I need a cause

Your website is so sweet! Thank you for the freebies – thank you for your sweet words of encouragement and pointing to Jesus. Thank you for making pretty things. It’s a little happy place to visit. I appreciate you. xo

I know this is a little late but here is a cause that you may like http://www.hopemakesadifference.com/

i know i am a little late in the comment game on this one, but there is this amazing organization called ” Charity Water” Just watch the video – it speaks for itself. It all started with a birthday party ….

http://vimeo.com/6202666

Heifer International! http://www.heifer.org

Hi Emily!! I have loved reading your blog and actually and currently making a load of flower pins to give away at a Bunco night I am hosting at my house on Friday. One of my friends that now reads your blog is having a craft night at her house in early Dec. using a bunch of crafts you have given tutorials on here. Thanks for inspiring creativity and fun fellowship!! OK..so, do you remember Graham Boutz and DiAnne (Konecny) Boutz from APU? Their daughter has Cystic Fibrosis. Check out the cystic fibrosis foundation website at http://www.cff.org for more info. They do incredible research and have changed the lives of so many people and families.

I highly recommend IJM – International Justice Mission. It’s mission is to be “a human rights agency that secures justice for victims of slavery, sexual exploitation and other forms of violent oppression. IJM lawyers, investigators and aftercare professionals work with local officials to ensure immediate victim rescue and aftercare, to prosecute perpetrators and to promote functioning public justice systems.”
November 15 is National Call In Day to support the passage of the Child Protection Compact Act in Congress. Basically, it’s a law designed to help protect children from slavery. Call your senator on the 15th to support passage of teh bill – the website for all the information you need is: http://www.ijm.org/nationalcallinday

I don’t know if anyone has mentioned this previously, but Heifer.org is a great charity. Your dontations brings animals and other resources to communities to help the local people. You can choose what sorts of animals you wish to donate with your contribution. One year we donated in my boss’s name and donated some goats.

Hi, I recently found yor blog and have been enjoying all your ideas.One organization you can check out is DKI, we are always looking for people to support our cause for the children. Thanks so much!

I highly suggest you check out Samaritan’s purse. You can do alot of really neat things. A few examples are: Feed a hungry baby for a week, Teach a child to read or write, Introduce boys and girls to Gods word, and many many more. It’s really a neat to go through and pick the things you want to give. The website it Samaritanspurse.org.

Check out Heifer International. Donations help people in poverty in all parts of the world become self reliant.

I’m not sure if anyone else has suggested, but World Vision, in my belief, is a great organization and they do great things for people that could really use it. It’s pretty amazing. I have a sponsor child that I donate to monthly and get reports from as well on how she’s doing in school and whatnot.
Well, I hope you find one that you really like.
-Leslee

In God’s Heart Ministry. http://www.ingodsheartministry.com Small Home/school for street kids in Lubumbashi Congo. I care about it, not becasuse my mom runs it :), but because their heart is to be where the harvest is Plentiful, but the workers are few. Hard, hard work but the prize is so precious. Souls and lives saved.

What a wonderful Christmas gift exchange idea. The Ellianna Grace Foundation is a dear one to my heart, very literally. When I was 30 weeks along with my fourth child, who is miraculously now one year old, we underwent in-utero surgery in an attempt to fix his critical heart defect. We traveled from Texas to Boston for the surgery and then I spent three months living at the hospital while I waited for our son to be born, recover from surgeries and grow healthy enough to come home. He was two months old when we left Children’s Hospital Boston. The Ellianna Grace Foundation helped us with plane tickets and helped with meal cards while I lived in the hospital. They help other families who need the fetal intervention surgery and then they help with follow-up care at Childrens’ Hospital Boston for these amazing kids as they grow and require continued heart surgeries and treatments. Their support has be a real blessing to me and my family, and many other families as well.
http://www.elliannagracefoundation.org

I came across Craft Hope and was very inspired. I hope to give to this cause one day. http://crafthope.com/about/

I work for a non-profit called Forever Found and we help support the rescue and restoration of victims of Human Trafficking and Child Prostitution. Specifically we promote writers, artists, musicians and through the sale of art, we donate all or a portion of the artist’s proceeds to three Christian After-Care Homes (Life Impact International in Thailand, International Crisis Aid in Ethiopia, and StreetLight PHX in Arizona) that do the rescuing and restorative work in these kids’ lives. It’s a way of equipping everyone who has a talent to give that talent towards a worthy cause. We or any of the 3 aftercare homes would love to be part of your family’s Christmas!! What an incredible idea!! :) A small but devestating fact about child prostitution: Over 200,000 children are enslaved to prostitution here in the United States. Yes, that right, we have this horrific evil here in the US as well! Check out our website to see what we’re doing to stop this wrong! http://www.foreverfound.org

I want to share an opportunity with you to help change the life of one child in Ukraine by helping bring him to Texas to live with his forever family. My friends Josh and Jessica Carlin are in the process of adopting Danil (Daniel). You can read Jessica’s blog post announcing the adoption here… http://jeremiah18-4.blogspot.com/2010/10/im-paper-pregnant.html
Reese’s Rainbow is helping them through this process. You can read Danil’s and the Carlins’ page here… http://reecesrainbow.org/sponsorcarlin
International adoptions are very expensive. The Carlins are not wealthy but have hearts after God’s. Danil is in danger of being transferred to an institution where his care will diminish greatly. It has been amazing to see how God has been working for months in the hearts of many to find Danil’s forever family. We are so blessed to get to help the Carlins by giving to Danil’s adoption grant through various raffles and the Chip In at Reese’s Rainbow. We KNOW that Danil will love being a part of their family.
Maybe God wants YOU to be a part of this blessing too. :D

We live in Salem, Oregon, and we essentially support three local charities. Not that we are opposed to any of the national or international organizations, we aren’t. Many do wonderful and necessary work. Some have the ability to pull in huge dollars from around the country or world, and I like knowing that our dollars are staying closer to home. It gives our children the opportunity to see firsthand what these organizations do. Our little boy had cancer, so we support two groups out of Portland that help cancer kids and their families (Children’s Cancer Association and CHAP), and our other favorite is the local mission (Union Gospel Mission). Sometimes we deliver our donations in person, and the kids get to walk in with tangible gifts or money. It’s always a memorable moment for our family.

I would highly recommend Heffer International. You can donate the amount of money necessary to buy a family a flock of chickens, or a pig or a cow. The organization teaches the family how to care for the animal, which can provide food and an income. Families that receive animals (I think they each get a male and a female) are required to “pass it on” when their animals reproduce. It’s the whole “if you give a man a fish you feed him for one day, but if you teach him how to fish…” Great organization.

You are a Mom so check out Tom’s shoes. I like the fact that they donate shoes to American kids too who seem to get lost in the shuffle when it comes times to take care of needy kids and while I dont mind helping incredibly needy kids around the world we have many of our own kids in need this winter.

Ours would be the Best Buddies program or Special Olympics.

Both are worthy causes. Best Buddies works hard to pair special ed students with regular ed students to promote community and friendship. Our daughter Sara is 18 and has Down Syndrome and has been involved in the Best Buddies program for four years now. She is also a state swimmer for Special Olympics.

There is also the National Down Syndrome Association : )

http://www.compassion.com/ We have two children we send to school in Africa. An amazing organization…amazing. I would love to have more money and send 800 to school. Julie

I think that the Ronald McDonald House is a great charity. My cousin got cancer at the age of 8 and the Ronald McDonald house set them up with a place to stay in Seattle while they were getting situated in Seattle with Children’s Hospital. Do I guess that either one. Ronald McDonald House is rmhc.org and I’m not sure if Children’s Hospital takes donations but either one I think would be good, but they are pretty popular for donations. I don’t know if that detracts.

Hel bring FREEDOM to sexually enslaved and exploited women on Southeast Asia. With the small donation of $24, you can provide a night of freedom and possibly a lifetime of freedom for a young woman. Amazing.

This girl is doing AMAZING work in Africa with orphaned children…she has moved there permanently and has adopted 14 girls. She not only raises and loves these children, but also does a lot of work in many neglected communities in Uganda. You can read more about her story and ministry here: http://www.kissesfromkatie.blogspot.com/.

What a great thing your family is doing!

I know a girl who’s daughter has infant onset Krabbe disease which is considered fatal. There is actually a group called Hunter’s Hope that helps children and their families who are affected by this disease. I do know that there is a hospital in NC that is waiting for one more child to become part of a study group that will hopefully allow doctors to find a cure for this disease. The more I read Katie’s blog, the more that I am impacted by the faith that she shows as she watches her daughter fight this disease. Hunter’s Hope is a great organization!!!!! and families with children that have Krabbe are definitely in need of help as there is so much care that is required.

I really love the work of Heifer International (www.heifer.org). They provide goats, chickens, bees, etc., to people all over the world who are in poverty. Their mission is to provide people with something they can tend to and make a profit from, such as selling their animal’s milk, eggs, or wool.

I think a local pregnancy center would be a great place to give to!

http://love146.org/slavery “Love 146 has initiated two core program areas to combat the issue of child sex slavery and exploitation, Prevention and Aftercare. In addition, Love146 works to grow a body of Research on the issue to enhance the knowledge base for the communities we serve, our partners and our work.”

I think you would enjoy reading about a local charity that oftentimes is ignored. The Daughter’s Project helps rehabilitate young women who have been forced into the sex trade industry in the U.S. People often think this is just an international problem, but it is actually occuring in our neighborhood. The Daughters Project helps these young girls find their way again while showing them the love of God. You can read more about their purpose: ” To help girls recover from the trauma of human sex trafficking and to help prevent them from being trafficked through community education. The foundation of this help will be Godly, biblical and holistic.” http://www.thedaughterproject.org

I received the greatest catalog in the mail the other day from World Vision. You can buy a family in a 3rd world country a cow, goat, duck…there are tons of great options. It’s a nice way to help feed and generate income for a family living in poverty. It’s the gift that keeps on giving.

I have been giving the gift of water the past several Christmases through Living Water International. It’s a really wonderful faith-based non-profit.

http://www.water.cc/

Great idea here is my recommendation http://pef.lds.org/?locale=eng

Hi Emily, I know you live in the Seattle area like me and there is a great, local organization that serves foster children in our area called Treehouse for Kids. Their website is http://www.treehouse4kids.org if you want to check them out. My work hosts a donation drive every Christmas for their warehouse which is basically a really large free store where foster kids get to shop. They also provide tutoring to foster kids and their “little wishes” program allows foster kids to take dance classes, buy their band uniforms, get their school pictures taken, etc… all things their foster family might not be able to afford. Anyways, good luck with the decision process and I think that is great what your family is doing!

A favorite non-profit is International Justice Mission (www.ijm.org). Not only do they rescue victims of human trafficking and slavery (and provide a Christ-centered recovery program), but they also prosecute perpetrators and work with local justice systems. I know you will have a hard time selecting one charity, but thanks for the opportunity to share!

Hi! This is such a great idea! I love that through charity, you find the true meaning of Christmas. It too often gets lost in all the excitement of gifts. If you’re looking for an organization dedicated to women and children then you should definitely check out the YWCA. Its mission is eliminating racism, empowering women, and promoting peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all. YWCAs all over the world are dedicated to helping women and families empower themselves through education and programming. (I happen to work at my local YWCA, so I know firsthand the great work that the agency does.) The national website is http://www.ywca.org.

the story behind this is great and the site has MANY ideas and organizations – hope it helps!
http://www.giving101.org/whiteenvelopeproject

Jesus Said Love http://www.jesussaidlove.com/JesusSaidLove/OUR_STORY.html

This is a Christian ministry that directly targets strippers and truckers in Waco & Dallas. It is now being spread to the Bryan/College Station where stripping and prostitution is a growing issue. I am the volunteer coordinator for the new B/CS branch and am very excited about the plans the Lord has for this non-profit.

Hi Emily, I will share one of the charties that I support in my area…and another idea for you. “Nonna’s Flowers” When a person finds out they have cancer, it is literally the scarriest day of your life! You could take the money and put it towards making the little posey pins. They can be given as a gift in the Radiation Oncology Clinic…at your nearest hospital. Don’t overwhelm yourself…just make a few at a time and deliver them a couple times a year. That’s the sweet thing about giving they are greatful for whatever you bring! (I will be launching my Pillow Philanthropy for St Francis in January on my one year anniversary of cancer free!)
Just a thought…
now here is the name of the other organization that I support! My daughter, Chrislyn is on the board of directors. http://www.fusionfederalway.org/ (and Ryan…you rock in my book!) *L*

Hi! :-) So what a great idea to give your money like this for Christmas — I might see if my family would want to do this too! :-) Anyways, my husband and I run a ministry in inner-city Atlanta . . . we just bought a house downtown (in the most dangerous neighborhood in Atlanta) so we can be closer to the kids we work with (our ministry is through visionatlanta.org – we have a summer camp for kids who can’t afford it as well :-)

Several years ago we started offering our family members the choice of a donation to charity or a gift card. Happily most choose charity. Our own children are limited to 3 gifts each from us. (If it was good enough for Jesus… :) They also get to choose a donation to a charity of their choice. They truly look forward to this.
I truly adore Samaratan’s Purse. They began as Operation Christmas Child (the shoeboxes) and now have an entire gift catalog where you can buy chickens or goats, etc for people in need in Africa, etc. http://www.samaritanspurse.org/

Another favorite is the Worchester Wreath Company. They are the company who creates the pine Christmas wreaths for companies such as LL Bean. For every wreath that they sell they also donate a wreath to place at a gravesite of an unknown soldier and others who lost their lives defending our country. We donate each year for 3 wreaths to be placed.
http://www.wreathsacrossamerica.org/

Hi Emily! This is a Christian org. but, if we had more money (which, I’m sure we could actually scrape some more together…anyway) I would give/will give consistently to “Samaritan’s Purse”. I know that this org. is all over the world, but I just feel like when disaster hits, etc–they are there–meeting needs and sharing Christ. They also have a giving catalog so loved ones can give a specific amount for a specific thing. I love to read their newsletters about which corner of the world they are helping in the name of Christ. Well, I know whether big or small, that you will find something that works for you and touches your heart. Blessings for your choice! –k

St. Jude in Memphis, TN is a great cause! It is a cancer research hospital for children.

Check out UNICEF! They work solely to help children in need. They provide children with clean water, relief aid, health care, etc. Such a great cause. It really makes you stop and think that with all we have, there are still children out there without clean water and other basic necessities. It’s definitely my favorite cause: http://www.unicefusa.org

Also check out http://www.charitynavigator.org/ It shows you how to tell how efficient a charity is that you are thinking of donating to. Some charities are very high (in the 90%) with the rest going towards fundraising and operating expenses, while others are extremely low. I think it is important that if you give to a cause, you make sure it is actually going to the cause :)

Good luck!

Some of my family’s favorites:

Samaritan’s Purse (http://www.samaritanspurse.org/)
Joni and Friends (http://www.joniandfriends.org/)
Locks of Love (http://www.locksoflove.org/)
Camp Firefly (http://campfirefly.com/)
Compassion International
World Vision

This is such a great idea for a Christmas tradition! So many people have so little, and the Lord has blessed us with so much – it’s wonderful to share with those in need, instead-of (or at least in-addition-to) piling more ‘things’ on those who already ‘have’.
Thanks!

SOLI DEO GLORIA!

-Kyrie<

Hey Emily, check out Heifer International (www.heifer.org)…such a great organization. Every year for Christmas, my husband’s grandmother gives us all of our gifts, plus a $10 bill. Then when everyone has opened their gifts, she tells us that we are so blessed, we should share that blessing with others. She asks us to donate to whatever animal she is purchasing from Heifer. Luckily enough, we all have $10 cash on hand :) All the kids were taught from their first Christmas to share their blessings, and it’s one of the traditions I love most about my new family. I highly recommend this organization! Good luck choosing :)

There’s a backpack program for school kids that hands out backpacks on Friday afternoon that are filled with shelf stable food for the child to eat over the weekend. A lot of kids from lower income families and who receive free meals at school all week are suspected to not eat much at home over the weekend. This program feeds them and any siblings they may have that are younger than school age. We’ve been doing it in our community for a couple of years now and it really is a blessing. It also helps find those families who might need assistance during the holidays. It’s a government funded program for the most part, but the local programs often have specific needs that can be met quicker through private donations.

http://feedingamerica.org/our-network/network-programs/backpack-program.aspx

Kudos to you on starting a great new tradition!

Our family supports National Down Syndrome Society, http://www.ndss.org. My 3 year old granddaughter was born with Down Syndrome. She is far from being “down”! Down is the last name of the man who discovered the chromosome At 3 year’s old, she knows all her upper/lower case alphabet, numbers to 20, all primary colors plus some, her shapes, PLUS she is reading 5 words. When this little one came into our life’s, I immediately knew she was closer to the God-like person God has been trying to create than I… with my defects. She is an angel. AND, of course, she is ours!!!!!

Your area should also have a local affiliate. Buddy Walk’s are held locally! All donations are so appreciated…large or small!!!!

Hugs are given on the 21st chromosome! Hugs to you and your family!

I recommend your local (or statewide) CASA program. That’s Court Appointed Special Advocates and they train volunteers to work with child neglect cases. When a case appears in court, the judge assigns one of the volunteers to learn everything they can about the case and to work with the child throughout the duration of the trial. My good friend is the fundraising event coordinator in Austin, TX and I’ve come to know some of the work they do and they truly are amazing people helping children make it through the CPS system.

http://www.washingtonstatecasa.org/

oh – and I think I should have told you that the WHOLE cd series is called “Learning to See When the Lights go out” I figure that’s kind of important if you go to the website to search it! lol

I say St. Jude. What they do with that money every year is pure magic. But I have a soft spot for kiddo foundations. Or Make a Wish

I have 2 favorites: The Carter Center. The work they do in eradicating disease around the world is amazing- among other things. http://cartercenter.org/index.html
And my dad and I are very big animal lovers, so aspca.org is my other favorite cause.

Real Hope for Haiti is run by an extended family who treats starving children and others in their small clinic in Haiti. Their photos and stories will break your heart! No worries about large organizations or funds not being used appropriately here. Truly amazing what they do! http://haitirescuecenter.wordpress.com/

my charity of choice is the spca!

You have so many comments and not sure if you have picked one yet. But I saw one put the food bank, I think that you should do that two to three times a year, clean out all the old canned items and dried goods. Coming from someone who grew up in a house were sometimes, the food bank is the only reason why we had food…I SUPPORT it several times a year. So that is a good one. As well as any women’s shelter or animal shelter. Again, I grew up in a domestic violent home and more than once, these women’s shelters were s safe haven for periods of times, my mother was not one of the smarter ones that used the programs offered to the full potiental to get completly away from the dangerous man and situation, but even still, they are wonderful in getting clothes, food, a safe house, counseling etc etc to these women that are completly broken down. Animal Shelters are always in need of donations. I commend your family, this is a wonderful idea.

I would give to a local food bank.
Do you know how many children who live right here in the Unites States go to bed hungry every night?
Many are homeless along with their families and the only meal they may get is one from school if they were able to attend that day.
One of my Best friend’s daughter’s teaches High School Chorus and twelve of her thirty students in one class are homeless! That is astounding!
I lOVE that you and your Family are doing this.
While I love the Christmas Season I dislike the commercialism and waste.
All of the charities mentioned above sound wonderful too.
Blessings!

One of my favorites is The Smile Train. This charity performs the surgery to repair cleft lips and palates. How wonderful to give the gift of a smile and it lasts a lifetime!

There are just a multitude you could give to. So many people need help. But animals need help too. You might want to consider your local animal shelter, or look a little deeper and see if you can find something that really touches you – an animal adoption facility maybe. Just a thought. But bless you and your family for doing this. It’s wonderful.

Not exactly a donation but Kiva gives microloans to entrepreneurs to start businesses. It is pulling many women (and their families) out of poverty.
http://www.kiva.org/

http://www.ijm.org ; My suggestion is International Justice Mission. It’s a christian human rights agency that secures justice for victims of slavery, sexual exploitation and other forms of violent oppression. IJM lawyers, investigators and aftercare professionals work with local officials to ensure immediate victim rescue and aftercare, to prosecute perpetrators and to promote functioning public justice systems.

My suggestion is a sensitive one and hard for people to read about. http://www.streetgrace.org/ It is something that really breaks my heart, especially as the mother of young children. I was lead to this organization by a friend from FB after she posted the link sharing the statistics of human trafficking in the United States. Even if you don’t choose this organization I hope sharing will bring the subject to light.

Love146 http://love146.org/ – the goal is abolition of child sex slavery and exploitation. This organization is amazing. AMAZING. We have supported them for several years and have been involved with the organization. They are indeed a worthy cause.

My husband and I have a requirement for charitable organizations in that 85% or better has to go to services provided (and NOT administrative costs) since we want to get the most bang for our buck. One of my personal favorites is Health Wagon. The provide mobile medical services to the people of the Appalachian regions. I love that it helps people in our country who truly need help. Over 90% of the money goes directly to provide services (I forget the exact percentage). Their website is Healthwagon.org (not to be confused with the dot com.). Check it out. Thank you.
P.S. My Jewish husband passionately supports the Christian Appalachian Project and that is his suggestion. He says they have a very good rating also. Hope this helps.

March of Dimes. November is National prematurity awareness month. MOD is committed to helping families who have babies in the NICU and need assistance with medical bills as well as funding for research on how to better care for these babies and how to prevent more preemie births. As a mother who has had 2 babies born prematurely (a 27 weeker and a 24 weeker) I love this organization. Thru research they’ve done they have helped make it possible for me to have just delivered a 37 week old yesterday.
http://www.marchofdimes.com/

I work for Missouri Girls Town Foundation. I know you don’t live in Missouri but this organization provides a home to girls ages 8-18 who have suffered significant trauma from sexual abuse, physical abuse or severe neglect. The organization’s goal is to provide a fresh start in life to these girls so that they may live productive, independent lives. Funding to provide education, housing, vocational skills, food, clothing, etc. for these beautiful girls comes almost entirely from donations. This time of year is especially hard for the girls, since most children their age are thinking about presents and families and santa. These girls have had their childhood Christmases destroyed by loss of innocence, abuse and heartache. Perhaps you could consider adopting one of the girls for Christmas (or just supporting the organization)? http://www.MoGirlsTown.org

I read your blog everyday and feel like this is something you would have a heart for.

Lifesaver ministries. http://www.lifesaverministries.org/ A crisis pregnancy center that provides housing as well as counseling and other services for women who decide to carry their baby to full term. My mom has been donating to them for years now. At Christmas she “adopts” a family through them and sends gifts.

World Vision. They have a number of programs now, such as the clean water fund. A friend of mine just raised money for wells for her birthday.

http://www.SamaritansPurse.org – I completely trust them. My kids love to pick out “gifts” from their Christmas catalogue – a goat, money for a medical kit, baby chicks, bibles for orphans, etc. One year my 4th grade sunday school class held a bake sale on the street corner to raise money for Samaritan’s Purse – the 4th graders are now 9th graders and still remember the joy of ordering items from the catalogue. I completely trust Franklin Graham with my money.
-Trish

I photograph children that have Cystic Fibrosis for a calendar one of the local CF Moms coordiates and has put together to raise money for a cure..I got involved because one of my very best friend’s son was diagnosed when he was 4…There are so many precious kids dealing with this disease day to day..it’s a DAILY maintenance thing…they are on the cusp of finding a cure…
Here is the website for the foundation:
http://www.cff.org/

and here are some of the kids locally that have it..Through photographing them, I have become very inspired to see these kids live to a very old age :) ( If you are on Facebook, my page is Heather Crawford Photography..and the album is Cystic Fibrosis Calendar Kids)

Thanks!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=295827&id=59678041154

We do this same thing in my family! We all seem to do local ones. It just seems to makeit hit home so much more?! Habitat is a favorite. As well as Guiding Eyes for the Blind https://www.guidingeyes.org/about-us/ my mom is actuall y a puppy raiser. No matter where you decide to give, I beg you to use the Charity navigator. http://www.charitynavigator.org/ It gives GREAT information about how much money is used for running vs staff vs actually helping!
Best of luck, I can’t wait to hear what you choose!!

Having surrendered to go on the foreign mission field, I am a little partial to missions. Life on the field is rather slim to say the least…can you imagine being away from family, friends, Christmas decor. or the typical winter weather? An extra gift would be such a blessing, a card or gift would goes so far. One i like is located at http://www.evp.org.il, they are training American firefighters to know how to assist and respond to urban crisis in Israel. You might also consider a local Crisis Pergnancy Center. You’ll get so many suggestions. They all could benefit.

Mercy Ministries. They are a ministry geared toward women who have addictions and other problems in life. It is a rehab program that is life changing. I have read about it and seen videos. So awesome. You should look them up online.

UNICEF
http://www.unicefusa.org/ you can buy an animal for a family. i have bought several in honor of some family members.
or a local charity that helps homeless women and children.

TAPS – Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors. They offer support for the surviving families of fallen soldiers. I recently illustrated a children’s book with them that will be given to every military child that loses a parent. Over Memorial Day I went to their national survivor’s conference…meeting all of these parents, wives and children changed me forever. http://www.taps.org

My favorite charity is Meds and Food for Kids: http://www.mfkhaiti.org They are literally saving lives producing Medika Mamba – a peanut-based protein food that is made and manufactured in Haiti by Haitians. It’s so amazing. Also, even a more personal organization is Real Hope for Haiti — you can follow their blogs and the great work they are doing for the children of Haiti here: haitirescuecenter.wordpress.com and here: haitinurse4life.xanga.com

girleffect.org

a very powerful campaign!

I hope I can share this without sounding too “preachy” but this is near and dear to my heart. My church in St. Louis started something a few years ago. I don’t know what to call it other than God moving in amazing ways but most call it “Advent Conspiracy”. The whole thing pushes back on consumerism during the holiday season and encourages people to remember what Christmas is really all about. It encourages people to help those who really need to know God’s love by reaching them through basic needs, like water, and people donate to Living Water International. My description of how everything works barely touches the surface – you can learn more about what God is doing through this website: http://www.adventconspiracy.org/ Don’t know if this is what you’re looking for but I had to throw it out. (and thank you for sharing all of your wonderful ideas, you family, etc. – I enjoy your site very much!)

What a wonderful idea! I love it. Our organization of choice is NorthStar Youth Ministries, based here in Birmingham. Founded and run by our friend Paul, its mission is to help urban youth find their direction in life through high quality, holistic programs within a nurturing Christian environment. He moved his family to the inner city of Birmingham and has been making a huge difference in the lives of the inner-city youth there for years … he mentors them, started a Scout troop, does educational tutoring, leads sports teams and heads up a camp every Summer for the kids. It’s amazing! To learn more about it, go to http://www.northstaryouthministries.org/ . And thank you for even considering it! What a blessing.