shelter. The dogs share large yards where they romp and play with friends. We know and love every one of our dogs. Every dog at Hearts United for Animals has been altered and is current on heathcare. We can tell you in detail about their personalities, likes and dislikes.


Hearts United for Animals is located on a 65-acre farm of trees and grass. We care for over 300 dogs at any time. All of the dogs at the Shelter are well loved and happy. If you have the opportunity to come to Nebraska, we hope that you can stop in and visit the dogs.


Hearts United for Animals is a place of happiness, joy and love. Everything we do is in the best interest of the dogs. Our primary concern is what will make them happy. We take dogs who have been abused, and we heal their bodies and their hearts. Hearts United is a place to celebrate the joy of life.


We operate many special programs that have a track record of success. Hearts United for Animals is the innovator of long-distance adoptions. Beginning in 1993, we have placed dogs in 45 states and Canada. HUA has even been honored by the Smithsonian Institute for our oustanding use of technology in the placement of dogs though our Jet Set Dogs program.


Hearts United for Animals rescues special needs dogs across the nation. These are dogs that can be helped but tax the resources of their rescuers. They receive specialized care and go on to live happy lives.  Those dogs that cannot be adopted stay with us as Sanctuary Sweethearts. They will enjoy loving care for the rest of their lives at the Shelter.


Hearts United for Animals operates an extensive anti-puppy mill effort nationally. We supply expertise, organization, and multitudes of printed media materials for groups and individuals operating in many states to educate the public regarding the mills.

Hearts United for Animals has operated a very low-cost spay/neuter clinic since October of 2003. The Spay/Neuter Program serves a 4-state area and is so extremely popular that a waiting list exists at all times. Over 5,000 cats and dogs have been altered by mid 2009 preventing untold numbers of suffering little ones from being born.


Hearts United for Animals assists families of the Midwest region with vet care for their animals when the families are unable to pay. This very often means responding to an emergency call for a suffering pet that can have the care it needs because HUA is going to pay.


Tia was a shepherd mix who knew what it meant to be beaten in her own home. The person who was supposed to care for her beat her in the head with a baseball bat. Her head was smashed and her teeth destroyed. It's a miracle that she survived. After several surgeries to provide some relief from her injuries, she lived at HUA for three years until she died of cancer. In honor of her spirit we created Tia's Place which is a refuge for pets fleeing domestic violence.

Hearts United for Animals emphasizes animal welfare education for young people. Many youth groups tour the shelter, enjoy the rural setting, play with the dogs, and receive information on animal care and overpopulation. Our curriculum for schools is available to the public at no charge.


We have a dream for the future - a future where all dogs and cats are spayed or neutered so there is never an unwanted litter, a future where the horror of euthanasia is ended finally and forever, a future where all dogs and cats have homes with people who love and care for them. This is our dream. We will work for the rest of our lives to accomplish it.


Our gratitude to the thousands and thousands of people across the world who support our efforts and goals is heartfelt. Together we are a powerful symbol of kindness, love and mercy.
 
 
 
Get Involved:
 
 
Donate to Hearts United for Animals.
 
Be a Buddy!  Sign up for the Buddy Program and make a difference.
 
Shop to benefit HUA.
 
Read the HUA blog.

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Source:  www.hua.org

September 13 (Day 197) CURE Childhood Cancer

September 13 is National Childhood Cancer Awareness Day! 

For the past 25 years in the United States, the incidence of childhood cancer has steadily grown, with over 12,500 new diagnoses each year. Over 40,000 infants, children and adolescents are currently receiving treatment for cancer. Importantly, in the United States, cancer remains the #1 disease killer of children, claiming the lives of more children and young people under the age of 20 than any other disease.  Once an impossible dream, curing childhood cancer has become achievable in our lifetime.


Founded in 1975, CURE Childhood Cancer is dedicated to conquering childhood cancer through research, education and support of patients and their families. Since its establishment as a grass-roots organization, CURE has focused its efforts on improving the care, quality of life, and survival rate of children with cancer. The founders, parents and a dedicated pediatric oncologist, joined forces to support laboratory research that would translate into immediate care for children with cancer.


Since that time, CURE has raised millions of dollars to fund cutting edge research at the Aflac Cancer Center Blood Disorders Service at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and Emory University School of Medicine. Through innovative programming, CURE also provides support for stricken families, providing them comfort and support during their time of devastating need.



CURE Childhood Cancer has committed to raising awareness and raising money to help find a cure for childhood cancer in our lifetime and put an end to this terrible disease through a special program CURE’s Kids Conquer Cancer One Day at a Time!  Please help us in our goal of raising $60,000 in the month of September while honoring special CURE kids each day of the month who have been affected by childhood cancer.  Each day in September, CURE will highlight a very special child in our CURE  family who has been affected by cancer. Some of the children whose stories we will tell are currently fighting the battle, some are children who have finished therapy and are living the cure, and others are children who have lost their battles but will be loved and remembered always.


A different child will be featured each day. In addition to sharing the stories of these brave children and their families, we will aim to raise $1,000 a day each day in the month of September in their honor in order to help fund research that will lead to better treatments and cures for childhood cancers.  We hope you will participate in this wonderful initiative. For one month, commit to reading the stories each day. Donate in honor of these children and bring us closer to a CURE. Share our initiative with others. Let’s make September count for children with cancer!


 
Get Involved:
 
Donate to CURE.
 
Every day this month CURE is honoring a child with Cancer.  Today's honoree is Mary Evelyn King.  Donate in honor of Mary and help find a cure.
 
Shop the CURE online store.



Source:  CURE Childhood Cancer

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September 12 (Day 196) Pedaling for Patriots

Rob Richer, a retired CIA officer, and his wife Kim are set to embark on a cross-country bicycle ride to raise awareness and money to support the children of agency officers killed in the line of duty. Their journey has been dubbed Pedaling for Patriots.

Rob Richer retired from the CIA in 2005 as the second highest ranking member of the agency’s clandestine services after spending much of his career overseas in Yemen, Tunisia, Nepal, Jordan and throughout the Middle East.

A bike ride across our great country has always been a dream for Rob. He hoped to complete the ride in the first few months after retiring from the CIA in 2005 but the need to become established in the business world precluded the trip. In late 2009, he began to discuss the trip again. Kim volunteered to ride with him (yes, she truly volunteered) and suggested that the ride not just be about their personal quest but be dedicated to a charitable cause. After the tragic loss of CIA officers in Khost, Afghanistan in December 2009, the right cause became clear: to support the families of fallen CIA officers who died in the service of our country.

The men and women of the CIA regularly take great risk to complete their mission. Their efforts are mostly unheralded and the organization is often much misunderstood and maligned. The intent of the ride is to both highlight the service of these fine officers and their colleagues and to raise contributions for those left behind. All funds collected will go directly to the CIA Officers Memorial Fund.

Richer says he wants to raise awareness about the sacrifices of his fallen colleagues, who live largely in the shadows due to the secretive nature of the work.


Rob and Kim Richer... You are true Patriots!  Thank You! 




Get Involved:

Donate to the CIA Officers Memorial Fund by supporting Pedaling for Patriots.


Source:  Pedaling for Patriots

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September 11 (Day 195) National Day of Service and Remembrance

All of us remember where we were and what we were doing on September 11, 2001.  It will be forever etched in our minds.  The initial feelings of disbelief and horror eventually giving way to an overwhelming spirit of cooperation and goodwill to our fellow Americans.

Since 2003, MyGoodDeed, a respected nonprofit organization created with the full support of 22 -  9/11 partner organizations, has encouraged people around the country and around the world to rekindle the spirit of unity and compassion that followed the terrorist attacks by pledging to perform good deeds, volunteer, and engage in other forms of charitable service to help individuals and organizations in need.


On April 21,2009, President Obama signed federal legislation that for the first time officially recognized September 11 as a National Day of Service and Remembrance.

The mission is to honor the victims of 9/11 and those who rose to service in response to the attacks by encouraging all Americans and others throughout the world to pledge to voluntarily perform at least one good deed, or another service activity on 9/11 each year. Good deeds - big, small and all sizes in between. Volunteer at a soup kitchen, donate money to a charity, let your neighbor borrow a cup of sugar - all great examples of do-able good deeds!
Visit www.911dayofservice.org to find the good deed that's right for you. How you pledge to get involved is completely up to you! Once you decide on your good deed, Share Your Plan on 911dayofservice.org


Get Involved:

Support a cause that matters to you. Get started making a difference on 9/11 this year by exploring charitable causes that need your help. Then choose the groups that interests you the most.

Find volunteer opportunities in your area.


Source:  www.911dayofservice.org

September 10 (Day 194) World Suicide Prevention Day

It began as a story. A story born of love and written to help a friend.  Jamie Tworkowski wrote the story, “To Write Love on her Arms” after witnessing the struggle of his suicidal friend, Renee Yohe.  To raise awareness of his friends condition, Jamie posted the story (TWLOHA) on his MySpace page, and sold t-shirts to raise money for Renee's treatment. Quickly, this act of loving friendship took on a life of it's own and a movement was born.   (You can read the story Jamie wrote about his friend on the TWLOHA website.)

In the days that followed, they learned quickly that the story they were telling represented people everywhere. They began to hear from people in need of help, and others asking what they could do to help their friends. They heard from people who had lost loved ones to suicide. Many said that these were questions they had never asked and parts of their story that they had never shared. Others were honest in a different way, confessing these were issues they knew little or nothing about. It seemed they had stumbled upon a bigger story, and a conversation that needed to be had.

To Write Love on Her Arms is a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide. TWLOHA exists to encourage, inform, inspire and also to invest directly into treatment and recovery.


Over the last two and a half years, To Write Love on her Arms has responded to 80,000 messages from people in 40 different countries. Bringing this conversation, and a message of hope and help, to concerts, universities, festivals and churches. These are not American issues -these are issues of humanity, problems of pain that affect millions of people around the world.


They have learned that two out of three people who struggle with depression never seek help, and that untreated depression is the leading cause of suicide. In America alone, it’s estimated that 19 million people live with depression, and suicide is the third-leading cause of death among those 18-24 years old.

The good news is that depression is very treatable, that a very real hope exists in the face of these issues. We’ve met people who are getting the help they need, sitting across from a counselor for the first time, stepping into treatment, or reaching out to a suicide hotline in a desperate moment.

TWLOHA is reaching multitudes of young people through social media outlets such as MySpace, Facebook and Twitter, TWLOHA initiatives to raise support for those suffering from depression and suicide include concerts, UChapters, TWLOHA clubs at colleges and MOVE, a workshop about how to overcome “stigma and shame" with honesty and compassion.”


The Vision of To Write Love on her Arms: 

You were created to love and be loved. You were meant to live life in relationship with other people, to know and be known. You need to know that your story is important and that you're part of a bigger story. You need to know that your life matters.

We live in a difficult world, a broken world. Life is hard for most people most of the time. We believe that everyone can relate to pain, that all of us live with questions, and all of us get stuck in moments. You need to know that you're not alone in the places you feel stuck.
 We all wake to the human condition. We wake to mystery and beauty but also to tragedy and loss. Millions of people live with problems of pain. Millions of homes are filled with questions – moments and seasons and cycles that come as thieves and aim to stay. We know that pain is very real. It is our privilege to suggest that hope is real, and that help is real.

You need to know that rescue is possible, that freedom is possible, that God is still in the business of redemption. We're seeing it happen. We're seeing lives change as people get the help they need. People sitting across from a counselor for the first time. People stepping into treatment. In desperate moments, people calling a suicide hotline. We know that the first step to recovery is the hardest to take. We want to say here that it's worth it, that your life is worth fighting for, that it's possible to change.

Beyond treatment, we believe that community is essential, that people need other people, that we were never meant to do life alone.

The vision is that community and hope and help would replace secrets and silence.

The vision is people putting down guns and blades and bottles.

The vision is that we can reduce the suicide rate in America and around the world.

The vision is that we would learn what it means to love our friends, and that we would love ourselves enough to get the help we need.

The vision is better endings. The vision is the restoration of broken families and broken relationships. The vision is people finding life, finding freedom, finding love. The vision is graduation, a Super Bowl, a wedding, a child, a sunrise. The vision is people becoming incredible parents, people breaking cycles, making change.

The vision is the possibility that your best days are ahead.

The vision is the possibility that we're more loved than we'll ever know.

The vision is hope, and hope is real.

You are not alone, and this is not the end of your story.

Wow!  What an amazing Vision Statement!  What an amazing charity doing amazing work!  Today is World Suicide Prevention Day... please consider what you can do to help To Write Love on her Arms.  If you or someone you know needs help... help is available,  Click here for information on available resources.



Get Involved:


Donate to TWLOHA. 

Other ways to help TWLOHA.

Shop at TWLOHA online store.

TWLOHA on Facebook.


Source:  www.twloha.com

September 9 (Day 193) Small Change can make a Big Change...

Today is Ronald McDonald House Charities® (RMHC) "Day of Change." 

Drop your small change into a RMHC donation box at a participating McDonald's and make a difference! 

You know that loose change on the floor in the car? In the bottom of your purse? In a jar on your desk? Well the U.S. Treasury estimates that we have $1.5 billion in loose change sitting around our homes and cars.

This Sept. 9, Ronald McDonald House Charities® (RMHC®) is asking families to donate that extra change to help keep millions of children together with their families. The Charity will celebrate its 2010 RMHC Day of Change raising awareness for RMHC Donation Boxes placed on McDonald’s counters and in drive-thrus across the country available for donating spare change to support programs which provide a bridge to quality health care and give children and families the time together to heal faster and cope better.

Last year alone through U.S. RMHC Donation Boxes, the pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters donated totaled over $19 million -- a goal the Charity hopes to exceed this year. In fact, if every McDonald's customer put a penny in the Donation Box, RMHC would raise more than $94 million to support children and their families in the U.S alone. For 36 years, RMHC has been providing stability and resources to families so they can get and keep their children healthy and happy, through its core programs.

"When that coin hits the Donation Box on Sept. 9, McDonald's customers will know that their generosity is giving a family a “home away from home” at a Ronald McDonald House®, a place to rest in a Ronald McDonald Family Room® just steps from their child's hospital bed or providing a child with much needed dental or medical care right in their own neighborhood through a Ronald McDonald Care Mobile®," said Jennifer Blanchard Smith, senior director of Communications and Special Programs, RMHC. “While our inaugural RMHC Day of Change is a major push to drive awareness of the RMHC Donation Boxes at participating McDonald's restaurants, they are there every day -- on the counters and in the drive-thrus -- and we are grateful to the millions of customers who help to support families through our programs by donating their spare change all year long."

Little by little, small donations add up to a lot allowing the Charity to serve more than 4 million families a year worldwide.  Over the years small change has allowed RMHC to grow to serve more children and families in need. In 2009 alone, thanks to McDonald’s customers, RMHC raised more than $19 million through the U.S. Donation Box program. It’s an easy and secure way to donate, and the money raised helps children in your community.
 
We know that families are stronger when they are together, and their presence helps a sick child heal faster and cope better. While Ronald McDonald House Charities cannot make medicine taste better or take away painful treatments, we can help lessen the burden and ensure more than 4 million families a year have the stability and resources they need to keep their child healthy and happy.


The RMHC Day of Change is a great opportunity to show kids the importance of giving back and how even the smallest gesture goes a long way to helping those in need. So get your family and friends involved, because when everyone helps, we can make a big difference.
 
 
 
Get Involved:
 
Donate to Ronald McDonald House Charities.
 
Volunteer with RMHC.
 
Other Ways to get involved.
 
 
 
Source:  rmhc.org

September 8 (Day 192) Spread The Word about Ovarian Cancer...

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It is called "the silent disease." Sometimes the symptoms may be hard to notice.  Often, we will pass them off as something else.  Doesn’t everyone have some of these symptoms at one time or another? The clue is if any of these are bothersome for more than two weeks, go get a check up. Like any disease, if caught in the early stages, it could be treated and just might save your life. If someone in your family has had Ovarian cancer, talk to your Doctor and set up routine screenings. It is a hereditary disease.

These are some of the potential signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer:

• Bloating
• Pelvic or abdominal pain
• Trouble eating or feeling full quickly
• Feeling the need to urinate urgently or frequently
• Fatigue
• Upset stomach or heartburn
• Back Pain
• Pain during Sex
• Constipation or menstrual changes

September Is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month

  

The mission of the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition (NOCC) is to raise awareness and promote education about ovarian cancer. The Coalition is committed to improving the survival rate and quality of life for women with ovarian cancer.

More than 20,000 women in the United States are diagnosed with ovarian cancer each year, and approximately 15,000 women die annually from the disease. Unfortunately, most cases are diagnosed in their later stages when the prognosis is poor. However, if diagnosed and treated early, when the cancer is confined to the ovary, the five-year survival rate is over 90 percent. That is why it is imperative that the early signs and symptoms of the disease are recognized, not only by women, but also by their families and the medical community.

There is currently no early detection test for ovarian cancer. Pap tests do not detect ovarian cancer. Until there is a test, the key to early diagnosis is awareness. And the key to awareness is knowing the subtle symptoms of ovarian cancer and urging women to take early action and live.

Through national programs and local Chapter initiatives, the NOCC's goal is to make more people aware of the early symptoms of ovarian cancer. In addition, the NOCC provides information to assist the newly diagnosed patient, to provide hope to survivors, and to support caregivers.

Our programs are possible only with the help of our volunteers; committed men and women dedicated to the mission of the NOCC in communities across the country. We encourage you to join them. Together, we can make a difference in the lives of women affected by ovarian cancer. Together, we can break the silence.

SPREAD THE WORD ... Help NOCC Break the Silence About Ovarian Cancer.  As part of our “Break the Silence” Campaign, NOCC commissioned a survey to gauge women’s understanding of ovarian cancer. The survey revealed that 85% of women did not know ovarian cancer’s symptoms and that 82% of women had not spoken with their doctors about ovarian cancer. Until there is an accurate early detection test for ovarian cancer, awareness of ovarian cancer’s subtle symptoms is an important key to earlier detection. NOCC has developed a number of tools to educate women about ovarian cancer and will provide them to you free of charge for distribution in your community.

Get Involved:

Donate to NOCC.

Volunteer!  You Can Make a Difference. You can experience the value of helping others. For information on volunteer opportunities, meetings, and events in your community, please contact your local chapter.

 Click here to find a chapter near you.

Shop the NOCC online Marketplace.

Ovarian Cancer Resource Links.

Source: Nation Ovarian Cancer Coalition

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September 7 (Day 191) Turning Excess into Progress

Goods for Good (G4G) turns excess into progress.  Our slogan is straightforward because our mission is straightforward: through the innovative use of surplus, G4G promotes the development of orphans and vulnerable children.

Through partnerships with international corporations and grassroots organizations in the developing world, we are able to provide school supplies, clothing, health and hygiene products and other necessities to orphans and vulnerable children, while at the same time reducing waste at home.  Goods for Good is about more than just shipping and delivering goods. We work with our partners at home and abroad to develop sustainable programs that improve the lives of at-risk children.

Goods for Good builds on the success of local organizations by supplying them with the tools they need to care for and educate children. We work closely with community-based organizations, public schools and orphan care centers to assess their specific needs. Once we understand these needs, we provide necessary material support and facilitate trainings that complement their on-going programs. Through these partnerships, we are able to address the complex physical, educational and emotional needs of the children we serve while strengthening their communities.

We rely on donations of surplus goods from a wide range of companies. With the help of companies such as Pfizer, Star Garments and Johnson & Johnson, we have collected and delivered over 120 tons of excess children's clothing, fabric, school supplies and health and hygiene products.  Our volunteers help to sort the items and our donors fund the shipment. In the developing world, we build on the success of local schools and community centers by supplying them with the tools they need to care for and educate children.

Many of the items we deliver were gathering dust in warehouses or slated to be destroyed. On the other side of the world, these same products have an immeasurable worth to disadvantaged children and their communities. Together with our international and local partners, we work to develop sustainable care for these vulnerable children.

To date, we have shipped and distributed essential materials to over 510,000 children in Malawi, Liberia and Haiti, while at the same time reducing waste at home.



Get Involved:

Donate to Goods For Good.

Send a G4G e-Card.

Goods For Good online store.


Source:  Goods For Good

September 6 (Day 190) Matt Eddy's Million Smiles Tour

Happy Labor Day.... I guess that means summer is officially over!  Why does it seem to always go by so quickly.  I think most of associate Labor Day with the Muscular Dystrophy Association Telethon.  I literally do not remember a labor day without the Telethon.  I know many people and groups who raise money throughout the year and donate year after year. 

There are 3 easy ways to donate: 
1-800-FightMD
http://www.mda.org/
text MDA to 20222 to make a $10. donation

Matt Eddy is an incredible man on an incredible journey. On June 5, Matt began his quest to set a new Guinness Book World Record “Trans USA by Wheelchair” while conducting the “Million Smiles Tour.“ Matt left Lynn, Massachusetts on June 5, 2010 at 10am and has been driving his wheelchair on back roads across the USA with a final destination of Long Beach, California. Matt’s goal is to cross the USA in the shortest time by wheelchair while collecting one dollar from one million people. The journey is estimated to end in early October, lasting 120 days. The funds raised from the “Million Smiles Tour” will support the programs provided by Matt’s Place Inc.

Matt has Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and is only strong enough to move two fingers. He is confined to a wheelchair and requires a ventilator to breathe. Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, a genetic disease is a severe recessive form of Muscular Dystrophy characterized by rapid progression of muscle degeneration.
 
Matt was diagnosed at the young age of 4 and was able to walk until he was 10. At the age of 20, Matt was institutionalized for 6 months after a tracheotomy was placed and he became ventilator dependent. With the help of Matt’s Place he was able to move out of the institution into his own community home with full medical supports. This is Matt's second big trip... from June 29, 2008 to October 25, 2008, Matt took his wheelchair Roll’n Across America Summer 2008 tour to raise awareness for disability issues and represent Matt’s Place, a charity that Matt and his Respiratory Therapist Ron Steenbruggen started to build accessible houses for people with severe disabilities so they can live independently in their communities.

Matt’s Place  is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization which helps people with severe physical disabilities who are intellectually capable of directing their own care live independently in the community. Matt's Place Inc. began as a grassroots organization in October 2000, to help a young man return to his community after being institutionalized for complications of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. The extraordinary cost of institutionalization and the fact that people are happier and stay healthier in their own homes has created a push to return children and adults with disabilities to their community. Many face great challenges finding a home. Once home, they also face financial and daily living challenges.

While many organizations focus on prevention and cures, Matt's Place seeks to improve the lives of those currently living with disabilities. Matt's Place builds accessible housing, provides community awareness and education, personal care staff assistance, and help with the transition from health care facility to home.

Matt’s Place provides housing, caregiver training and scheduling and community education and awareness. Currently there are millions of non-elderly adults living in nursing homes and chronic care institutions simply because there is a severe shortage of affordable accessible housing. The programs of Matt’s Place are a win-win situation for all Americans. Enabling people with severe physical disabilities to live independently within their community not only provides a better quality of life for people with disabilities but also is more cost effective.




Get Involved: 

Donate to Matt's Place.



Source: www.officialmattsplace.org

September 5 (Day 189) Samaritan's Feet

The vision for Samaritan’s Feet was conceived over 28 years ago on one hot summer afternoon at a camp in Lagos, Nigeria when a stranger from Wisconsin befriended a young African boy. The young boy, like so many other children in Africa and around the world, had never known the comfort and security of owning a pair of tennis shoes. This “Good Samaritan” gave a life-changing gift and a message of hope to that 9-year old boy. He gave him his first pair of shoes.

With that new pair of shoes for inspiration, Emmanuel Ohonme went on to compete in sports activities in Africa. Specifically, he developed a love as well as superior talent for competitive basketball. His skill and confidence continued to flourish; his hard work and determination to succeed finally paid off. He was offered the chance to attend an institution of higher learning in America under a full basketball scholarship! He met his wife, Tracie, while attending the University of North Dakota (Lake Region) and he later earned an executive position in a leading technology company. In spite of his successes in America, Manny never forgot the other little boys and girls in Africa who were still living under the strain of poverty, drug abuse, war, gangs and other criminal activity. Determined to help impoverished people in Africa, Manny left the comfort and security of his executive position to birth the vision of Samaritan’s Feet.



Samaritan’s Feet is a non-profit organization dedicated to changing lives through Shoes of Hope distributions around the world. 300 million people wake up each morning without a pair of shoes to protect their feet from injury and disease. Shoes of Hope is an innovative project with a goal to equip the feet of 10 million impoverished children, with 10 million pairs of athletic shoes, over the next 10 years.  In America and around the world through shoe relief missions we will bring a life-changing message of hope, peace, and love. In addition, our “Shoe of Hope” back-to-school shoe drive program will help support and equip underprivileged families with shoes. The drive will be launched in several cities around the country.




Get Involved:


Donate to Samaritan's Feet.

Host a Shoe Drive.  Millions of children are barefoot today and may never have a pair of shoes without your help. Shoes protect children from injury and disease, which leads to the death of a person every 15 seconds somewhere in the world. To us in America they are mostly seen as a fashion statement, but the shoes you raise may be life of death for a child. The new shoes you raise will be distributed along with a new pair of socks. A volunteer will tenderly wash the feet of the recipients and share with them a story of hope. Children will be challenged to dream big dreams and believe that they can achieve wonderful things for themselves and contribute to the good of all mankind, just as the little Nigerian boy has done in establishing Samaritan's Feet.

6 ways that you can make a difference.


Source:  Samaritan's Feet

September 4 (Day 188) Fostering Love

Did you know... only 1 out of every 10 dogs born ever finds a permanent home.   Did you know… in 7 years one female cat and her offspring can give birth to 420,000 kittens.   Did you know...  the main reason animals are euthanized (killed) is due to lack of food and space.   Did you know...  You can make a difference.... You can help... YOU CAN SAVE A LIFE! 



Foster care volunteers provide temporary care for kittens, puppies, dogs and cats. Some animals may only need a home for several days, while others may need several months of care. By offering your time, energy, and home to an animal in need, you prepare an animal for adoption into a permanent home as well as prevent overcrowding in our shelter.

Foster caregiver responsibilities typically involve sheltering, feeding and socializing the animal — helping him or her learn appropriate behavior, a first-time opportunity for many pets whose original owners didn’t spend much time or effort on the animal. Indeed, fostering can mean the difference between life in a caring home and death by euthanasia.

We need compassionate individuals to provide warm, safe temporary homes to animals in desperate need. Each day, thousands of dogs are euthanized at area shelters and humane societies. Animal Rescues could help so many more if we had people willing to share their heart and home with a needy animal. You will be SAVING A LIFE!!   Take a minute to watch this touching video about fostering from Rat Terrier ResQ.





Fostering a needy dog is extremely rewarding. It just takes some time, lots of love and some patience. Many of the animals are well adjusted, good animals. They just need a temporary warm home to rest their head and get some love and attention. Many times, a home can be found for a foster dog within several weeks. Sometimes, a bit longer and of course, there are those dogs that have had a rougher life than others and will need a longer stay in a foster home until they are ready to go out into the world again.

The ultimate reason to try fostering is the simple fact that saving a living being is worth the emotional risk. Each fostered animal is an animal saved because someone cared and took the chance to make a difference!
Please consider fostering an animal... you will be rewarded every day with happy tail wags, purrs and kisses!



Get Involved:

There are many rescue groups in every state and I am confident that any of these would welcome foster volunteers.  To connect with a program in your area, just do an internet search (google, yahoo, goodsearch) by typing animal rescues and (your state or city).  You should be provided with several good links to rescue groups in your area.  Most rescue groups offer a foster program.

If you are unable to foster, consider making a monetary donation to a rescue in your area.  It takes money to save lives! 

September 3 (Day 187) FUND a FIELD

One of the greatest joys I have in doing this project is discovering and highlighting the awesome work that young people are doing. There are some amazing kids out there doing amazing things to make a difference!

FUNDaFIELD is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization founded in 2006 by a group of kids who want to change the world. FUNDaFIELD has over 30 managers and directors and all of them are middle and high school age kids. FUNDaFIELD was co-founded by Kyle and Garrett Weiss of Danville, California. It all started when they went to see the 2006 World Cup soccer match in Germany featuring Angola and Iran. Garrett and Kyle met some Angolan fans and they shared stories of how kids in Africa didn’t have the same opportunities to play sports that kids in the West have. Sports like soccer are not a priority as parents are more worried about food, shelter and disease. Garrett and Kyle wanted to do something - and so they did!
FUNDaFIELD is currently working on funding their 8th field.

FUNDaFIELD is dedicated to enriching the lives of less fortunate youth in Africa through sports. The goal is to provide soccer fields and equipment to African schools. Did you know in South Africa, 75% of children in South Africa are surviving on less than $2 per day, have little or no access to sporting facilities, and are exposed to greater risk of violence, drug abuse and learner pregnancy. FUNDaFIELD understands that sports can be a vital tool for the development of children in Africa, improving overall health and physical development, improving mental abilities, developing social skills and interactions all while providing for the child to have fun and challenge themselves in the sporting arena.

FUNDaFIELD can’t solve all the problems that exist in Africa, we wish we could. Therefore, our goal is to form a partnership with organizations that have made it their mission to provide food, medicine, shelter and education to students. Once they have the infrastructures in place and the schools built, FUNDaFIELD will be able to provide a safe field with equipment to play the game of soccer. A short break each day from living with disease, hunger and all that accompanies poverty. Play and sports are tools that teach important values and life skills including confidence, teamwork, communication, discipline, respect and fair play. Sports can have a positive impact on children’s education and can improve a child’s ability to learn, while increasing their ability to concentrate. Children learn better when they are having fun and being active. All of us on the FUNDaFIELD team have benefited from having sports in our lives, kids everywhere should have the same opportunities. We are working to make it happen.


 

 
In Africa kids make soccer balls out of plastic garbage bags . . .
 
                 . . . the one who owns the ball considers himself lucky.






Check out the photo's of a field being built.



Get Involved:
 
 
Donate to FUNDaFIELD.
 
Other ways you can help.
 
FUNDaFIELD's Make Change Challange.



Source: FUNDaFIELD

September 2 (Day 186) - Wounded Warrior Project

The greatest casualty is being forgotten...

Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to honor and empower wounded warriors. WWP seeks to assist those men and women of our armed forces who have been severely injured during the conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other locations around the world. WWP serves to raise awareness and enlist the public’s aid for the needs of severely injured service men and women; help severely injured service members aid and assist each other; and provide unique, direct programs and services to meet their needs.

Wounded Warrior Project began when several individuals took small, inspired actions to help others in need. One night while watching the evening news, a group of veterans and brothers were moved by the difficult stories of the first wounded service members returning home from Afghanistan and Iraq. They realized then and there that something needed to be done for these brave individuals beyond the brass bands and ticker tape parades.

The resulting objective was to provide tangible support for the severely wounded and help them on the road to healing, both physically and mentally. What had been initially viewed as a small contribution (compared with what the warriors had sacrificed while serving our country) has become WWP's signature program:"WWP backpacks delivered bedside to wounded warriors.

WWP offers a very wide range of services to wounded warriors and their families in the immediate days following their injury, through recovery and beyond. Services include benefits counseling and representation, adaptive rehabilitative sporting programs, educational opportunities, networking and social events, programs for post-traumatic stress and combat stress recovery, respite retreats for caregivers, and much more.

WWP is a non-partisan organization, and doesn't take a stance on the war. WWP believes that regardless of your politics or beliefs, the men and women in our nation's military have made tremendous personal sacrifices on our behalf, and deserve our respect and any assistance we can provide. It's about the WARRIOR, not the WAR.




Get Involved:

Donate To Wounded Warrior Project.

Volunteer opportunities with WWP.

Support WWP August 30 – September 5 with eBay’s Give at Checkout.  If you’re purchasing an item on eBay between August 30 and September 5, don’t miss out on an easy opportunity to support WWP. During this seven day period, WWP will be one of the nonprofits featured in eBay’s Give at Checkout, which enables buyers to add a $1 donation or more to any eBay purchase when using PayPal. The option to give at checkout will appear on the right side of the final checkout window. Want to donate to WWP year-round? Visit WWP’s eBay Giving Works page, click Save As Favorite and you will always be prompted to make a contribution at checkout. You can even choose to Sell to Support Our Cause or Donate Now without making a purchase.





Source:  Wounded Warrior Project

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September 1 (Day 185) 137,260 reasons to care...

Every 4 minutes one person is diagnosed with a blood cancer.

September Is Leukemia, Lymphoma And Myeloma Awareness Month.

An estimated 137,260 people in the United States will be diagnosed with leukemia, lymphoma or myeloma in 2010. New cases of leukemia, Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphoma and myeloma will account for 9.0 percent of the 1,529,560 new cancer cases diagnosed in the United States this year*.

Leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma will cause the deaths of an estimated 54,020 people in the United States this year. These blood cancers will account for nearly 9.5 percent of the deaths from cancer in 2010 based on the 569,490 total cancer-related deaths.

Every ten minutes, someone dies from a blood cancer. This statistic represents nearly 148 people each day, or more than six people every hour. Leukemia causes more deaths than any other cancer among children and young adults under the age of 20. In general, the likelihood of dying from most types of leukemia, lymphoma or myeloma decreased from 1998 to 2007 (the most recent data available).

The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) is the world's largest voluntary health organization dedicated to funding blood cancer research, education and patient services. LLS's mission: Cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease and myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families. Since the first funding in 1954, LLS has awarded more than $680 million in research funding.
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society is committed to finding cures for leukemia and related diseases and improving the lives of those affected by these diseases. This is an ambitious task and they need your help!

The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society invests $61 million annually in support of more than 200 researchers, provides financial assistance to patients, sponsors scientific conferences around the country, produces educational materials and videos, and runs over 50 support groups nationwide. They receive no federal funding and depend on you for continued support of these needed programs.

*Facts and statistics from Leukemia, Lymphoma, Myeloma Facts 2010-2011, in press.


Find a LLS chapter near you.



Get Involved:


Donate to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Volunteer with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Participate in Leukemia & Lymphoma Society events.

Check out the LLS e-store and special offers.


Source:  Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

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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