Monthly Archives: June 2012

Care packages, Wounded Warriors & the Sudbury Mafia

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Our troops have been on my mind ever since seeing the latest Living Social coupon. For $25, the USO will send care packages overseas, a package that is normally provided with a $50 donation. Oh and hey, they are throwing in a t-shirt. Who doesn’t like a t-shirt. (I’ll save my rant, I mean feelings about this trend that the giver must get something in return for their gift, for another day.) But t-shirt or not, I’m intrigued that a charity has entered the online deal playground. Learn more about the deal, but hurry since it is only around for a few more days.

(Source)

And just last night, my husband was telling me about how his colleague, who lives in my old hometown of Sudbury, started  a Wounded Warrior Project event. (My husband refers to everyone from the town as the Sudbury Mafia, since to him, “we’re everywhere”. And it’s a small town. And it’s true. I once ran into a guy I knew from high school in the middle of the outback in Australia. We’re in your businesses and schools, we’re married to people you know, we’re sitting next to you on the airplane. We’re everywhere…)

Check them out: Sudbury for Wounded Warriors. All proceeds from this golf tournament go directly to the Wounded Warrior Project, to empower and provide services for wounded soldiers. The organization’s slogan? “The greatest casualty is being forgotten.” My goodness. How does that not hit you right in the heart.

Throw some support their way, even if you can’t hit a golf ball.

Even Olympic athletes need to fundraise

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Sitting on a 6 hour flight home yesterday, I pulled out the Fast Company magazine my husband bought in the airport. I had exhausted my stack of fluff magazines, so this was really a last ditch effort to erase my boredom. And shocker – it was filled with philanthropic ideas!

The article that I can’t seem to shake was 7 Creative Ways Pro Athletes Fund Their Way To The Olympics. What’s that now? Athletes need to find ways to fund their God-given talents? What about all those Nike and Gatorade sponsorships? Even the guys who drive for NASCAR get to put lots of shiny big-money stickers on their cars.

So wait. God gave these fine folks the greatest abilities in their field, for which they train as a full time job, and yet they need to raise money to compete in the most prestigious events in history, not to mention raising money just to pay the daily bills?

My favorite stories mentioned:

Ben Kjar, an American freestyle wrestler and man with an incredible story, was able to raise $2 for every like on his facebook page in April thanks to his sponsor. Seriously, check out his blog to read more about his journey. It’s quite spectacular. Donations accepted on his website Face of a Champion.

Esso Watches is also helping to support his Olympic dreams by donating all proceeds when you use the promo code “benkjar2012″ and you’ll also receive a $5 discount for every watch you purchase.

(photo from AmeriFace.org)

Nick Symmonds, an American half-miler, went on eBay auctioned space on his shoulder for a temporary tattoo during his competitions, raising $11,000. His brilliant auction was less about raising funds and more about making a statement about sponsorship regulations. But still. Brilliant fundraising and statement making! (Read more)

(photo from Nick Symmonds.com)

Since reading the article, I have attempted to find other athletes in need of donations. I know they are out there, but it’s difficult to find those individual stories. Know of anyone? Send them my way!

In the meantime, donations can be made to Support Team USA. These dollars are obviously not digging wells, ending malnutrition, or even providing much needed shelter. But they are supporting the hard work and dedication of incredibly talented individuals. I will always be a fan of someone who focuses their time and energy on the gifts that God gave them.

Teaching children to give?

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How should I teach my children to give, to teach them a servant’s heart? I have no idea. I am spending time trying to plan out activities this summer that allow us to serve others. But how much can (almost) 5 year olds get? How much can they do?

We’ll soon find out. We will have to learn by trial and error.

In the meantime, the boys and I piled up on the daybed this morning to try to brainstorm ideas of things we could make and give away to strangers. Below is a preview!

While we were rolling the clay, I asked the boys why we should love other people, including strangers. One said quietly  “because Jesus tells us to. And he also tells us to give.” Mind blown. There is such joy in my heart! (Keep in mind, the other two were busy telling potty jokes while this was going on…)

We are excited to get started with our plan to give these away, but still have a few things to do. My boys are imps (they get it from me), so our method for distributing will be fitting.


Stay tuned!

Help two young sisters raise money for orphans…only $1700 to go!

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So remember when you were 6 years old? Yeah, me neither. Wait, I remember one thing from when I was 6 – I set a new swimming record at our local pool. It was quickly broken a year later, but this still remains a highlight of my life. I like to think I peaked early.

But you know what I wasn’t doing when I was 6? Thinking about other people. Let alone actively selling crafts online to raise money for orphans. Two sisters, daughters of a friend of mine, are doing just that. They started by saving money in a jar in order to purchase something through the World Vision catalog. Their hearts fell on donating a safe home for orphans, and set out to save/earn the $5100 price tag. $5100! I think if you asked me how much $5100 was when I was 6, I think I would have told you that was the cost of a bag of jelly beans.

After brainstorming and praying about ways to raise money, they launched Heart & Felt this past Christmas to sell their handmade felt ornaments online. They even made felt hearts for Valentines day.

They are currently about $1700 away from reaching their goal. They made over $3300!

I can’t get over their selflessness! Most adults don’t go to this effort to make money just to give it away! (The exception that comes to mind is Al Andrews. Did you buy his book yet? Go do that…)

Their amazing mom, Andrea, a sewing superstar, just launched Go To Patterns. Her signature dress pattern is only $10. It is for 12 months -12 years, with tons of sleeve, length, and waist options. And the best part? The proceeds from the first 100 patterns sold goes to her daughters’ orphanage fund!


How can you help?

Go to Heart & Felt and make a donation. (Seriously, if you passed these amazing girls selling brownies in your neighborhood, you would totally drop $1. Why not just go online, donate that $1 – or more! – and open a pack of Oreos at home.)

Purchase a pattern from Go To Patterns and get sewing. Who knows, maybe you could even sew a dress for a child in need with that pattern?

Pass it on!

Need Father’s Day gift ideas? Buy him a goat!

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Looking for a last minute Father’s Day gift idea? Here’s a hint, he doesn’t need or want another tie. Why not give a gift of compassion in his honor? Compassion International offers a gift catalog where you can select medical supplies, income-producing supplies, and even soccer balls and playgrounds to put a smile on the young faces.


Malaria, which kills nearly 1 million people every year, is transmitted exclusively by mosquitos. Your gift will help give children and their families countless nights of mosquito-free sleep with an insecticide-treated bed net. They will also receive education about ways to prevent the breeding areas where mosquitos thrive.  Compassion International

Other items in their catalog? Vaccinations for $25. A goat for $45. Child Survival (pre-natal and baby care) for $50. A small business launch for moms for $100.

As part of the gift-giving process, they even give you an electronic version of a card that you can print or email to the recipient. My skeptical friends, I bet you’re thinking that the gift never even makes it to the child in need. Check out the impact of Compassion International’s 2011 Gifts of Compassion.

All my husband asked for this Father’s Day was a chance to sleep in before heading to church. In his honor, he will also receive, or really give, vaccinations to children in need.



Thoughtful giving? Mail someone a frisbee.

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Okay…on a much lighter note…

Giving can be big or small. Anonymous or very involved and personal. You may want to set out to cure cancer or save lives. Or you may just want to put a smile on someone’s face and let them know that you are thinking of them. Thoughtful giving. It’s not the size of your gift, it’s just the thought that counts. (I sound like such a mom right now.) Who can you help? Think of the new moms who could use a warm meal. Think of your friend deal with life’s stresses and you just want to put a smile on her face.

In college, my friends and I used to mail each other random things through campus mail. Imagine the huge smile on my face when I found a stale bagel in my mailbox, that the dear postal workers actually had to handle and deliver. Or when I was studying overseas and my friend mailed me a pancake. He saved one from breakfast, let it sit out to go stale, shellacked it, wrote me a note using a sharpie, and mailed it. Granted it showed up in a few pieces despite some bubble wrap. But still. A pancake!

So imagine how giddy I was to find the blog GIVERSLOG and that she had an entire section devoted to happy mail. Everything she mails is 13 ounces or less. I stole (graciously borrowed) her idea for mailing flip flops to my sweet friend who was in the middle of wedding planning. The idea wasn’t so that she’d wear them. I just wanted her to go to her mailbox one day, find a flip flop and put a smile on her face. And because this blog was not even a thought at the time, there are no photos. Check out GIVERSLOG for more great happy mail ideas.

(from GIVERSLOG)

(from GIVERSLOG)

On our happy mailings summer bucket list?

  • a deck of cards
  • a small frisbee
  • a paperback beach read

Why 13 ounces? That just means you can drop your item [stale bagel, frisbee, book, etc] in the blue collection box (assuming it has stamps and is properly addressed). This saved me the embarrassment of walking up to my local postal worker asking him if I could mail a flip flop!

Need more ideas? There’s even a 13 oz or less flickr group. And a great article on Post Experiments where random valuable, sentimental, household, etc items were mailed.

The day I met God.

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I hesitated to write this post because it is so personal. But this story has been sitting on my heart recently, and I feel like God is telling me to share it. It is my story of being the recipient of the gift of life, and learning that God and the gift of donated blood are both very real.

Over the course of our triplet pregnancy, our focus was on the boys and their health. At 34weeks, they entered the world with a textbook perfect delivery. We had a NICU team for each baby and doctors lined up against the wall just to witness a triplet birth. We heard their sweet cries, I was able to see each and they were whisked off to the NICU by their teams. All was good.

(Yes, my head is on a ziploc bag of dirt. My husband felt is was important that the boys were born on Virginia soil. Honest.)

I was brought back to my room to recover, and for the next few hours, all was well. From this point on, I only know what my husband and doctors told me happened. I was in and and out of consciousness and ultimately required a blood transfusion. My kidneys stopped working. My blood pressure was borderline comatose. By God’s grace, I made it through the night and was brought into emergency surgery when my doctor returned in the morning. I remember being wheeled out of the room and looking at my husband, who was standing helpless by the window.

I remember being on the operating table. I remember my heart was crying out to God. I remember not being lucid enough to pray “real” prayers, but I remember praying constantly asking God to be with me. And the next thing I knew, everything was white. Pure white. Pure light. I was surrounded by God. He was with me. I felt the most beautiful peace and joy I have ever experienced. Words cannot begin to describe the beauty of the experience. I don’t know how close I was to death, but I know that God is real and never left my side.

It turns out I had massive internal bleeding. The incision from my c-section had torn open in multiple places, leaving me with “a million little bleeders”, as we were told. The doctors had found 2.5 liters of blood in my abdomen (the average person has about 5 liters total). I have come to learn that I was VERY lucky to have survived.

(I’ll spare you the photos of what I looked like after all this. Not pretty.)

So what does this have to do with giving? With the blood transfusion and subsequent surgery, a large percentage of the blood in my body was not my own. Strangers selflessly gave blood, not knowing how or if it would ever be used. And it helped save my life. I remember walking down the streets of Boston, looking at everyone, thinking “do I have your blood in me?” I am forever grateful to those who donated their blood to me and helped save my life.

Give Blood with the American Red Cross

Facts from the Red Cross website:

  • Every two seconds someone in the U.S. needs blood.
  • More than 38,000 blood donations are needed every day.
  • One donation can help save the lives of up to three people.
  • More than 1 million new people are diagnosed with cancer each year. Many of them will need blood, sometimes daily, during their chemotherapy treatment.
  • A single car accident victim can require as many as 100 pints of blood.

This gift is free. This gift is real.