Getting Involved, Making a Difference

Making a Difference in Our World. There are so many well-run, helpful nonprofits out there, and I've been trying to do my bit to make the world a teeny tiny better place. Some of these have even come to my attention from reading picture books. So I thought I'd highlight a few of the thousands of worthwhile agencies that have caught my attention in the past year or two. Yes, monetary donations are what most are looking for, but some are looking for other things....including an understaning of the the problem that created the need for their organization in the first place!

Heifer Project International is the organization I've known about since I was a kid. My own kids, when they were in middle school, spent part of a week volunteering at the Heifer Project farm near Worcester, Mass. This is one fantastic organization. They help families around the world by giving them the gift of sustainable animals - heifers, chickens, pigs, goats, rabbits. You can help in many ways - physically, monetarily, educationally - and it's been around for over 65 years. The picture book Beatrice's Goat (Atheneum: Page McBrier, 2001) tells HPI's story well.

World Vision, which is the recipient of proceeds from Just Like You (Zonderkidz: Marla Stewart Konrad, 2010) is a Christian humanitarian organization that has been active since 1950. Very creditable. I remember adopting a child with my Sunday School class a million years ago.

Souls4Soles has given away more than 10 MILLION pairs of unwanted or gently-use shoes since it began in 2005. Their motto - "Changing the World, One Pair at a Time" is epitomized in the picture book New Old Shoes (Pleasant Street Press: Charlotte Blessing, 2009). A one dollar donation will purchase a pair of shoes, but there are also drop-offs all over the country where you can DONATE your used shoes!. Just go to their website, enter your zip code, and it'll tell you where to go. I just gathered a bag together and am heading out for a three mile trip to donate!

FINCA (Foundation for International Communiity Assistance) puts small...minute...loans into the hands of women. We're talking $25 here, but it's enough to have empowered thousands of women around the world to make a better life for themselves and their children. "The results are life-changing." I just got a brochure in the mail, and it reminded me of the picture book One Hen (Kids Can Press: Katie Smith Milway, 2008) which I read about a year ago.

The Manzanar Project/Plant a Tree, Feed A Family helps support the growth of Mangrove Trees on the edges of salty seas.  The Mangroves are cared for by the women of nearby villages (it began in Eritrea, Africa), the leaves are eaten by goats and sheep, who have begun to thrive, giving more milk and meat to the families.  It's a win-win situation.  I first read about this in The Mangrove Tree: Planting Trees to Feed Families (Roth & Trumbore, 2011), which I borrowed from the Amelia S. Givin Library in Mt. Holly Springs while visiting there with Ella.  (The name "Manzanar Project" came from the relocation camp in California where Japanese-Americans were sent during World War II - Dr. Gordon Sato is the scientist creator of this project and was sent to Manzanar in the 1940's.)

Water for Southern Sudan (Drilling Wells, Transforming Lives) - After reading A Long Walk to Water during my 4th grade study of Africa and Sudan, I learned about this fantastic organization created by the protagonist of the novel, Salva Dut.  Included at this website are numerous ways that anyone can help, including an inspired program called the H20 Project Challenge.  There's all sorts of materials available for teacher and even families and individuals.  This is a WONDERFUL organization!