Lent Day 13: Socks

Today's charity is special for a few reasons. First, it essentially began at the Toledo Cherry Street Mission, which is just about a half an hour north of where I live. Second, it's another organization that looks at one of those needs that most of us just kind of take for granted. Third, it was started by a child.

Hannah was four, and helping her mother give out food at the Cherry Street Mission in Toledo, when she realized that one of the men waiting wasn't wearing any socks. Despite her mother's assurances, Hannah knew this man needed socks, and offered him hers. The next day, Hannah and her mother purchased 100 pairs of socks and distributed them to homeless shelters in the area. Thus began Hannah's Socks. Socks are just one of things that we have, and we don't really think about the fact that some people don't. 4-year-old Hannah did, so I gave her charity $30 today.

-Matt

Lent Day 12: Beds

Today's donation went to Sleeping Children Around the World. This organization provides beds . . . or more correctly Bedkits . . . to needy children. $35 buys a mattress or mat, pillow, sheet, blanket, and mosquito net (if needed), as well as clothes to sleep in, a towel, and school supplies. 100% of the donation goes to buying the Bedkit. So I bought 1 Bedkit for $35.

-Matt

Lent Day 11: Late Again

Monday's charity was Vitamin Angels. The organization recognizes that part of the malnourishment problem is simply because some people do not have access to vitamins, and so seeks to provide vitamins to those in the world suffering from those deficiencies. It reminds us that while feeding the hungry is important, we also need to make sure that they are healthy. So $20 went to this organization.

Stay tuned for today's charity.

-Matt

Lent Day 9 and 10: Oxfam and Heifer

I spent a good chunk of Friday afternoon driving to Cleveland in a snowstorm, and the remainder of the evening trapped in Cleveland because of said snowstorm, so I was stuck without my list of charities. So here are yesterday's and today's charities.

Oxfam International is kind of a blanket organization with a number of different projects geared toward solving the world's problems. It's yet another organization looking for innovated solutions, particularly looking at ways to help communities support themselves. I donated $20 to them. Today's organization has become fairly well-known, and is one of my favorites: Heifer International. Here, you can buy animals or shares of animals that will be given to needy families. Chickens, pigs, cows, llamas, and many more. I bought a $20 share of a llama.

And that brings us to Sunday #2. See you all on Monday!

-Matt

Lent Day 8: Action Against Hunger

Today's charity is Action Against Hunger, which is . . . well, exactly what it sounds like. In yesterday's post, I said that I appreciate organizations that try to solve the problem of world hunger, and Action Against Hunger works to do just that, coming up with new ideas on how to solve the problem, not just cure the symptom. So, I've given $25 to their organization.

That's about all I have today. How are my seven followers doing? =)

-Matt

Lent Day 7: Give a man a seed . . .

In general, I tend to be partial to charitable organizations that actively work to solve problems. Take world hunger, for instance. You can either give hungry people food, which will satisfy them for maybe a day, or you can help provide the means for them to feed themselves. So I was excited about today's charity, the Dinner Garden. This charity gives free seeds of many varieties, so that people can plant their own gardens and feed themselves. It's an idea that attempts to solve the problem of world hunger, not merely the symptom. While I see nothing wrong with giving food to the hungry, I also recognize that it isn't going to make Hunger (capital "H," notice) go away.

So, today I gave $20 to the Dinner Garden, which will go towards getting seeds to hungry people, who can use them to grow their gardens.

One week of Lent down . . .

-Matt

Lent Day 5 . . . and 6: Go, Feed America

I think we see now why I'm so bad at this blogging thing.

So, yesterday's charity--which I forgot to give to yesterday, but gave to early this morning--is the Go Campaign, which, interestingly enough, is powered by youth, committed to helping other youth who are poverty. One of my biggest pet peeves in life is people who think that kids can't accomplish anything, simply because they're kids. Charities like this prove what a load of hogwash that is, and I'm so glad they exist.

Today's charity is Feeding America, which is exactly what it sounds like . . . a charity committed to providing food to those in our own country who have difficult putting food on the table. Despite being possibly the richest nation in the world, we have serious poverty problem here in our own backyard, and only when we recognize that it exists can we do something about it.

I gave $35 to yesterday's charity, and $25 to today's. Follow the links above to find out more.

See you tomorrow (assuming I remember . . .)

-Matt