Day 48: SAT-7 Update

I am slowly adjusting to working a full-time job. It's harder than you think after 12+ years of schooling. The office world and school world are VERY different, especially right after four years of college where you are (somewhat) in charge of your schedule.

But every week I am growing more and more passionate about SAT-7 and what we do. On Tuesday we had a man from Tunisia visit our office. We spent the entire afternoon learning from him and hearing just how SAT-7 has a role in the Arab world.

There is a strong group of believers in the Middle East and North Africa and they must be supported. Because they very rarely have access to Bibles, listening to the Word of God through Satellite makes encourages their faith. He was very adamant that SAT-7 makes a huge difference in the lives of people and millions tune in regularly to watch our programming. Praise God!

Anyway, I am out visiting at my alma-mater for a long weekend but wanted to share a note about the recent Earthquake that has struck Turkey. It is a heart-breaking disaster and SAT-7 TURK is doing as much as possible to be a Christian voice in the midst of this questioning and traumatic time.

Read more from the SAT-7 USA president, Rex Rogers, here.

Day 47: Give Kids The World

Ok, I failed to put my research into this nonprofit, but it looks like there is a Give Kids the World village, that allows sick kids and their families a free place to come and have the best family vacation possible. It is a resort in central Florida that has served over 111,000 people since opening in 1989. Wow.

Give Kids the World is unique in that kids have to wish to go to someplace in Central Florida. Only after the wish is asked her than this organization is contacted and the family is flown out there at no cost to them.

Pretty cool, and definitely appreciated.

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Day 47: The Collective Heart

Oh man. I'm exhausted tonight. I don't know where this came from as I was fine all day. But seriously I'm about to drift off...

NOT to say the the Collective Heart is boring. Really, I'm tired, but not because of this organization!

Their mission is: Uniting humanity by inspiring global and collective transformation. They raise funds specifically for schooling in Kenya and Uganda. They seem to be working on five different schools right now, which is pretty tough.

And... I'm going to bed.

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Day 46: 826 National

I'm switching nonprofits again! I'll definitely be doing The Collective Heart soon though.

The 826 National is an organization that focuses on students learning creatively. They offer after school tutoring, in-school projects, writing workshops and more. They are very specific about reaching low income students and challenge them to explore what they are capable of.

I haven't heard of them before, but there's a duo that has won my heart and they are supporting this nonprofit by giving a portion of their latest album that dropped today.

If you haven't guessed by now... the duo I'm talking about is She & Him and their Christmas album is out! In case you are living under a rock and don't know, She & Him is Zooey Deschanel and Matt Ward.

Go buy some AMAZING music and support 826 National!

She & Him website
826 Website

*I  just realized that I should have done one of the singing videos that Zooey does. They are so simple but so captivating at the same time. Curse my lack of time management.

Weekly List: Oct. 24-28

Monday: The Collective Heart

Tuesday: Project Recoil

Wednesday: Give Kids the World Village

Thursday: SAT-7 Revisited again. :)

Friday: You suggest one!

Day 44: Friday's nonprofit

Somedays it's good to just do good for others. Instead of begging around for a suggest nonprofit, I decided to head over to my cousin's house to help with a major cleanup. I wasn't planning on blogging about it, and I had wanted to do it. It was only an hour, but I had fun. I got to catch up with her, and play with the dog, and dust a lot of fun knick-knacks. I don't know why, but I always take more care when I'm helping someone else out.

How about you?

Weekend Challenge - Go be a nonprofit yourself and just go help someone for no reason! Or play with the animals in the humane society. Give out hugs to the homeless at your local shelter or soup kitchen. Come on. Just one hour, you can manage that, right? Let me know how it goes!

Day 43: World Vision Revisited

Donating through World Vision gets addicting. It's only been two months but I already want to sponsor another child. I have to budget for student loan payments first (that starts in January, ack!) but if I can swing it I'll sponsor a little boy from Peru in 2012.

Anyway, I have been really lazy (more run-down to be honest) and haven't written Anju a letter yet. I just got an envelope from WV encouraging me to do so... so I guess I'll post it on here as well!


Hi Anju!

Here is a little bit about me:

My favorite color is Orange.

My favorite sport is Tennis.


My favorite activity is Dancing/Reading.
-Anju,
Do you know why June is my favorite month? Because my birthday is in June too! I can't wait for the summer. :)
I am praying for you!


That's it. Short and sweet. World Vision now offers an email program which I am very excited about. I plan to utilize both email and hand-written forms of communication so this program will definitely help me to keep on track with talking to Anju. WOOO!!!!

Here's the email link: https://my.worldvision.org/send-email

Day 42: Roll Back Malaria

Roll Back Malaria works with several (aka hundeds) of partners to combat Malaria. Their goal is to reduce Malaria morbidity and mortality by reaching universal coverage and strengthening health systems. Long-term, RBM wants to see a world where Malaria exists no more.

And according to the most recent news article on their site, that day could hypothetically be right around the corner. A new vaccine against Malaria has been created, with positive results. If this vaccine proves itself, this could be a HUGE game-changer. Life for the people in these Malaria-risk areas would not have to worry nearly as much. And receiving one simple shot versus taking all those pills?! That's a no brainer for any missionary, visitor, or resident.

Roll Back Malaria seems to have a strong handle on things. They are effective, efficient and passionate. Though their website is not attractive at all, and not the easiest to navigate, I like what they do. They don't seem to be huge on social media yet, but their Twitter account seems to be really good. I think that's how I found them actually. Check them out if interested.

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Day 41: Three Avocados

I LOVE the story behind Three Avocados! This is one of the many reasons I love missions trips. When God moves, He really moves! And so many lives are changed through just one divinely sparked experience.

We are a society that runs on coffee. Seriously, so much so that Dunkin' Donuts has based their slogan around it! In our busy lives, we love to have that little boost of caffeine to get us going in the mornings. But so  often as we drag ourselves out of bed, we forget that people all over the water are dying just from drinking. No, they are not dying from drinking coffee. They are dying from a life-sustaining source that no one should be afraid of. Unclean water. Three Avocados is looking to change this by giving back all profits from selling fair and organic (not certified, but the founders did their homework; check it here) coffee grown in Uganda.

Having just more recently gotten into coffee, I now think more about who else would enjoy the good stuff. The number one coffee drinker in my heart (and home!) is my dad. I'm thinking Christmas presesnts! :)

I'm going to buy some now though, to see for myself what it tastes like. Go on, you know you want to too!

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P.s., I love their thoughts of the day on Twitter. Highly recommend following them there!

Day 40: Forgotten Voices

Sorry I missed yesterday! That's what happens when you and a few friends randomly decide to go to the bowling ally after choir and volleyball practice. Got back at midnight, crashed. Then went to work, gym, church youth leader meeting (oh yeah... I'm helping with the youth group now btw) and just got home. So you get two updates tonight!

Forgotten Voices.

Not sure why, but I actually found out about this organization when they added me on Twitter. I have been wanting to support more charities, so I followed them back. And since then, I've really like what they have had to say. They always have good links and keep their information short and sweet.

That being said, Forgotten Voices has more than just a good social media coordinator. They are very specific in which they address the needs of African communities struck by the AIDs epidemic through giving support to the local churches to empower and care for the orphans in these areas.

To me this speaks out as an INCREDIBLE need that they are fulfilling! Not only are orphans usually overlooked, but are sometimes so overwhelming to deal with that communities have to let them slip through. But Forgotten Voices is reaches out to the people who are mandated by God to care for orphans. This organization steps in and teaches leadership, provides resources and connects helpful ministries in the area together.

Neatness tells a great story in her video, and her soul just speaks deep into my heart. She has known bad, and she has known good. She is very honest about her life. Yet her hope that God will continue to give her good experiences is one that many children who have lose their parent(s) to AIDs cannot typically hope for.

I hope you take some time and find out more about what Forgotten Voices does and how they help children like Neatness.

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Day 39: Weekly List

Time is moving fast on this project! It's not going quite the way I imagined it would, but that's real life for ya. I think because I am still cleaning and re-sorting so much in my house I just simply do not have the time to dedicate creating anything of substance for this project. Which is a shame, but unavoidable.

Oh, and another major project I've been working on is hopefully going to be released on Friday!!! I'm praying it works out, but it probably won't be completely done... just functional.

Monday: Forgotten Voices

Tuesday: Three Avocados.

Wednesday: Roll Back Malaria

Thursday: World Vision Revisited

Friday: Suggest one! I skipped this past Friday because no one suggested anything. I guess I should just start asking people.

Have a wonderful week! P.s., look up (and reflect on) Micah 6:8.

Tip;
---Read the entire chapter, and then bam! You'll know when you get to the one I'm talking about. My eyes have to stop on it every time. 

Day 38: Eat-Art Revisited.

Ok, so my internet at home has been going in and out. Even when it was working I couldn't do anything on blogger. Right now I am at Denny's, eating desert just so I don't feel skeevy...

Back to Eat-Art.org

I have yet to submit any pictures. I really want to, especially since I just got a few of my portfolio printed out and I seriously got chills. I might just be biased though.

Confession----   I was lazy and have not contacted Eat-Art about this post at all. So I really don't have much to say, other than I am buying this piece for a cousin. It is going to be a "house warming/Christmas" present for her. This way, I get to give her a print of her favorite animal and send 1000 meals to feed hungry children. I am unbelievably excited about this!!!!

Here is  their donation page.

P.s., yes, I just bought that print, even though there are cheaper options. Go buy some art. :)

Day 37: Stand Up to Cancer

So this might be lame, but I've been running around all day and just got back to my house (Yay for working out and volunteering to be a leader at youth group...). So I am completely wiped and because Travel the Road is one of my favorite organizations, I just can't do a simple write-up on them.

But I came across this one random Homer Simpson video and had to find out more about it. Hence, Stand Up to Cancer! I love the idea and the model they are using. It's all about connecting the right people to form "super teams" of cancer researching. It looks like they are getting close to quite a few breakthroughs. But of course, the best way to Stand Up to Cancer is to detect it early.

Here is a good place to watch the video of Homer Simpson's Colonoscopy. ;)

And here is SU2C's info-

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I know cancer can be scary. And evil. Both of my grandmothers have had cancer. One is a survivor, and the other... well it's not a happy story. I've had friends fight cancer, and I know rates are on the rise. This is a big deal, and affects so many. :(

Day 37: Krochet Kids

-I wish I knew how to crochet. I do know the basics of knitting, and I used to have my friend Miriam teach me when I was middle school. But then she moved away and I had only a couple of lessons. There is this Crocheting School that I'm hoping to one day soon take advantage of. But I digress...

The story of Krotchet Kids is simple and very grass-roots organic. I'm sure you've seen this commercial floating around----

 I first heard about Krochet Kids last fall through a random link that came up on my blog roll. I'm not even sure if I follow the original blogger who linked to this site anymore but I've randomly checked in on the family who introduced me to Krotchet Kids. It takes a lot of guts to move your entire family to a 3rd world country and start a project from the ground up. Mad props.

This organization has a serious stake in taking down poverty. Check them out.

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Day 36: Project 7

I found this nonprofit through Sarah on Twitter! Which, here's an interesting statistic for ya; over 80,000 nonprofit are listed on social media. Somebody say, "WHAT?" That is quite a lot. But I like to think that each one is doing some kind of good in the world. As more and more people are giving up control of their stuff, Jesus is using them to take care of the orphans, the widows, the hungry and the sick. I know that many people do not have hope right now, but when I think of what we as individuals are capable of doing... well how can you not be hopeful? :)

Project 7, is a brand. A goods brand. They sell branded coffee, mints, gum, tee-shirts, and water bottles! The cool thing is that all profit from the selling of each item goes to charity. Individual nonprofits can submit their organization if they fit into at least one of seven categories (to combine the 7 deadly sins! Whoa. Mind blown).

1. Feed the Hungry


2. Heal the Sick 


3. Hope for Peace


4. House the Homeless


5. Quench the Thirsty


6. Teach them Well 


          and 


7. Save the Earth

They have a two main slogans;
"Products for Good"
"Change the Score"


Check out the website for more information!

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Day 35: Weekly List

Not to sure I'm going to stay with this, but here's my list!


Monday: Project 7

Tuesday: Krotchet Kids

Wednesday: Travel the Road

Thursday: Eat-Art Revisited

Friday: Suggest one for me!

:D

Day 34: Hello Somebody

Sorry about yesterday. I am still not feeling well, but I did not feel right about missing another day. So without further ado -

Hello Somebody! 

The more I read about this organization the more I fall in love with them. I need to buy a watch from them asap!

Here my lovely friend Sarah is modeling two of her watches from Hello Somebody!

Sarah says, "I love Hello Somebody because at this point in my life, I can't be overseas, helping people myself, but I can buy a watch through Hello Somebody and feed over 130 people! And then every time I look at my watch it's a constant reminder to be praying for the least of these! The organization has an awesome mission, and a big ol' heart... And that is a recipe for success!"


Also, Hello Somebody was at Catalyst '11, which I desperately wished I could have attended. Anyway, they recorded this video "backstage." Check it out and find out more about Hello Somebody!


http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/17733309

Day 33: Feeling sick

I'm feeling sick, so I will post tomorrow. It's nothing serious, I just can't concentrate enough to do much. I think getting some sleep will do wonders. 

Day 32: Big Brothers Big Sisters

Mentorship is so unbelievably important. Just to know that someone is there, who will care for you no matter what... makes such a huge impact on an individual's life. And while I have yet to work with this organization, I know that they have helped so many people, and changed the lives of thousands +. Every child needs to know that someone sees their potential! Sometimes thats all it takes.

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P.s., one of the projects I've been working on? Is a mentoring program at my church. Another twenty-something woman, my Sunday-school teacher and I have hashed out a lot of ideas for what we want in a mentor and hopes for our church. My teacher is speaking with our pastors this week about implementing our convictions. Can you say EXCITED?!?! :D

Day 31: The Girl Effect

Powerful, POWERFUL video. Genius concept all around.

I don't 100% agree with the entire process they have going though. Yes, by proceeding this way through saving 12 year old girls they will reduce poverty monumentally. However, men run the culture. Men are (supposed to be) the leaders. If you want to spiritually change a community, the men must be on board as well. I would love to see another organization that is specifically based on helping men become MEN work in partnership with The Girl Effect.

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Praying that they change the world. 

Day: 27-30

"Yes. I have failed already. But my God is a God of grace, and I will get back on track.

I have been very busy since Friday, with work (all day Saturday!), choir and band practice, and a whole lot of church! I've also got some very big projects coming up and I've started a training regime that is taking more hours out of my day. So it's taking some time to adjust to my new schedule with a lot less time.

*Tomorrow I will get back in the swing of posting, with an added extra! :)


Day 29: PeaceJam

"The mission of the PeaceJam Foundation is to create young leaders committed to positive change in themselves, their communities and the world through the inspiration of Nobel Peace Laureates who pass on the spirit, skills, and wisdom they embody."


The website is a bit overwhelming, just to warn you. But PeaceJam seems really cool. Maybe later in the year I'll come back and find out more about their organization.


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Day 30: The Joyful Heart Foundation


"Everybody knows that rape, sexual assault and child abuse happen. Society is willing to look at this reality from time to time, but is just as willing to forget the horrible truth about how many survivors are walking among us. The Joyful Heart Foundation is working to build a community that is strong enough not to push this reality away, a community that acknowledges the dark side of this issue, but endeavors to turn toward the light of healing, the path to possibility and the clarity of honest dialogue."


We envision a community that says to a survivor "We hear you. We believe you. We feel for you. You are not alone. And your healing is our priority."


Again, awesome nonprofit. Since this is a very important issue in todays society I will plan on revisiting them.

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Hope everyone had a great weekend!