’tis the season
I am pleased to announce this month’s giveaway is dirt&sunshine’s BIGGEST to date! It is also closest to my heart and I hope you will do me the honor of participating.
In the spirit of the season (and hopefully inspire others to dig deep and share what we are so blessed to have), Paul and I will be giving a $250 cash donation to the winner’s charity of choice. All you need to do is leave a comment of any length below (be sure to include your name and the name of your chosen charity – the donation will be made in your name). Note that you do not need to register with Posterous in order to leave a comment.
Please do not leave contest entries on previous or future dirt&sunshine blog postings – I will only be looking for entries on this post!
You have the usual 7 days to enter; the contest will close at noon on December 9th. The winner will be announced at 1pm (12/9). You may enter more than once if you like, the only request I make is that you enter for a different charitable organization each time. The winning entrant will be chosen at random (using a random number generator).
In addition, here’s a little something for you…
My friend, Mathew Lodge, is helping me thank you for participating in this endeavor. He is offering a FREE color print (up to 11×14 inches) from his travel photography website, http://lodgephoto.com/. This is a little something for you to enjoy this holiday season. It also makes a great gift. If you’ve been to our house, you’ll note the profusion of Mathew’s prints thoughout – we are huge fans! Mathew will print and deliver any photo from his site so be sure to look through the multitude of albums before making your selection.
Lastly, in case you are having difficulty waiting to see if you’re the winner, I will be posting a recipe a day from the girls’ fall luncheon featured in SCENE magazine. If you haven’t seen the article and wish to, please view it at the following link: http://dirtandsunshine.com/assetlibrary/SCENE_Fall-2009.pdf
Good luck to all! I can’t wait to learn about your favorite causes!
kathy
I’m going to donate to the Boy Scouts of America because they are a really good organization who use money they have to help other people when they can. We also use the money to go on camping trips like Ft. Ross or the U.S.S. Hornet. We cook our own meals and are self sufficient. We also double-bag grocery bags to help Sunnyvale Community Services.
Kathy, what a wonderful and generous spirit you have! What a good idea to donate to charity as your give away.
Lovely idea… ots, very proud of myself – I figured out how to double my annual giving this year using my companies website and still select the charities I love. Still pending includes Shady Shakespeare Company, so I’ll enter them here.
Hi,My favorite charity is the one that I happen to be executive director of, http://www.bountiful-garden.org. We are a 100% volunteer run 501c(3) that raises heirloom tomato seedlings and give the proceeds from our sale to help support local high school enrichment programs. Most of our volunteers are also high school aged kids who get to learn how to germinate and sow plants, etc. See website for more details.Frank
You and Paul are angels! My favorite charity is the Girl Scouts of Northern California (GSNC). Both my girl’s and I are members. We appreciate GSNC for the leadership they provide to teach the girls to be leaders, to be responsile and respectful. And most of all it teaches girl’s how ti give back and help the community. Marites
Kathy my dear you certainly have a beautiful magic that is all your own!!!! I love how you can make giving such a priority! I have a few causes that are near and dear to me. Of course the annual fund at Charles Armstrong School has been life changing for us. It provides financial assistance for kids with language based learning disabilities so they can attend this amazing school that would otherwise be unaffordable to most.I also am blessed to know Christine Falsetti who is the tireless founder and CEO of kidsstrong, the nonprofit organization that helps children and their families facing cancer. I love your generous spirit Kath you are such a treasure to me. Thanks so much for letting me know about your Contest!
I would chose my sister’s fundraising foundation "FAITH – Friedreich’s Ataxia In The Heart”, which funds research for a rare disease afflicting my nephew, Matthew.Friedreich’s Ataxia (FA) is a rare debilitating, life-shortening, degenerative neuro-muscular disorder. Childhood onset of FA is associated with a more rapid progression. My nephew was diagnosed as a child, and now he is in his first year of college requiring a wheelchair. The rarity of the disease puts the burden of funding research on families and friends of those afflicted. My sister’s foundation does yearly fundraising events and marathons to raise funds for research and treatments.Signs and Symptoms:::• loss of coordination (ataxia) in the arms and legs, eventually requiring wheelchair or arm crutches • fatigue – energy deprivation and muscle loss• vision impairment, hearing loss, and slurred speech• aggressive scoliosis (curvature of the spine) causing loss of upper body support• diabetes mellitus (insulin – dependent, in most cases)• a serious heart condition (enlarged heart – hypertrophic cardiomyopathy)visit: curefa.org fa-ith.orgBig hugs to Kathy and the boys!
Kathryn: My favorite project, Lok Biradari Prakalp (LBP) (Brotherhood of People project) is a social project involving a hospital, a school and an animal orphanage. It was started on 23 December 1973 by the social worker Baba Amte in 1973 for integrated development of Madia Gond tribal people. It is situated at Hemalkasa in teh remote dense isolated forests in Maharashtra State in India.Dr. Prakash Amte and his wife Dr. Mandakini Amte, who serve as Medical Officers at the project, were awarded the 2008 Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership.More information on the project could be obtained from the video: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5743235550500968964#or from an article:http://dont-forget-your-passport.blogspot.com/2009/09/report-on-hemalkasa.htmlAt every Christmas, our daughter, Meghan Desale, has volunteered at Hemalkasa.The donations for this project can be sent through the Silicon valley organization calle ICA at icaonline.org.
Kathy and Paul what a wonderful idea, I have chosen the IRC as my charity, They do amazing work world wide and currently your donation will be matched by friends of IRC so it will be a $500 donation to a great cause, http://www.theirc.org/?gclid=CLya5sGWuZ4CFSWjagodZQ8elA
The organization I can’t say enough good things about is Hospice. The people who work hospice come into peoples homes in their darkest hours and do their best to make the patient comfortable in the own homes, where most people would rather be. They not only physically care for the patients, but advise and comfort their loved ones as well. It’s a remarkable thing they do and I cannot imagine doing that job on a daily basis myself.
Kathy … great article in Scene Magazine! Thanks for sharing. Also thank you for all that you are doing for the neighborhood association! As for a charity of choice … I read the previous postings and they all sound fantastic. My choice is a local one … Sunnyvale Community Services. Founded in 1970, Sunnyvale Community Services is an independent, nonprofit emergency assistance agency. Their mission is to prevent homelessness and hunger for low-income families and seniors facing temporary crises. They provide financial aid, food, and other support that prevents larger problems with more expensive solutions.Cheers!Kyle
Kathy and Paul – Now that is the way to spread holiday cheer! It warms the heart and is so great to learn about the other incredible charities. No lumps of coal for you. My favorite charity is Parents Helping Parents. They provide information, training and resources to families who have children with ALL types of special needs: illness, cancer, accidents, birth defects, neurological conditions, premature birth, learning or physical disabilities, mental health issues, and attention deficit (hyperactivity) disorder, to name a few.
Kathy, what a cool idea! I’m going to suggest your local Meals on Wheels. I’ve been volunteering with them some while I’ve been looking for work and not only do they supply a much needed service with food, but the people are so expectant and appreciative of the daily visit. Many are shut-ins and have special needs. For one elderly blind woman, the visitor even orders the meal in a clockwise fashion and cuts it up for her to eat.
this is such a wonderful idea! we should all be thinking more about organizations that really need our holiday spending to be directed towards them…the organization that i would chose is North Mecklenburg Animal Rescue. they are a small dog rescue here in NC that has been having some tough times lately. they’ve had to move their location twice in the past 6 months because of zoning and flooding, and are just trying to keep their heads above water right now. no pun intended
i’ve been working with them for the past two years and know first hand how much $250 would actually make a difference in the lives of these doggies. with an ever growing vet bill and more people giving up their dogs because of the economy they are definitely struggling. here’s a link to their site if you’d like to see some pups you would be helping… thanks for doing this!http://www.northmecklenburganimalrescue.org/index.html
Your generosity is amazing during such hard economic times. You and your husband and very kind. The charity that is closest to my heart these days is our Public School, Palisades Charter Elementary in Pacific Palisades, the school where we were honored to have you come and sign copies of Dirt and Sunshineduring our bookfair. Wishing you and yours a happy and healthy holidayFay Lyons
Pali elementary has been so affected by all the budget cuts through Los Angeles Unified System so the parents have to make extra efforts to fundraise in order to keep the exisiting programs at our school.
I would like to introduce to other parents and grandparents who have children with language or development delays to Teach2talk. Teach2talk has DVD’s created by a speech-pathologist using humor, puppets and songs to engaged and help generalize any new skills. Co-founder of thos group is Jenny McCarthy, mom. She has an artistic son and I have an artistic grandson. Both are high functioning. The WHY DVD has enabled Jennys son to ask and answer a why question . If anyone would like more info on Teach2talk go to: http://www.teach2talk.com. Their address is: Teach2Talk Fulfillment Center 807 Airport Access RD. Unit D Traverse City, MI 49689-3594Thank you Kathy and Paul for giving me this opportunity to speak for children with language and development delays.
I would like to introduce to other parents and grandparents who have children with language and development delays to teach2talk. Teach2talk was co-founded by a speech pathologist and Jenny McCarthy. Jennys son is autistic and has been helped with the teach2talk DVD; WHY. This is one of four DVDs. Instead of repeating a question back he now can ask and answer questions. This is the hope I have for my autistic grandson. That one day he will ask and anwser my questions. If you would like more info on teach2talk go to: http://www.teach2talk.com. Their mailing address is: Teach2talk Fulfillment Center 807 Airport Access RD. Unit D Traverse City, MI 49686-3594 Thank you Kathy and Paul for giving me the opportunity to let others hear about teach2talk.Have a great Holiday and enjoy Christmas at Todds..
Kathy: You have written a delightful series of essays relating to bringing up children in today’s almost sterile, technologically complex world. We support the points you make and have given your book to many young families to learn from you; they will benefit from your sage advice. Our current charity of choice is the John Muir Hospital Foundation; they have a wonderful stroke center which has helped many, including me. Funding for much of what they do is not available or reimbursed, but they do things anyway for their community.
I love this giveaway idea! I would love to support charity: water (www.charitywater.org). They help bring clean, safe drinking water (by building wells, etc) to communities that don’t have it. Such a simple way to completely change a village’s life for the better. =)
For the past two years, we’ve celebrated Thanksgiving at the Sunnyvale Presbyterian Church with a community dinner where everyone is invited to the table. Our special guests have been refugee families that we’ve been supporting as they resettle into their new lives in America. The refugee ministry helps these families to feel a sense of community. I would love to support this charity. More information is available at: http://www.svpc.us/difference/refugee2.phpThanks – Adriana
Kathy, Your Dirtand Sunshine book is an inspiration to anyone who caresabout children. If I win I would like the donnation to go to Child Fund.International. There’s a special little girl in Mexico who would be thrilledto receive such a wonderful holiday gift.
Your ability to inspire is, well, inspirational! I’m going to choose One Day’s Wages. http://www.onedayswages.org/ . A grassroots movement. The goal is not merely to raise money but to inspire people towards compassionate justice. We want to inspire people to care about the billions that are suffering from extreme poverty. Thank you Kathy.
Kathy- you are one amazing woman! You and Paul truly model a sense of community, family and love that is not measurable. How you’re going to choose just one charity I don’t know. My vote is for aiding in the end of domestic violence, homeless women and children. Next Door (located in our Sunnyvale community) provides women in need of shelter, emergency care, housing, food, clothes and counseling to help them get back on their feet. It takes women, on average, 7 times of leaving a domestic violence situation before leaving for good. Next door helps them get on their feet and develop a better life for themselves and their children. This year, donations to charities is at an all-time low. Any charity that you choose will be thankful for your family’s generosity. Thank you Kathy and Paul for showing true caring.
Hi Kathy, this is a wonderful idea! For my charity, I will choose Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. My daughter, Erin, ran a half marathon Nov. 7th and will run the full Santa Barbara marathon this coming weekend for Team in Training for this group. Erin is a survivor of thyroid cancer, and she and I both feel a deep commitment to raising awareness and support for education and research to find better cures for cancer. Thank you for inspiring us all to care and think beyond ourselves!
I knew I liked you both!.:-) As usual, you creatively bring inspiration lending us all, hopefully, to thinking "outside the box". I’d like to keep my charity local with one of my favorite places…Hidden Villa in Los Altos Hills. I’ve been going there since i was in 4th grade and the outreach programs, sustainable philosophies and environment are a jewel. So hard to choose!
Choosing one charity as my favorite is really hard, but one of my true favorites is St. Jude’s hospital. I have been giving to them with my mom since i was about 10 years old (donating my babysitting money). Now that I am a mom I totally understand their mission to provide hope to families with sick kids.
Love the idea of the prize being for charity. No better gift than that =) I’m a fan of Turn The Corner Foundation, which is raising funds to fight Lyme Disease.
The 2010 Livestrong Challenge -Team TOMSTRONG! Knee surgery on Dec 7 so this year I will be better for the 100 miles!
I would like the $250 to go to Toys for Tots
Kathy, Love the creative giving! You are generous and thoughtful. My charity of choice is Parents without Partners http://www.parentswithoutpartners.org, a wonderful organization helping single parents connect . Whether single through divorce, widowed or by choice, parenting is a rollercoaster. When you add being single, the loop-de-loops are especially thrilling:)
Hi Kathy, Julie and I think that you are an awesome person for making a difference for others! You are a wonderful lady! Julie agrees that there are many deserving charities….the one that stands-out for us is the City Team Mininstries which serves our local community. The organization offers assistance to those who are homeless, hungry, and in need of hope. Please, find more information regarding this worthy cause at the following website http://www.facebook.com/l/5b9b6;www.CityTeam.org/sanjose Blessings to you! Peace! Becky and Julie
I hope your family’s generosity and community support rub off on all those you encounter this Holiday Season. You guys set a great example. My organization is Support Network ( http://www.supportnetwork.org/ ) Great people working to support women and children in difficult situations. Holiday stress adds to their already burdened workload. Wishing you guys a blessed holiday. Mike, Debbie, Matt & Nick
The Family Giving Tree is a Bay Area organization for which I’ve volunteered many years. It’s a great organization that provides toys and often personal items to needy families in the area.Your, and Paul’s, generosity is amazing!
So many great causes listed here! I’m going to throw my vote to The Center for Animal Health and Welfare. It is our local no-kill shelter here in Easton, PA. http://www.spcanorthampton.org/
My favorites are Charity Water, Casa de las Madres, St Jude’s Children’s Hospital & Cystic Fibrosis.
My charity is Valley of the Moon Childrens Home in Napa. This charity is very special to me as my father was very involved in raising the money to build this shelter for abused or neglected children up until the day he died. Among other things this home keeps children of the family together, helps keep them in their schools, provides clothing, quilts and much needed dental and medical care. In addition there is a kitchen built on the premises to provide the children with healthy home cooked meals. Before this addition the children ate their meals from the nearby jail/juvenile detention center. Here is an excerpt from their website:"Johnny cringed on the right side of the police car, tears rolling down his cheeks, his nose running. He tried to stop crying, but several loud sobs escaped. The policeman spoke in a reassuring voice.“You’ll be safe where I’m taking you,” he said softly. “You didn’t do anything wrong. And no one will hurt you again. They’ll take good care of you until things can be straightened out.”The patrol car turned off Highway 12 and pulled up in front of a newly constructed home-like building. As the officer opened his door, Johnny wiped his running nose and tears with his sleeve, still terrified. He clutched his teddy bear closer.Suddenly the earlier scenes at home flooded back. His father had arrived with the heavy smell of alcohol that usually introduced “one of those nights.” His rage was leveled at Johnny’s mother this time. As Johnny cowered in the corner, the usual screaming march escalated to blows, which sent her crashing to the floor, followed by vicious kicks….Unfortunately, this is the all too frequent beginning of a child’s arrival at the Valley of the Moon Children’s Home. The stories are legion:Tommy, a 4 year old boy, arrived in a police car, having just seen his father murder his mother.Erin and Michael, ages four and five, were being sexually abused in their parent’s home. The mother and father were now both in jail.Maria, a 14 year old mother with a 10 month old infant, was brought by the police who feared for their safety after they were assaulted by Maria’s mother.The Valley of the Moon Children’s Home is Sonoma County’s only shelter for these at risk children 0-18 years of age. Three sisters, ages 15, 12, and 10, were brought there when they came to live with their father after the death of their mother. The father had been sexually assaulting both older girls for months….And so the stories go. Tales of children, all victims, all in crisis, their lives turning into sudden disaster, and their families shattered. All finding their way to the Valley of the Moon Children’s Home, Sonoma County’s only shelter for abused, abandoned, and neglected children. " from the VOM website
My vote is for Farm Sanctuary. They work to end cruelty to farm animals and promote compassionate living through rescue, education and advocacy. "We envision a world where the violence that animal agriculture inflicts upon people, animals and the environment has ended, and where instead we exercise values of compassion."http://farmsanctuary.org/
Great way to give back Kathy! It’s hard to choose just one charity. I really love what City Team Ministries does for the community and they are always needing donations. They are a Christian based organization that gives a whole lot to a whole lot of people. My dad did his internship here and just loved it and I have been there to see it in action. Have a blessed holiday!
One of my favorite charities is Help a Mother Out (helpamotherout.org). Its mission: "To help improve the lives of mothers, children, and families in need one diaper at a time." No parent should be forced to make a choice between feeding her hungry child or providing him with a clean diaper. But all too often, that choice is a reality in disadvantaged families. Believe it or not, diapers are not covered under social-safety net programs like WIC or food stamps — yet families with small children can’t live without them. Even small donations to this organization can make a big difference.
The Yosemite Fund is committed to enhancing the visitor’s experience. A great organizition that has done a lot of really good work. It is the charity of our choice.
Kathy, you said to list more than one charity, so here’s my other favorite: Lance Armstrong’s Livestrong charity (livestrong.org). I became involved with this organization when my father was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer five years ago. Those yellow bracelets were a tangible beacon of hope, as was the sense community and kinship I felt with fellow supporters of the cause. My father lost his fight with cancer, but Livestrong helped us make the most of the time he had left.
Once again you lead us down the better path. Thank you, Kathy. There are many deserving charities and my entry will be to honor the first time I understood the meaning of charity, raising money as a child for UNICEF. I can still recall the little cardboard box I carried around dropping coins inside until it was heavy and worn (eventually the cardboard handles failed!). After over 50 years, UNICEF still provides long term humanitarian and developmental assistance to children and mothers in developing countries. Always trying to remain active, UNICEF has brought in new partners, including FC Barcelona, Canada’s national tent pegging team, and a host of other sports teams, to continue to spread awareness and raise money for their cause. In my eyes, the variety of partners really illustrates that anyone can help and all help is accepted.
Have you seen the movie Brothers? My charity is any organization that supports our troops once they come home.
Global Orphan Project is my Chairty of Choice!
Hey Kathy,I have a few charities i like around here, but Berkeley-East Bay Humane Soc. mast be one of my top ones.I think what you doing is very sweet and kindhearted, it puts everybody in the X-mas cheers.Thank you, dear!EL
Oh here’s a nother one i like:PAWS 645 Harrison St Ste 100, San Francisco,CA 94107
… and a nother one:Humane Farming Association 1550 California St # 6, San Francisco,CA 94109
Great idea, Kathy and Paul! Please put in an entry for Habitat for Humanity New Orleans, ’cause there’s still a long way to go. . . .Thanks,=JK=
Kathy,You are amazing! Since charity water has already been nominated I will choose The Samburu Project that brings clean safe drinking water to thousands of people in Samburu Kenya. Thirteen dollars provides clean drinking water for life for 1 person. You are the best.Judy
Save the Children. Doing do much needed work in the US and overseas. I just received my new little boy who I am sponsoring, He is adorable and with the work being done in his village will succeed in life.
Rising StarOutreach, http://www.risingstaroutreach.org/ Our mission is to help the Leprosy colonies become thriving, self-sufficient communities. We are accomplishing this through three major initiatives: to educate the colony children in a safe, healthy environment to provide leprosy patients with their own small businesses using micro-finance to address the unique health challenges of the colonies with mobile medical units
EHC lifebuilders.Beacuse everyone should have food and shelter. The operate the Armory overnight shelter here in Sunnyvale.
The Girls Middle School in Mountain View. http://www.girlsms.org20% of students are full scholarship recipients. A wonderful learning environment for girls during those "awkward" years.
Y’all are so generous and giving!! Cherry Chase Elementary would be a very worthy cause…..
The Junior League of San Jose is another charity dear to my heart….
My vote goes to Parent’s Education Network. They have been invaluable in helping us navigate the issues around Dyslexia. http://www.parentseducationnetwork.org/
I would send it to the ACLU…
What more important for a site that promotes the proper raising of kids than a charity that helps the poorest of the poor children have a life? World Vision is my charity of choice. "Our vision for every child, life in all its fullness; Our prayer for every heart, the will to make it so" http://www.wvi.orgFrom the Lyons to the Bessers – Joyous Noel et Bonne Annee
Hi Kathy and Paul! You two are truly amazing!! Definitely an inspiration to me and others! My charity is One Warm Coat. They provide coats to those in need free of charge. http://www.onewarmcoat.org
This donation is so generous of you to do. In light of my Mom suffering a massive stroke this year I’ve started to lean towards donating towards stroke research through the American Stroke Association whereas before this experience I was all about putting all of my efforts towards children and animals. As long as everyone gives what they can I’m happy. What a great gift you are giving. Happy Holidays!!!
Kathy and Paul, what a wonderful (and generous!) idea, during this season of giving. My vote is for the Elk Grove Food Bank (also known as the EGCAN-ElK Grove Comminuty Assistance Network). I have been a volunteer over the years to pick up food from various canned food drives (mostly from schools and local businesses) and it is truly amazing to see first hand how much the community participates in such a worthly cause.
Oh my gosh… there are so many good charities to choose from. Kathy, what a generous gesture.I volunteer my professional services to a few small local nonprofits and sponsor a child through ChildReach/Plan USA… but the nearest and dearest to my heart these days is the Laguna Creek High School Band Booster Club. Sounds corny and perhaps self-serving, but here’s why:There are so many reasons why I am passionate about this organization, but high on the list is the sense of community that band brings *all* its students. High school can be brutal. And unfortunately, for some of these kids, home life can be brutal as well. Band has become a tremendous source of friendship and support for a rather disparate group of students from all walks of life. My awkward and often overly-emotional son (shhh, don’t tell him I said that!) started high school with a community waiting for him. Many of the graduating seniors come back to visit or help out. The booster club established itself as a nonprofit organization last year and it exists primarily to give *all* students interested in music a chance to play in the band, regardless of the family’s ability to pay the fees for the uniform, the instruments, competitions, etc. Unfortunately, the arts aren’t typically well-funded in the public schools.The band has a record number of students this year — I think around 85. For the first time in school history, the high school band/auxilliary competed in local "field show" competitions this year. The students have to work hard — and work together — to pull it all off. As ready as my son was for the marching season to end (now they start the concert season), he admitted that he’ll feel a little empty inside when it’s over.Last year the band was selected to play at Carnegie Hall in 2011 at a festival with other high school bands from all over the country. How awesome is that? Now we just have to figure out a way to pay for the trip! (hint, hint).
Kathryn, what an amazing idea. If I win, I would love my/your donation to go to charity: water. :)xo
Kathy and Paul – I love your generous spirit! One of our favorite programs is Turning Wheels for Kids. They build bikes at Christmas time to give to underprivileged kids. This year over 2,000 bikes will be assembled by volunteers at the convention center in SJ, all in 1 day! This sounds like a lot of bikes, but even this year they needed more money to honor the request for a little girl that recently lost her Mom.Ken and Patrick will there to build bikes again this year!www.turningwheelsforkids.org
This is a great idea and very generous of you. As others have pointed out, there are many good charities out there. One I am suggesting is the Autism Research Institute.
Well, maybe this is peanuts for you in the US but here in Germany we didn´t have a single magnetic resonance tomograph for children. We are very pleased these days that our city (Karlsruhe) has one starting to work next week. This was just possible due the fact that MANY private person were donating lots of money. Now children from all over Germany will have the chance if they will be sick by cancer not doing all the radiation procedures and can come to having pics from the tomograph!So, our favorite donation is helping the poor and helping getting better chances to cure kid´s cancer disease!Kath, love this idea and thanks for reminding all of us how thankful we should be of being so granted by everything especially for so wonderful friends like the Besser´s!
Looks like I am just a few minutes too late, but I thought I would leave a comment anyway to say that this is such a fantastic and giving thing for you to do! Not only are you showing the best way to think of the season of giving, but you’ve inspired people to think about causes that makes us all reflect on how lucky we really are! My favorite organization right now is the Tiziano Project. They go to war torn countries like Rwanda and Iraq, bringing donated cameras and laptops, and teach at risk youth community journalism skills. The object is threefold:1) Provide useful technological & communication skills that can help these kids get a variety of jobs.2) Provide a local means of telling stories that are too often reported to the world by outside journalistic sources.3) Give the community a means to get instant, up-to-date information about what is going on in their countries to the world. The Tiziano Project hopes to help stop war crimes and genocide by giving people a worldwide voice.Best of luck to everyone and their causes!
There’s a wonderful organization in Hawaii (on Maui) called Akaku: Maui Community Television. Not only do they produce a community-based news program called, The Maui Daily, but they also offer video equipment training, and video production training for people of all ages. Most important about them is the fact that they help keep Maui’s diverse audiences connected with each other across geographical divides (Maui County is comprised of three islands), but they also help them remain culturally and socially connected with programs produced by ordinary members of the community who have stories to tell about their special events, issues, and of course, politics!In one example, one courageous member of the community is extremely active in shining a light on the growing Meth problem in the islands, and directing attention to some of the important members of the community who work daily to help rehabilitate the domino effect it has on the community.In another example, the organization pulled together members of the community to air live inter-island coverage of the General Elections. You can imagine how excited people from some of the islands’ remotest communities were to see themselves on the television—a rare event, which the organization works to turn around.Thanks, Kathryn, for your creativity with this Dirt and Sunshine idea and for this fan of Akaku to toot the organization’s horn! Happy Holidays!