A Call For Help

I just read this article in yesterday's paper about a new organization called C-U at Home.  Earlier this year, the coordinator, Melany Jackson, and many volunteers surveyed Champaign County to find out what the population of the homeless was.  I found the answer pretty shocking - over 500.  Of those, about 100 are considered "most vulnerable.  The good news is that the survey showed most of these people had access to shelters, but 16 "street" people are in desperate need of finding a place to stay.

You can read the whole article "Call goes forth for help from community".  The director is looking for 16 churches to each "adopt" one of these desperate people.  I'll be talking to my pastor today about this - I hope he's not going to weary of my "ideas" :)

Website:  www.cuathome.us
Contact:  Melany Jackson 217-819-4569

A great idea

I just found this website from a link on facebook.  I love their headliner "Fast. Forward. The End of Poverty"

http://www.live58.org/

Make sure you view the video on that front page - lots of great statistics, one of the most significant was that since 1980, the number of people living in extreme poverty has gone from 52% to 26%.  Their whole focus is to go that final 26% and eradicate extreme poverty in this generation.  Sounds great to me!

There is a movie that they have produced and I have order the viewing kit.  As soon as I get it, I'm going to talk to my pastor about showing it at our church in early November.  More info to come soon! 

Good News, with a caveat

Just read this article "Global child deaths plunge by 12,000 a day" and I am thanking God that such progress has been made over the last decade or so. (Here comes the 'but') But, if you continue down through the article, some pretty startling facts pop up. The one that snagged at my heart was this:

"The news that the rate of child mortality in sub-Saharan Africa is declining twice as fast as it was a decade ago shows that we can make progress even in the poorest places," he said. "But we cannot for a moment forget the chilling fact of around 21,000 children dying every day from preventable causes," he added.

The "he" quoted above is Anthony Lake, executive director for UNICEF. 21,000 per DAY. Let's all hope and pray that that number goes down by a significant amount soon. Another decade is too long to wait.  Read the whole thing.

Matt Damon on Ellen today

I just happened to sit down on the couch for a minute this afternoon and tuned in to watch the Ellen DeGeneres Show.  Matt Damon was on promoting his new movie, but what I found really interesting is a charity he co-founded:  Water.org.  He went into how it got started and what they do - a donation of just $25 can give one person water for their lifetime.  There are about 1 billion people drinking water that's not clean.  That's billion with a B.  Some of the statistics they provide:

The health and economic impacts of today’s global water crisis are staggering.

• More than 3.5 million people die each year from water-related disease; 84 percent are children. Nearly all deaths, 98 percent, occur in the developing world.
• Lack of access to clean water and sanitation kills children at a rate equivalent of a jumbo jet crashing every four hours.
• Lack of sanitation is the world’s biggest cause of infection.
• Millions of women and children spend several hours each day collecting water from distant, often polluted sources. This is time not spent working at an income-generating job, caring for family members, or attending school.
• 443 million school days are lost each year due to water-related illness.

Apparently, you get a reusable water bottle when you make a contribution of $25 or more. Ellen gave one to everyone in her audience today. Cool.  I'm going to have to get one now :)

Famine in the Horn of Africa: How to help

Just saw on MSNBC that 29,000 children under the age of 5 have died over the last 3 months in Somalia. So incredibly sad. There's so little we can do, but here's an article on where to send money.
Famine in the Horn of Africa: How to help

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

I think I am going to fast tomorrow in sort of a solidarity with these poor people - at the very least, I will offer up my almost inconsequential suffering for their enormous suffering. I just don't know what else to do.  We have got to get others aware and involved.  Many, many others. 

God, help those people in such great need and in such horrible suffering.  Please help us know what to do to help them.  Amen.

Famine declared in Somalia

Just saw this on MSNBC.com.  Things have progressively gotten worse in Somalia, and really, the whole of sub-Saharan Africa, during the last year.  I will be sending some money (and so will Kraft, as a matching gift) to OxFam America to help.  Of course, I realize my very small contribution of $100 may not amount to much in the grand scheme of things, but when we add all of our donations together we can obviously make a larger contribution.

I also went to the OxFam America site and read this article about their efforts.  $800 million dollars is what they are saying is still needed to provide immediate relief.  I am going to start an email letter campaign  begging for support to this cause.  I'll post the email as soon as it's done.  I'm going to try to send it to every person I know and to people I don't but may have the resources to provide a lot more in donations (Oprah, the Gates Foundation, Warren Buffet, what-his-name Mr. Facebook, etc.).  I figure this is one of the only ways I can actually attempt to make a difference - begging for money for these people. The other way is to pray and pray and pray.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

News from Southern Sudan

Earlier this year, the people of southern Sudan voted to secede from the north and became it's own sovereign nation.  Although many aid agencies feared violence, the vote was a peaceful process.  The new country will become the Republic of South Sudan on July 9, 2011.  Please pray for a peaceful transition and for all the people of North and South Sudan.

Catholic Relief Services is all over it: Sudan is Knocking. Will You Answer?

and see this short video.

Children living in extreme poverty

I just got a chance to watch the film Slumdog Millionaire this weekend, and if you haven't seen it yet, you should.  It's very well done, but the beginning was extremely difficult to watch - thank goodness it has a happy ending.  We watched the first part, when the main characters are young children, on Saturday night and had to stop it.  At that point, I didn't think I could bring myself to watch the rest - the extreme poverty that those fictional kids lived in is what millions of children are dealing with in the real world.  To see that children are living that way, in trash dumps, searching for food, and being taken advantage of by evil adults, was heartbreaking.  I forced myself to watch the second half of the movie, which wasn't nearly as hard to watch - like I said, it has a good ending - because I didn't want to turn away from the ugliness of poverty.

Anyway, that night as I prayed I was crying, feeling guilty about my rich, western lifestyle but desperate to help and completely lost as to how to go about doing it.  What can be done, I pleaded with God?  Well, I still don't know - but I feel the Lord calling me to do something, anything to help.  I will be researching existing charities and people that are working on this vast problem - it doesn't seem possible, but I think Africa is suffering even more than India. Jesus left us with the task of doing His work here on Earth - we must not allow this to happen any more.  There really is no excuse great enough to exempt us from helping these people. 

I will keep you posted the more I find out.  In the mean time, please pray - for more Christians to hear the cry of the poor, for the children living in complete squalor, for the strength to persevere, for Peace.

Joplin Update

Apparently, I don't have to do any organizing.  First Christian Church in Champaign is way ahead of me :)

First Christian Church collecting items to send to Joplin, Mo.

 

If you don't think you can make it out there, let me know and I'd be happy to drive it there for you. 

Joplin, MO - what we can do to help

Just read this from MSNBC:

"Joplin tornado:  How to help"

I sent the Joplin American Red Cross tan email to get a list of things they need.  If you are local here in Illinois, I'll be sending out an email letting you know what they need and organizational details.

From Jamaica - women trying to improve their lives, one rural village at atime

"We are promoting sustainable development in our communities by helping these women to develop the economy at the grass-roots level through farming horticulture and craft," Simms told The Gleaner.

Read the whole article here:

Charting a better path for St Bess women - News - Jamaica Gleaner - Saturday | May 7, 2011

Still looking for a Mother's Day gift?

Here's an idea:

Gifts sure to delight, restore the ability to dream

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
05/06/11
COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (May 6, 2011) –"This Mother’s Day, celebrate your mom by giving her a gift that honors her legacy and improves the lives of mothers in developing countries. From child sponsorship opportunities, to milk-producing goats and sewing machines used for micro-enterprise, Food For The Poor’s online catalog is brimming with unique gift options for every budget."

Sounds like a great gift for the Mom who has everything and likes to give some of it away.  Wish I had seen this yesterday!

Disaster in the South - how to help

God, please bless the people suffering in the South in the wake of the devastating tornadoes.  Please help them to get back on their feet and bring them the Peace that only You can provide.  Amen.

Just got this email from the American Red Cross asking for donations to help the victims of the worst tornado outbreak in 40 years.  I don't think the "Donate Now" links will work in the following, but click HERE and it'll take you to their website.


 

Friend, Last night across the South, entire neighborhoods were demolished in the worst surge of tornadoes the U.S. has experienced in 40 years. In communities throughout Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Georgia, Virginia, Kentucky and many other states, dozens of tornadoes are responsible for the reported deaths of over 200 people and officials expect that number to continue to rise. The Red Cross has sprung into action with nurses, mental health workers, and emergency response vehicles deployed immediately to assist those in need. Emergency response volunteers are on their way to the scene with 25,000 ready-to-eat meals. It is your support that allows us to be there with emergency food, supplies, shelter, and a hug. Give generously now. Nearly 2,700 people stayed in Red Cross shelters in 12 states last night. Towns, family homes, businesses and schools were destroyed – families had nowhere to go. For Alabama it is the largest sheltering effort by the Red Cross there since Hurricane Katrina. In just the state of Alabama as many as one million people are currently without power. The clean up and repair from this horrendous disaster will continue on for months to come. With thousands of Americans now homeless and many more without power, our work in the South will continue. Give generously to help your fellow Americans in need now: http://american.redcross.org/HelpSpringDisasters2011 We’ll be in touch with more details as our relief efforts in the South continue. Your generosity at this time is greatly appreciated, Charley Shimanski Sr. Vice President, Disaster Services American Red Cross P.S. Stay informed with all the latest disaster relief news by following the American Red Cross on Facebook and Twitter.

Cool new charity web site

Now here's a neat idea - now you can donate to a wide variety of causes with just one dollar a day.  From MSNBC: 

Donate $1 to new charity every day via website

Here is the link to the website Philanthroper.

 

Wonderful lecture on Christian duty to the poor

I found this lecture by Dr. Tim Keller, Pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York and author of "The Reason for God," a New York Times bestseller.  In the video he discusses the biblical reasons Christians are called to serve the poor - and by serving, he means more than just praying and donating monetarily (although those are of course necessary).  I thought he did a fabulous job and I hope you find it as inspiring as I did.  It's about an hour in length, so you'll have to carve out some time to watch it but I promise it will be well worth it!  Leave a comment as to what you thought.



Tim Keller: The Gospel and the Poor: A Case for Compassion from Here's Life Inner City on Vimeo.

Update:  here's the link to the handout he refers to.  

Please pray for the people in Ivory Coast

Read these and please keep these people in your prayers:

Civilians flee violence in Ivory Coast

'Clock is ticking' for refugees fleeing Ivory Coast

No Kid Hungry

While I was waiting in the Doctor's office earlier this week, I read an article about Jeff Bridges and his calling to end childhood hunger in America.  Apparently, he's been dedicated to this cause for more than 25 years.

"In recent years, the recession has seen the numbers of hungry children swell. In 2009, more than 17 million households were at risk of not having enough food. That's up from nearly 12 million in 2007, and double the number in 2000, according to the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC)." (From Web MD)

I didn't realize hunger was this big a problem in America - 1 in 4 children in this country, the world's largest economy, the land of plenty, with all of the things we have going for us.  It's really sad - this should not be happening here, right in our own backyard.  You can read the article I read here and one along the same lines here at the No Kid Hungry website.  Join me in pledging to do what we can to end childhood hunger.

Neat program by ConAgra

Found this on Facebook and it sounded like a great program!

Child Hunger Ends Here

Buy Our Brands. Share the Stories. Make a Difference.

Nearly 1 in 4 kids in America doesn't know where their next meal is coming from, and with your help ConAgra Foods is providing millions of meals to Feeding America member food banks.

Through August 31, you can activate the code on specially marked ConAgra Foods products at ChildHungerEndsHere.com and a monetary donation will be made to secure one of up to 2.5 million meals by Feeding America on behalf of local food banks.**

Here you can see the stories of those who benefit from your generosity in the fight against child hunger. And every time you share these stories on your Facebook page, we'll help Feeding America secure an additional meal, up to 100,000.

All you have to do is enter the product code on that web site and they will donate money to local food banks.  When you next go grocery shopping, be sure to look for the specially marked packages of ConAgra brands:

How to help the people in Japan

For the last couple of days, I have been watching what's happening in Japan with a lot of sadness and offering up a lot of prayers as I'm sure many have.  But what can more can we do?  I just came across this article that lists many of the charitable organizations helping out with the relief effort in Japan.  Be sure to check and see if the company you work for will match - double your contribution!

The newest member of our family

Today, I had the great pleasure of writing to the newest member of our family - our sponsor-child Eloy.  It took a while to finally choose a child because we had some family dissent on whether we wanted to sponsor a child through Compassion Int'l (where 80% of funds go to the child) or donate directly to Food For The Poor (where 97% of the funds go to the people, but not a specific child).  Our children really wanted to sponsor a child and wanted the ability to communicate directly with the recipient of our donations.  Steve and I thought that this would be a great learning opportunity for our kids and went with Compassion Int'l.  The next obstacle of course is choosing the child - which gender, what age, what geographical area, etc.  The girls found Eloy's picture on the website and were immediately sure he was the right child, and so our family increased by one.  Eloy is 5 years old and lives in Bolivia.  His family, like our own, has 6 members.  I think its the beginning of a beautiful friendship!

If you decide to sponsor a child, remember to check into gift matching by your employer.  Kraft will match our monthly sponsorship dollar for dollar, so our gift is doubled!

Check out all the kids who would love to join your family at the Compassion International website.

Operation Rice Bowl

Each season of Lent for the last 35 years, Catholic Relief Services has run a special collection program called Operation Rice Bowl.  If you are Catholic, many parishes have the little boxes that you can take home and make daily or weekly donations during Lent "to help fund development programs designed to increase food security around the world".  As you participate in fasting, you can donate the money you would have spent to CRS.  If your church does not have them, you can donate on-line.

"Each year, Operation Rice Bowl invites us to pray with our families and faith communities; fast in solidarity with those who hunger; learn more about our global community and the challenges of poverty overseas; and give sacrificial contributions to those in need."

Lent begins this Wednesday March 9th.

And look what else I found on their website:  recipes!  My food-blogger past comes back!  We'll definitely be trying this one out:

Senegal

Senegalese stew

• ¼ cup oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 4 Tbsp tomato paste
• 4 cups water
• 1 vegetable bouillon cube
• ½ cup black eyed peas (pre-soaked)
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 1 sweet potato, chopped
• ¼ tsp hot pepper
• 1 ½  cups rice (uncooked)

Fry garlic and onions in oil until tender. Add tomato paste and mix thoroughly. Add 4 cups water and bring to a boil. Add bouillon cube, black-eyed peas, carrots, sweet potato, and hot pepper. Boil until peas are tender. Add rice and boil 10 minutes covered, then 10 minutes uncovered. Do not stir until the very end.
Makes 4-5 servings.

Soaring Food, Fuel Prices Pose Double Threat to Poor

"FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
03/02/11

	A young boy enjoys a handful of rice distributed at a FFP feeding center.

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (March 2, 2011) –Workers from Food For The Poor often find families in developing countries who have not eaten for three or four days. Either there is no food available at all, or they have no money with which to buy even a small bag of rice. Now, because of soaring food and fuel costs, their food sources will be further threatened."

Read the whole article here.

11 year old girl raises $162k for Haiti!

Don't think there's anything that one person can do to help the poor?  Watch this video about 11 year old Rachel Wheeler who has raised $162,000 in her community for Haiti:













She accomplished this by asking for donations from ordinary people and businesses.  Incredible and inspiring!  You can read more about Rachel and her project here.

Here's a related article on Haiti from the Times-Herald.com: With anniversary of quake passed, needs still great

Life is good!

I first found this brand about 4 months into chemotherapy and loved it.  I had been telling my children that even though cancer had entered our own little world, our life together was so incredibly good.  We were on vacation up in Grand Haven, MI on the lake and found a little shop where they sold Life is good t-shirts and I had to have one - it was my motto too. I didn't realize until I saw this video though that they donate 10% of their profits to charity - awesome company name and awesome mission!




You can learn about the Life is good Kids Foundation here.

Daytona 500 winner's heart is in the right place

Thought this was a neat story about Sunday's Daytona 500 winner, 20 year old Trevor Bayne.  I hope the young guy wins a lot more races and brings a lot more publicity to charitable causes.  He's got a new fan today!

Bayne visits with an orphan on a trip to Mexico in November.

"Hopefully this money will help us get some more races, and there are a lot of foundations and ministries that need support. Back2Back ministries in Mexico is one, and there are a lot of good organizations that need some help, and we will help them out as much as we can."

Global Poverty on the rise

Disappointing, but not surprising news: Global Poverty is a problem that's going to get worse before it gets better.  Here's an article I just read about how rising food prices are going to severely impact the world's poor:

Poverty News Blog  "Food prices are rising throughout the world. For those who live on a dollar or two a day the higher cost of food can be very damaging. The increase in price can mean the difference of a few more skipped meals or no food at all."


Also at that blog is this video about the severe drought in northern Kenya (reported by Al Jazeera).



It is heartbreaking to watch, but I think it's something all Christians should see.  What can be done to help those people and the people in the broader region of east Africa?  Clearly their government is part of the problem - how they are living is criminal in my opinion (for more info, see here).  Please keep these people in your prayers and consider donating to one of the following charties that are operating in the region:

Oxfam America
Catholic Relief Services
World Food Program

Also view this ABC news video from October 2009.  From what I read elsewhere, things got better in late 2009, but have been especially bad during the last year - they are dealing with the worst drought in 10 years.

The American Red Cross needs you

The American Red Cross is at a 10 year low in their blood supply.  This winter has been especially difficult for just about the entire country and this has hit the Red Cross badly.  Not only has the need for blood increased due to accidents, but donations have slacked off because people can't get in to donate.  It's not often that people get to save someone else's life - you can by donating blood.

 

You can schedule a time to donate right from the ARC website here.

Local Charity in Need of Donations

If you're local in the Champaign, Illinois area I just read this article from Saturday's paper.  Apparently, the Salvation Army of Champaign County is "reaching the bottom of its inventory at its thrift shops on North Market Street and West John Street in Champaign".  Time to clean out those closets and basements - they need everything (clothes, shoes, household items, purses, etc.)!  Winter, and especially the month of February, are typically slow donation months for charities like S.A.  The article says that demand, on the other hand, has not slacked off.

"Money from the two Salvation Army stored funds its emergency services - housing, rental assistance, food and other support for the poor."

Let's make February 2011 their best February ever! 

Make Valentine's Day a Little Sweeter

Buy Fair Trade Chocolate by Divine Chocolate for your sweetheart.


From their website:

"Choosing Divine as your chocolate treat is a delicious way of playing your part in a more equitable trading partnership. Divine is the only Fairtrade chocolate company which is 45% owned by the farmers. While Fairtrade ensures farmers receive a better deal for their cocoa and additional income to invest in their community, company ownership gives farmers a share of Divine’s profits and a stronger voice in the cocoa industry. That’s good business!"

You can purchase chocolate (and many handmade items) at SERRV, a great website dedicated to improving lives in impoverished countries by helping them "build sustainable lifestyles".


Divine Chocolate hearts are only $4.99 per package - get one for each of the loves in your life!

A Call to Action

You've all seen those infomercials on TV that tug at your heartstrings, right? You know, the ones that show starving children in Africa, or children in Bangladesh digging in giant trash heaps for food, or the children living in cardboard boxes in Haiti. I cry every time I see one of those and I think "I should send them some money" or "I wonder if we should 'sponsor' one of those children?". The problem is that as soon as I turn off the TV, the tragic scenes I just viewed get filed comfortably away in the back of my brain somewhere and I get on with my busy, but relatively cozy, life. The greatest problem is not that my inaction does absolutely nothing to stop the evil of global poverty, of course - but that it actually makes things worse.

I came to this conclusion very recently as I was doing some research on atheism (specifically, how to ask the right questions that might at least make an atheist pause to re-consider their point of view). I ran across a website that had the picture below. I was instantly saddened and still can barely look at the image of that sweet child. But it made me realize that I can no longer turn away. The website was obviously using this to mock Christians' belief that God is all-loving and all-powerful. Why would God answer such mundane prayers for finding keys or helping a QB to score a touchdown and not help the most innocent of His children? They clearly don't understand how God operates. The problem of global poverty is not God's fault, but ours.



We as Christians are called to care for our less fortunate brothers and sisters. Now, before you say that you have done something - I know, so have I. I have given money to international organizations like Feed the Children, Food for the Poor, Heifer International, and Catholic Charities. I have also helped out with local charities by providing food, clothes, household items and financial assistance. I hope you've done more than I have, but clearly,whatever we have done collectively, it's not enough.


I realized that I must do more. We have been blessed by God many, many times over and it's time we really started to give something back. My family and I can do more - not just financially, but in prayer and in how we live our lives. Here are some examples of what we are going to do starting today:

• Pray every day for the impoverished and victims of violence
  

• Try very hard not to waste food - eat those leftovers!
  
• Talk to others about what can be done
  
• Sponsor a child

Global Poverty is an extremely complex problem - even Jesus said that we would always have the poor. What can one person or one family do? If you are Catholic, please prayerfully consider joining Catholics Confront Global Poverty - they are trying to encourage one million Catholics in the US to do something about global poverty by doing four simple tasks - pray, learn, advocate, educate. I think most of us can at the very least do the first two. If your are of a different denomination or faith, please look into your organizations to see where you might be able to help.

Here are some links to other good organizations which have high ratings on Charity Navigator:

Food For the Poor
Compassion International
AmeriCares
Catholic Medical Mission Board
Doctors Without Borders, USA

**Please note that I have not included Feed the Children because there is a "Donor Warning" on Charity Navigator.


I also encourage everyone to sign up to receive updates to this blog to find more ways you can help. I also want to hear from you, comments are always welcome!