The Gift That Keeps On Giving

I love the "gifting" part of the holiday season.  For me, it truly feels better to give than receive.  I have so much fun thinking about gifts that will delight my family and friends, planning them out in my holiday gift planner and then purchasing and wrapping them with love and thought.  One of my favorite gifts to give are those that keep on giving.  At the top of that list are charities: giving back and giving all in one.  In today's world of consumption overload, I believe charitable sponsorships and donations are a great way to capture and share the true meaning of the holidays with loved ones.  Below are several of my favorite charities to gift.  Whether you are looking to help kids, animals, the environment, or just make the world a better place, I've got you covered.


For kids:
Save the Children - For as little as $10 a month, you can sponsor a child anywhere in the world, including the U.S.  Their programming, disaster aid, and educational support literally saves children's lives every day.


Make a Wish Foundation - Is there anything better than making a child's dream come true?  This organization does just that for children with life-threatening medical conditions.



For animals:
Farm Sanctuary - Save the animals!  Farm Sanctuary is the nation's largest and most effective farm animal and rescue protection organization.  This amazing organization rescues thousands of animals and cares for them at their sanctuaries in Watkins Glen, New York; Northern California (Orland); and the Los Angeles area (Acton).  A contribution of $20 or more gives you a Farm Sanctuary Membership for one year, their quarterly newsletter, discounted Bed & Breakfast rates, and year-round visits to their shelters.

PETA - PETA is the largest animal rights advocacy organization in the world.  Memberships include many benefits, including a subscription to their magazine full of news and recipes.


For the environment:
Heal The Bay - This organization works to keep California's coastal waters and watersheds healthy, safe and clean.  They offer membership donations, as well as Aquadoptions (sea animal adoptions) starting at $25.  

Surfrider Foundation - This non-profit has been protecting oceans, waves, and beaches since 1984.  They are the group that came to our aid when my Girl Scout troop was looking to ban plastic bags in their city's local businesses.  Gift memberships start at $25 and include a subscription to their bi-monthly online publication, a t-shirt, and more.


To Make The World A Better Place:
Kiva - Through a worldwide network of microfinance institutions, Kiva allows lenders to donate as little as $25 in microloans to let individuals create opportunity in their world - buy farming and seed supplies to help a Honduran man tend his crops; buy fabric for a Bolivian woman to make clothes; or buy a sewing machine for an Iraqi woman.  Lenders receive progress updates via email throughout the life of the loan.  When the money gets paid back, it becomes available as Kiva Credit, where the lender can use it to fund another loan, donate it to Kiva or withdraw it to spend on something else.


Charity Water - Give someone access to a reliable source of clean water by contributing to the construction of a new well in Africa, Southeast Asia, Central America or the Caribbean.  This non-profit's mission is to bring clean and safe drinking water to everyone on the planet.  Recipients receive updates and photos about the well they are contributing towards with their donation.



For more resources on where to give, check out Charity Navigator, the U.S.'s largest and most used evaluator of charities.  Do you have a favorite charity that you like to gift?  Please tell me in the comments section below.

What Will You Do Today?

I remember exactly where I was on September 11th, 2001 when news of the Twin Towers crashing down reached me.  I was stunned, as most of us were, paralyzed in fear.  I drove home in a trance, desperate to get home to my husband.  The next few hours felt never-ending, watching and waiting, not knowing what to do.

For me - a do-er - I experienced great angst in feeling helpless to those in New York who were in such dire need.  What could I do for those families in mourning?  How could I help those who were in pain?  A few years ago, my husband and his advertising agency were part of a campaign to "do something" on 9/11.  911day.org is an online community of people who pledge to do something on 9/11.  I think it is brilliant.  Do what you want - plant a garden, visit your grandmother, volunteer in a soup kitchen.  But do something - and remember.

This year, I encourage all of us to do something and remember the lives forever altered on 9/11 - the heroes who gave their lives to save others, the innocent victims taken without warning and their families who continued on without them, and the everyday heroes today who continue to fight for our safety and security.

Today, I will volunteer my time with a group of 7 year-old Girl Scouts and inspire them to be the best selves that they can be, because I truly believe our children hold the future to a brighter tomorrow.  What will you do?

A Milkshake To Feel Good About

I like to live the good  life - and I mean that in all meanings of the word...do good, feel good.  Milkshake is one of the resources in my good life toolbox.  It dubs itself "good finds that give back."  It is a daily, free email with a sole focus on finding the good in everything - products, people, initiatives, events and services that are cutting edge, unique, and philanthropic.  In my daily dose from these great people, I learn about global causes, cool products, trends, and more.  No matter the content, it always makes me stop and think about how I can help a little more or tempts me to shop for a good cause.  I am always inspired and educated.  It is literally "good" delivered to my inbox.  I invite you to check them out and be a part of the change movement to make the world a better place!

Creating Compassionate Children

2009 GoofyFoot Photography

As a mother, I have many wishes for the characteristics my children possess - now, even for my three year-old son - and as they get older, becoming independent adults.  Among the many, 'compassionate' tops the list.  I guess this is no surprise coming from a vegan...and I mean compassion not just for animals, but people too.  Merriam-Webster defines compassionate as the sympathetic consciousness of others' distress together with a desire to alleviate it.  I believe compassion must be bred in our children if we are to build the leaders of the future who are going to solve the world's crises facing us now - world hunger, war, environmental destruction.  It makes perfect sense to me - help others who are less fortunate and the world becomes a better place.  This is where I break into song: "It's A Small World!"

Ok, I may be in "Stephanie's World," as my husband likes to remind me, but as I hold myself to compassionate behavior, I also want my children to think of others and identify suffering (or less fortunate circumstances) and have an innate desire to help in some way.  I want them to believe and understand that no gesture is too small to help others and above all, that it is always important to think of others.  As parents, many of us feel it is our mission to create better lives for our children than we had as kids.  And if your children are half as fortunate as mine, and I hope they are, we have succeeded by many measures.  However, I strongly believe that part of our jobs as parents should also be to ensure that our children realize the amazing fortune they possess and begin to realize that others do not have it as good...this is also a great way to instill another characteristic - 'appreciative' (hee hee).

The question for me becomes, "How do I create compassion in my kids?"  I think about that a lot.  A LOT.  Here are some strategies that my husband and I have put into practice in our home.  I hope they inspire compassion in your family.

• Adopt a Pet - Anyone who has ever loved and cared for a household animal companion knows what a meaningful experience it is, especially for children.  A child and animal's capacity for love is never-ending, which is why I suppose they become fast friends.  When it came time for our family to get a dog, we knew we would adopt.  Visiting the SPCA spoke volumes to my kids and taught my children in ways that I never could dictate about the mistreatment of pets and the sad circumstances that sometimes befall on people that prevent them from maintaining their pets, forcing them to abandon them or give them up for adoption.  Lesson taught and family pet welcomed into our home - check and check!

• Give to Charity - My family is Jewish so we practice something called tzedakah, which is Hebrew for righteousness, fairness or justice.  Essentially, it is the responsibility to give aid, assistance and money to the less fortunate or worthwhile causes.  We help our six and nine year-olds practice this by evenly dividing any money they receive in gifts or allowance into three buckets: share, spend, and save.  Moonjar provides excellent resources on this concept.  We brainstorm and research causes and charities to receive their "share" money and help them to decide how to best share it.

• Volunteer - I started Girl Scout troops for both of my daughters with the sole intention of instilling service into their lives regularly.  One of the many benefits of their troops is that it has spilled over into our family activities.  Read to kids in impoverished communities.  Participate in collection drives.  Serve food at a homeless shelter.  Visit senior centers.  There are so many ways to help, and it is easy to find activities for the whole family with groups like VolunteerMatch and many others.

• Make it a Game - Our family loves Boom Boom Cards.  Their mission is to change the world with random acts of kindness.  You pick a card, do the act, then pass it on to someone else to continue the chain.  You can track it online to see how far your act of kindness travels.  They have Family and Teen editions.

• Read - Reading might just be my answer for everything I want to teach my kids.  There is always a book out there that says it better than I ever could, and I nurture my family's love for books at the same time.  There are books on kindness and compassion, but there are also biographies for children that allow kids to read about the amazing people in the world who have done incredible things for others.  A few years ago, my husband bought the beautiful coffee table book They Changed the World: 200 Icons Who Made A Difference. He likes to pull it out every now and again, pick a random person from the book, and read their page to the kids.  Check out the Who Was? series  or visit your local library for an array of options to choose from.

• Visit an Animal Sanctuary - My girl scout troops and I visited Farm Sanctuary's Animal Acres in Acton, CA last year and it was life changing and enriching.  Have you ever seen a child pet a several thousand pound pig or hold a baby sheep?  Yep, pretty amazing.  And the conversations it creates about animals, where they live, and how they become food are important to helping our little ones figure out who they are and who they want to be...how our world should be.

How do you create compassion in your children?  How do you embody compassion for yourself?