52 Weeks of Charity

Week 46: Helping our Children Build a Better Tomorrow

Posted on May 1, 2018 by k8mante Leave a comment

kids earth heart

One day in the not too distant future the world will belong to our children. They will make decisions on the environment, policies on poverty and social services, and be responsible for making decisions about resources, war, and peace. They will be the problem-solvers (and problem-creators) responsible for the well-being of future generations.

How can we support our children and young adults so they become their best selves in a global society? How can we fuel within them a sense of service and civic engagement? How can we expand their minds to include causes bigger than themselves?

Most importantly, how can we help them develop the resolve and confidence they will need so they believe without a shadow of doubt they can make a difference, effect change, and improve the world?

Week 45: NJ Coalition Against Human Trafficking: Fighting for the Victims

Posted on April 24, 2018 by k8mante One comment

The speaker stood up at the front of the auditorium….

“Several times a year our group goes into local cities and towns and asks, ‘Who are your missing children?’ We get their names and photos, then make posters of these children.”

(She holds up one of the posters with the faces of at least 15 children on it)

“We then stop at motels and hotels” she continued, “and ask the staff, ‘Have you seen any of these faces?’”

“EVERY TIME we’ve done this we’ve had at least one rescue. Sometimes several. The children are usually going by different names, but we always find someone who recognizes at least one and it allows us to start to work towards finding them and rescuing them.”

These children… they are typically between the ages of 12 and 16. These cities and towns? …. They are in New Jersey….

Week 44: Rescuing Wildlife with ‘Wild Baby Rescue’

Posted on April 16, 2018 by k8mante 2 comments

“Have you ever fed a baby squirrel?”

That was the email I received from Hope Kosch-Davison, Founder of Wild Baby Rescue, when I’d reached out to see if she needed any volunteers on site.

“I’ve got 37 baby squirrels right now,” her e-mail read….

Animals and Wildlife

Week 43: Kindness.org: The Surprising Effects of Building Intent Around Kindness

Posted on April 10, 2018 by k8mante Leave a comment

coffee

Because this is New Jersey, and aggressive, caffeine-fueled commuting is standard, I pass 7 Dunkin’ Donuts and 3 Starbucks on my 40 minute, 11 mile drive to work.

Not only do all these coffee shops ensure I can always find a boost of energy, they provided the perfect venues for me to work on this week’s charity – Kindness.org.

Week 42: Quantum Physics and Hunger: Combating Poverty through Family-to-Family

Posted on April 5, 2018 by k8mante Leave a comment

quantum entanglement

Quantum physics contains a theory of entanglement, where two particles originating from a single source – for example, two electrons created from the energy of a collision – are created with a special kind of never-ending connection (communication) between them. Whatever happens to one of the particles instantaneously affects and changes the other (and vice versa).

What is amazing about this connection beyond its timelessness (instantly and forever) is that it is nonlocal, meaning no matter how far apart the particles travel from each other, even if they travel across the universe from each other, the connection never fades. They always mirror each other. They are forever intertwined… separate particles connected as one across space and time.

Week 41: Joan’s Joy: Turning Tragedy into Action: Keeping the Children of Tomorrow Safe

Posted on March 27, 2018 by k8mante One comment

Joan brownie outfit

April 19, 1973…. It’s Maundy Thursday. Seven-year old Joan Angela D’Alessandro is playing in her front yard after school when she sees her neighbor, Joseph McGowan, drive by on his way up to his home three houses away.

Eager to deliver her last boxes of Girl Scout cookies, Joan runs into the house and tells her mom she’s going to walk over to Mr. McGowan’s house to give him the 2 boxes of Thin Mint cookies he ordered.

Joan never came home.

Week 40: Free Yezidi Foundation: Hope for Survivors of Genocide

Posted on March 21, 2018 by k8mante Leave a comment

herding

For thousands of years the Yezidis have lived in the Sinjar area of northern Iraq. This is their spiritual heartland, and although Yezidi communities are found in several countries around the globe, their connection to this ancient land is magical. For generations and generations they have lived in Sinjar as herdsmen and farmers, growing crops of figs, wheat and almonds… a peaceful people with a rich and distinct spiritual tradition that can be traced back over 6,700 years, predating Islam and Christianity….

Humanitarian

Week 39: An Intergalactic Journey to Jupiter to fight Parkinson’s Disease

Posted on March 13, 2018 by k8mante 3 comments

Sometimes Mother Nature creatively challenges your plans. A late winter storm dropped 22 inches of snow on our town last week. The storm left behind a magical landscape of thickly drifted blankets of snow, icing-draped trees pulled low across the roads, and…. a State of Emergency. It looked like a fairy tale and it cancelled my charity activity for the week.

Health, Disease and Medical

Week 38: Our Hearts of Hope: Small Acts with Huge Impact

Posted on March 8, 2018 by k8mante One comment

Me with Heart

Hello friends! My journey this week brought me to Our Hearts of Hope where a small act became a radical way to connect with and support others….

Mencius (372-289 BC) was a Chinese philosopher who believed every human heart has the capacity for goodness. He taught that kindness and benevolence are rooted and inherent in our nature. By reflecting, focusing and acting on that aspect of our nature, we discover we are capable of performing acts of loving humanity which become a source of joy and happiness.