Social Media Explorer » #GivingTuesday

The Hockey Foundation

C.C. Chapman — Tue, 21 May 2013 10:00:35 +0000

My beloved Boston Bruins are currently working their way towards another Stanley Cup, so I thought today would be the perfect time to tell you about my friend Adam’s organization The Hockey Foundation.

A couple of years ago when I first met Adam he was working for an NHL team trying to get them to embrace social media. They never fully understood it, he left and then he started talking about how he wanted to go to remote parts of the world where they had never heard of hockey and teach it to the kids. I vividly remember him first mentioning going to India to do this and my reaction being that I didn’t even know they had ice there to skate on. How wrong I was.

Their vision is to use the sport of hockey to positively change the lives of all that come in contact with the game. By instilling character strengths such as accountability, honesty, teamwork, selflessness, discipline and resiliency into each player they teach, communities around the world will be improved.

As if that wasn’t enough, they dream of a global connection of hockey players that will eventually lead to friendly games being played by people of different races, religions, genders, social status and professions, etc. These games will create lifetime bonds between the players no matter which side of the ice they are on.

What I also love is that in addition to teaching the kids the game, The Hockey Foundation is also making sure that they directly help the communities where they run their clinics.

This is a new organization that is starting to grow. Your donations are vital to help them continue to grow and teach more kids, in new countries, the game of hockey.

Also, be sure to connect with them on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube and sign up for their newsletter if you’d like to be kept up to date on their latest efforts. Even if you are not a big fan of hockey, their blog is mainly a travel journal of their trips and makes for fun filled reading.

SPARK – #GivingTuesday

Marc A. Pitman — Tue, 14 May 2013 18:00:02 +0000

While doing some fundraising training in Philadelphia last week, I was introduced to an incredibly cool program called Spark.

Spark was founded by a 7th grade science teacher who wanted his students to see why school mattered. The premise is really simple: place 7th and 8th grade students in apprenticeships with people in their community. They’ve placed students in apprenticeships with all sorts of professionals: fire fighters, chefs, pilots, artists, and tech folks.

The results speak for themselves

Spark has grown to serve in students in at-risk neighborhoods in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Philadelphia. And the results have been phenomenal. Despite very high high-school drop out rates with their peers, 98% of Spark alumni stay in school.

All it takes is a caring adult and the experience of a real job to help students see why school matters.

Three ways you can help

There are three easy ways you can help a Spark program in your community:

Make a donation

Spark says $1,000 makes an apprenticeship possible. You can give any amount toward that at: https://www.sparkprogram.org/index.php/get_involved/donate
Become a mentor

Your work can inspire a kid to stay in school. Spark lets you apply to be a mentor at http://www.sparkprogram.org/index.php/get_involved/volunteer
Become a corporate partner

There are lots of ways your company can support Spark including hosting students, matching employee gifts, and more. See them all at: http://www.sparkprogram.org/index.php/get_involved/corporate_partnership

Learn more

To learn more about how the Spark Program is helping students go to their website www.sparkprogram.orgor watch their brief video on the Spark: Creating Real-World Opportunities for Youth with Apprenticeships:

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Tell Social Media Explorer about My Donation for Aggregated Reporting Purposes Here

Read more about Social Media Explorer’s #GivingTuesday program.

Wediko – #GivingTuesday

C.C. Chapman — Tue, 07 May 2013 18:00:28 +0000

As a father, whenever I see children hurting it hits me in my soul. That is why five years ago when I first learned about the amazing work that Wediko was doing they got my attention. Next thing I knew I was joining their Board of Directors and now know first hand how passionate of an organization they are. You might not know, but May is National Mental Health Awareness Month and this week is dedicated towards raising awareness for mental health issues in children. You might also not know that 15 million American children have a diagnosable psychiatric or learning disorder? What is even scarier to me is that less than half of them will ever get the help that they need.

What better time to share the message about Wediko and all that they do? Wediko responds to the needs of children who face repeated obstacles to development due to social, emotional, behavioral, and learning challenges. They partner with children, families, schools, and the community to offer a continuum of flexible and multidisciplinary programs. Not only do they have The Wediko School and home based solutions, but they also have a summer program at their beautiful camp in the woods of New Hampshire. They’ve been doing all of this and more since their formation in 1934. Last year the day after I returned from a trip to Ghana, I took part in their first ever stair climb fund raiser. We raised over $18,000 and it has now become an annual tradition.

I’ve first hand seen the transformation in the children from around the country that take part in their programs. It is dramatic and heart warming to see. Don’t just take my word for it. Read and view some of their success stories to fully appreciate the mental health issues that children are facing today and how Wediko helps them. Right now Wediko is gearing up for their annual Century Ride where cyclists of all skill levels can raise money while riding from their New Hampshire campus to their downtown Boston offices. They also have a Boston Marathon teamthat runs to raise funds.

Donations are always appreciated, but as with any organization like this, they also love you taking the time to raise awareness for them and their work. You can find them on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and read their blog. Wediko.org contains photos, stories and more details about everything they stand for. Please take a moment to share this post with others and if you know a child in need, consider letting their family know about it as well.

Amirah – #GivingTuesday

Marc A. Pitman — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 18:00:04 +0000

Ask someone about slavery, and they’ll typically think about the trade of African natives to Europe and North America a couple hundred years ago.

Tell them that slavery still exists today, and most will scoff. But the reality is pretty ugly. More slaves exist today then were trafficked in the trans-Atlantic slavery that was outlawed in the 1800s.

The UN estimates that there are 27 million people trapped in slavery around the world. The CIA estimates there are 1 million in the USA alone. And the city of Boston is one of the major ports of trafficking in the US. Many organizations of modern day abolitionists exist to rescue people out of trafficking. But when they’re out, the USA has woefully lacking resources for helping them rebuild their lives.

Amirah is helping fix that.

A network of safe houses

Amirah is setting up a network of safe houses around Boston dedicated to providing effective, whole person aftercare for survivors of commercial exploitation. Amirah is partnering with law enforcement, social services experts, and other advocates and has created a program of care that is being praised by experts around the country.

Dedicated to helping women put back their lives together after enslavement–whether sex trafficking, slave labor, or other forms of coercion. Appropriately the name “Amirah” is a variant of Amira (Arabic, Persian), and means princess or female leader.

A start up already making a difference

The first residence is cleaned up and being renovated to accommodate the unique situation of survivors. Right now, Amirah needs to raise about $500,000 to fully open its first residence. But they aren’t letting that stop them. They’ve started running their Breaking Free groups with exciting success among the hundreds of survivors in the Boston area.

They are already helping women. But having a protected safe-house to stay in will help them so much more.

Get involved

To help Amirah open its house, please consider making a donation or becoming a monthly donor. Even $45/month will be a huge help for women putting their lives together.

You can also like them on their Facebook page.

To learn more about Amirah go to the site or watch their video on the Amirah YouTube channel:

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Tell Social Media Explorer about My Donation for Aggregated Reporting Purposes Here

Read more about Social Media Explorer’s #GivingTuesday program.

Raising a Reader – #GivingTuesday

C.C. Chapman — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 18:00:52 +0000

By third Grade, 39% of all third graders do not read proficiently and this number jumps to 60% for low income children. Children who are not reading proficiently by 3rd grade are 4 times more likely to leave school without a diploma.

Think about those facts for a moment.

I know when I first heard them I was shocked. Sure, I knew reading skills were vital, but I hadn’t seen the numbers so clearly showing how critical it is to get all kids reading at such an early age.

Raising A Reader MA offers an evidence-based early literacy program that helps families of young children (ages 0-5) develop, practice, and maintain habits of reading together at home. Why? Research shows that the single most significant factor influencing a child’s lifelong achievement is being regularly read to by their parents and adult caregivers before starting kindergarten.

Reading in our house was and continues to be a common occurance. We read to our kids as soon as they were born and to this day they read before going to bed at night. But, we had access to books. We had the money to buy them. Many families don’t have this luxury.

I learned about this organization and the great work they do when they invited to be one of the authors at their annual Dinner With an Author fundraiser. I’m happy to report that $90,000 was raised that night!

Talking to the chairman of the board as well as many of the staff I learned that their core program involves two key components:

Their Red Bag Book Rotation program has bright red bags filled with high quality, culturally appropriate children’s books rotate through families’ homes. Over the course of the year, each child gets exposed to dozens of titles to share with their families.
Family workshops and training where parents are given the strategies they need to share books effectively with their young children. This is done through a combination of training, workshops and DVD lessons.

Can you imagine not having books in your lives? I certainly can’t and I want to make sure that the next generations has as much access as possible to them.

This may be a Massachusettes focused charity but there are others like them in many other states and if yours doesn’t have one perhaps it is time to start it.

Giving can be done in the form of money, hosting a book drive or volunteering.

I hope you’ll take the time to learn more about this organization and the work you are doing. If you are a parent, make sure you read to your child tonight!

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Tell Social Media Explorer about My Donation for Aggregated Reporting Purposes Here

Read more about Social Media Explorer’s #GivingTuesday program.

Twestival – #GivingTuesday

Marc A. Pitman — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 18:00:22 +0000

Twestival is back!

Twestival combines social media and in-person events to raise money for charity. And it works! The first global Twestival was in 2009. Since then, Twestival has raised $1.75 million for over 285 charities around the world!

Now, in 2013, with the help of global sponsors PayPal, StayClassy, and Project 7, Twestival is poised to expand its impact. Since it started, all the local Twestival events were hosted on the same day around the globe. This year, Twestival is opening up the ability for local organizers to choose the date that’s best for them. It’s like a year round Twestival!

As a fundraising coach, what I love about Twestival is that it’s 100% volunteer. Even those of us on the global team are volunteering our time and effort to help support all the events. The mixture of passionate volunteers and effective leveraging of each of our social networks is powerful.

Dozens of Twestival events are already being organized. And Twestival founder Amanda Rose expects there to be around 300 this year.

If you’re reading this blog post, you are a perfect volunteer for your local Twestival! Check out the official Twestival map to see if one is already being organized near you. Then head over to Twestival’s “Get Involved” page to volunteer for the event.

If one isn’t near you, the “Get Involved” page has information on how to organize your own! Organizers get the support of an entire global team of veteran Twestival organizers and fundraisers to make starting one as easy as possible.

To learn more about Twestival go to the site or watch this video from Twestival’s YouTube channel:

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Tell Social Media Explorer about My Donation for Aggregated Reporting Purposes Here

Read more about Social Media Explorer’s #GivingTuesday program.

beremedy – #GivingTuesday

Marc A. Pitman — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 18:00:27 +0000

I recently took to Twitter to ask what nonprofit I should write about. Kate Atwood suggested we feature beremedy.

@marcapitman -write on @beremedy. Check out their indiegogo campaign to take the platform nationwide: indiegogo.com/projects/berem…#GivingTuesday

— Kate Atwood (@KateAtwood) March 26, 2013

Never having heard of it, I went to their Indiegogo page to learn more. This group started with a simple idea:

We have the resources in every community to meet the needs of that community.

It’s really that simple

In his TEDx talk, founder Blake Canterbury wanted to help other people. They just didn’t know how. So he started using the power of social networking to get it done.

beremedy gets requests from credible nonprofits. These nonprofits are already on the ground doing great work in the community, so there’s no need to reinvent the wheel.
beremedy passes it on to people in that community. Currently they’re doing it on Twitter and Facebook.
Followers either help or pass the request on to people they think can help.

What a refreshingly cool way to use technology!

Scaling the technology

This idea has been working for the last couple years in the big city of Atlanta and in the smaller city of Bend, Oregon. Whether it was helping people get diapers after the Atlanta flood in 2010 or helping a single mom replace and restock her fridge or helping homeless people stay warm in the winter, beremedy is connecting people’s generosity with tangible needs in their community.

Ever since they started, people have asked them to go nationwide. Now beremedy’s ready.

Check out the beremedy Indiegogo campaign. They are raising $30,000 to invest in the technology to let this practical, tangible help spread across the country.

Even $10 will help them spread this idea to other cities! You can give at: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/beremedy-the-easiest-way-to-help-others/contributions/new. Hurry, time on the campaign is almost up!

For more, check out this video from the beremedy Indiegogo page:

BeRemedy – IndieGogo Campaign from Kyle Tekiela on Vimeo.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Tell Social Media Explorer about My Donation for Aggregated Reporting Purposes Here

Read more about Social Media Explorer’s #GivingTuesday program.

Cradles to Crayons – #GivingTuesday

C.C. Chapman — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 18:00:31 +0000

Children have no control over the world they are born into. I think this is why any organization that aims to make the lives of those born into poverty or other less than desirable situations always get my attention.

Cradles to Crayons provides children from birth to age 12, living in low- income and homeless situations, with the essential items they need to thrive – at home, at school and at play. They supply these items free of charge by engaging and connecting communities that have with communities that need.

Founded in 2002, the basics they supply include clothing, school supplies, toys, and much more. They make sure that they have all the physical goods to keep them safe and ready to learn.

They’ve always partnered with social-service organizations to connect communities that have surplus resources—new or used items in good condition—with communities that desperately need access to those resources. When you donate to Cradles to Crayons, you can be absolutely sure that your donation will go to a deserving local child, for whom the donation was specifically requested.

What I love is that they actively promote getting involved beyond only donating money and make it simple for children, families, and corporations to participate: whether by organizing a clothing collection, hosting a fundraiser, or working in one of their warehouses in Boston of Philadelphia.

They actively encourage people to give to them beyond their checkbooks. More organizations need to embrace this approach!

Please be sure to visit the Cradles to Crayons website and learn more about the great work they are doing.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Tell Social Media Explorer about My Donation for Aggregated Reporting Purposes Here

Read more about Social Media Explorer’s #GivingTuesday program.

Community Foundations – #GivingTuesday

Marc A. Pitman — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 10:00:13 +0000

As we’ve gone through these weekly #GivingTuesday posts, we’ve highlighted one organization a week. This week I want to focus on a “type” of organization: community foundations.

Community foundations are generally established by donors to benefit a specific geographical region be it a city, a county, or even a state. Wikipedia lists six hallmarks of a community foundation as:

Act as grant-making foundations – e.g. give grants to support development projects
Their mission broadly defined (e.g. to improve quality of life in a community)
Serve geographically defined communities – a city, state, region, district or province
Are supported by a broad range of private as well as public donors and seek philanthropic contributions primarily from inside the community
Are governed by multi-sectoral local boards reflecting the community
Build capital endowment, which is an important element of sustainability

A good option for donors

While cash gifts to your favorite charity are still wonderful, many donors may feel more comfortable giving to a community foundation. Donors can either give to a specific fund that most closely aligns with your goals within a community. Or, if they have more means, they can create their own fund. My local community foundation, the Maine Community Foundation, lists 9 different giving options for donors.

Since these funds are professionally managed, your gift will be giving long after you cut the check. And community foundations often are able to weather economic downturns in ways smaller charities might not be able to.

Collaboration and consistency

One thing I like about community foundations is their ability to collaborate with other foundations. And their ability to spur collaboration amongst nonprofits. Sometimes we in the nonprofit field get a little territorial. But having a grant making organization encourage us to talk to each other is often the “carrot” we need. Even if this collaboration doesn’t work out, the relationships from exploring the collaboration can lead to better communities.

And community foundation funds are invested like an endowment, an endowment for the community. These funds are designed to outlast any particular donor. So where you might be able to make a big gift to a charity today, that may lead to a boom and bust sort of funding for that group. As a donor, you might find it more compelling to know that charity will be getting consistent funding over the years.

Funding for the non-sexy causes

Lastly, there are always causes that will be in “favor” with people. But a community foundation’s funds can help those causes that aren’t sexy anymore. Here in Maine, we have 16 counties but most of the population lives in the southern few. Despite the population growth in the southern counties, the Maine Community Foundation has funds set up for even the poorest of the poor counties. So year in and year out, charities in those rural areas still have access to some level of funding.

Check out one near you

Whether your interest is promoting the arts, preserving history, scholarships for students, land conservation, winter home weatherization, taking care of the elderly, feeding the hungry, inspiring entrepreneurs, or protecting public buildings, chances are good a community foundation near you is helping.

For an idea of variety of things funded by one community foundation, check out the Maine Community Foundation’s photo gallery.

There are community foundations all over. For a list of ones in the United States, you can use the Council on Foundations local community foundation finder. You can search on region, state, or even by postal code!

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Tell Social Media Explorer about My Donation for Aggregated Reporting Purposes Here

Read more about Social Media Explorer’s #GivingTuesday program.

The Horse Boy Foundation – #GivingTuesday

C.C. Chapman — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 18:00:51 +0000

Autism is something that I’m very aware of since my sister is the Co-Founder of New England Pediatric Services. While I’ve been very fortunate not to be directly touched by it, I have several friends who have children at varying points on the spectrum.

So, this past weekend during SXSW at the annual AllHat party, I learned about the Austin, Texas based Horse Boy Foundation, The founder was on site as well as a couple of horses and a therapy goat. The minute I heard their story, I couldn’t wait to share the great work they are doing here in my column.

The Horse Boy Foundation is the brainchild of Rupert Isaacson, and grew out of his experience with his son Rowan’s autism.

As with many children diagnosed with autism he seemed unreachable, but he noticed that when he was taken in the woods or anywhere in nature his tantrums and stimming would relax.

One day, his son ran into the neighbor’s yard where he kept horses. Up until then he had been kept from the horses for fear of what might happen, but instead of anything negative the horses responded positively to his son. The horses actually showed signs of submission towards his son. Soon, they’d begin riding the horses through the woods together and the more they did it, the more responsive, engaged and vocal Rowan became.

In 2007 Rowan and his parents took a journey across Mongolia on horseback, going from traditional healer to traditional healer, shaman to shaman, looking for healing.

As they described the journey:

They went out with a child still tantrumming, still un-toilet trained, and cut off from other children. They came back with a child no longer tantrumming, toilet trained and able to make friends.

Rupert wrote a book about his family’s adventure, and also produced a film which documented the trip.

After returning from Mongolia, the Isaacson family started the Horse Boy Foundation to help make horses and nature available to other children, autistic or not, who might not otherwise have access to them.

They are doing great work and run a variety of camps and playdates but of course need help to continue helping children.

Donations of all sizes are accepted and they smartly break out exactly what your donation amount helps with. They also are actively looking for volunteers in the Austin area to assist them.

DonorsChoose.org – #GivingTuesday

Marc A. Pitman — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 19:00:48 +0000

As a fundraising coach, I help nonprofits raise unrestricted dollars–gifts that they can use as needed. But there are times that, as a donor, it’s nice to know exactly exactly what your dollars are doing.

If you’re feeling that way today, check out DonorsChoose.org. Any of you who’ve been in public school, or have had kids in public school, know how ridiculously frustrating lack of funding can be. With all we pay for public education, it seems that teachers should be able to have things like books for their students.

But they don’t.

Clearly educational policy is as complex as healthcare. There are lots of debates to have and lots of tough choices to make. But kids shouldn’t have to suffer while we have those important conversations.

That’s where DonorsChoose.org comes in. Teachers can post what they need, and people can choose to give. Even better, DonorsChoose.org purchases the materials and sends them so you know that the teacher is getting exactly what they need.

And 70% of projects are successfully funded!

Here’s a list of projects that are almost funded. Most need less than $20:
http://www.donorschoose.org/donors/search.html?sortBy=2. DonorsChoose.org reports back for gifts of any size, even as small as $1. But if you give $50 or more, you get thank you’s from the students too. Pretty cool, huh?

They also have a Celebrations page for you to organize a fundraising project in lieu of a birthday gift.

FMI check out this DonorsChoose.org video by Morgan Freeman:

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Tell Social Media Explorer about My Donation for Aggregated Reporting Purposes Here

Read more about Social Media Explorer’s #GivingTuesday program.

Social Media Explorer » #GivingTuesday

The Hockey Foundation

SPARK – #GivingTuesday

The results speak for themselves

Three ways you can help

Make a donation

Become a mentor

Become a corporate partner

Learn more

Wediko – #GivingTuesday

Amirah – #GivingTuesday

A network of safe houses

A start up already making a difference

Get involved

Raising a Reader – #GivingTuesday

Twestival – #GivingTuesday

beremedy – #GivingTuesday

It’s really that simple

Scaling the technology

Cradles to Crayons – #GivingTuesday

Community Foundations – #GivingTuesday

A good option for donors

Collaboration and consistency

Funding for the non-sexy causes

Check out one near you

The Horse Boy Foundation – #GivingTuesday

DonorsChoose.org – #GivingTuesday