14: Remember the Ice Bucket Challenge for ALS?

Who can forget the ALS Association's (ALSA) Ice Bucket Challenge - what an extraordinary viral event. I saw lots of them and did one too, but did you know it made a difference? It truly did,  "Scientists discovered a new ALS gene, NEK1, known to be among the most common genetic contributors of the disease. This important finding is a direct result of your outpouring of supporting during 2014’s ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. Thanks to you, researchers now have an exciting new target for drug development!"
August is actually ALS Awareness month, but my mom picked two nonprofits for us to celebrate on her birthday, so let's look at ALSA and happy almost birthday, mom. What is ALS? Commonly referred to as Lou Gehrig's disease:

 Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. Motor neurons reach from the brain to the spinal cord and from the spinal cord to the muscles throughout the body. The progressive degeneration of the motor neurons in ALS eventually leads to their death. When the motor neurons  die, the ability of the brain to initiate and control muscle movement is lost. With voluntary muscle action progressively affected, patients in the later stages of the disease may become totally paralyzed.- (http://www.alsa.org/about-als/)

ALSA provides care services, educates, advocates policy, and  funds and looks for aid in research for ALS.  An average of 15 new cases are diagnosed every day, and each patient is given from 2-5 years of life expectancy after diagnosis. When I saw the included graphic, I wondered why veterans were 2 times more likely to develop ALS. I looked around and regardless of what I have found the far, the answers in this 2008 article were typical of the answers most discussed over the last few years: http://alsn.mda.org/article/als-and-vets-searching-connections Whether you want to retry the ice bucket challenge or get involved some other way, ALS is a great cause.

I learn a lot about ALS doing studying ALSA, but I can't leave the topic without sharing Lou Gehrig's famous speech from the Offcial Lou Gehrig website, which is far better than the one in Pride of the Yankees (1942):

"Fans, for the past two weeks you have been reading about the bad break I got. Yet today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of this earth. I have been in ballparks for seventeen years and have never received anything but kindness and encouragement from you fans. 
"Look at these grand men. Which of you wouldn't consider it the highlight of his career just to associate with them for even one day? Sure, I'm lucky. Who wouldn't consider it an honor to have known Jacob Ruppert? Also, the builder of baseball's greatest empire, Ed Barrow? To have spent six years with that wonderful little fellow, Miller Huggins? Then to have spent the next nine years with that outstanding leader, that smart student of psychology, the best manager in baseball today, Joe McCarthy? Sure, I'm lucky. 
"When the New York Giants, a team you would give your right arm to beat, and vice versa, sends you a gift - that's something. When everybody down to the groundskeepers and those boys in white coats remember you with trophies - that's something. When you have a wonderful mother-in-law who takes sides with you in squabbles with her own daughter - that's something. When you have a father and a mother who work all their lives so you can have an education and build your body - it's a blessing. When you have a wife who has been a tower of strength and shown more courage than you dreamed existed - that's the finest I know. 
"So I close in saying that I might have been given a bad break, but I've got an awful lot to live for."- 
- Lou Gehrig http://www.lougehrig.com/about/farewell.html

You can find the Donations by the Dozen posts here on google, on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/graceinitiative/, on twitter https://twitter.com/MarciGoLightly, or on the Grace Initiative Foundation Tree, LLC's website http://www.graceinit.org/donations-by-the-dozen.html, where you can enter your email to subscribe for an email daily dose of Donations by the Dozen. Thanks and cheers to charity, m

13: Active Minds- "Changing the Conversation About Mental Health"

I recently had several discussions regarding mental health  - not just for someone with mental illness, but for all of us. I mean, every little bit of health and happiness adds up for all of us, right? Active Minds and I had a few emails, though I am woefully behind in correspondence but love what they do and represent. Active Minds "empowers students to change the perception about mental health on college campuses." (http://activeminds.org) Most people associated with people who have mental illness know that one of the loneliest parts about it is the stigma. Even undiagnosed cases of depression can cause stress for someone worried about perception. The best organizations address this as part of their mission or programming, and Active Minds is dedicated to combatting the stigma. There are 442 student-led chapters at universities nationally and internationally supporting advocacy and education for mental health. Active Minds has many programs you can find here: http://activeminds.org/our-programming. 
My two favorite programs make me want to begin college again so I can support them here. The first is "Send Silence Packing" and is a powerful visual representation of college suicides. Backpacks from loved ones of suicide victims are collected, with each backpack representing up to 100 people affected by that suicide. The backpacks are spread out in areas of campus with high traffic, "giving a visual representation of the scope of the problem and the number of victims. " With 1100 college suicides each year, that's at least 11,000 people affected my suicide - people who may have been helped with early intervention. Pictures are better than words: 

The other program I find amazing is PostSecretU, which you will love if you are familiar with the Post Secret Books. 

What Is PostSecretU?Active Minds PostSecretU is a campus-based community art project that uses submitted secrets to unlock tremendous programming potential on a campus. These live displays spark conversation, raise hidden issues important to the community, and provide direction for future programming, advocacy, and change.
PostSecretU is available to Active Minds chapters as well as unaffiliated college and university organizations. PostSecretU is the OFFICIAL PostSecret event for college campuses as endorsed by Frank Warren, creator of the popular PostSecret blog and best-selling books. For safety and copyright reasons, running unofficial PostSecret programs is not permitted. Using PostSecretU materials exclusively is required when holding events of this type on campus. 

http://activeminds.org/our-programming/postsecretu 

There is so much more to Active Minds than I can adequately represent here, but please if you ever have feelings of suicide or self-harm, call the National Suicide Hotline at 800-273-TALK or text "BRAVE" to 741-741.

Meanwhile, the best thing you can do for someone you know to help someone else is here: http://activeminds.org/issues-a-resources/be-a-friend. If you want to improve your mental health or feel stigmatized and want to find like-minded people, please take a look at http://getstigma.com, an app changing the lives of so many people. 

You can find the Donations by the Dozen posts here on google, on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/graceinitiative/, on twitter https://twitter.com/MarciGoLightly, or on the Grace Initiative Foundation Tree, LLC's website http://www.graceinit.org/donations-by-the-dozen.html, where you can enter your email to subscribe for an email daily dose of Donations by the Dozen. Thanks and cheers to charity, m

12: A Dozen Days of a Dozen Dollars

In addition To National Braille Literacy Month and National Human Trafficking and Anti-Slavery Awareness month, it's also Hot Soup Month. So of course, I had to look for some soup for the soul, and I'm starting with the Shoreline Soup Kitchens & Pantries, whose mission  "provides food and fellowship to those in need and educates our community on hunger and poverty." (http://shorelinesoupkitchens.org) Shoreline provides meals seven days a week, and food pantries are available during fours day (five time periods) each week. Shoreline offers great training and education materials for volunteers, too: http://shorelinesoupkitchens.org/give-help/donate-time. I've never been to a soup kitchen (or homeless shelter or anywhere offering aid) and not met someone wonderful. People end up needing assistance for so many reasons, and I believe, regardless of what those reasons may be, no one deserves to go hungry. 
As you can see from the graphic to the right, Shoreline has helped many individuals. This is the end of year 2015.

Shoreline Soup Kitchens & Pantries distributed 1,292,518 pounds of food in 2015. 

Shoreline Soup kitchens & Pantries also partners with the Shoreline Basic Needs Task Force, "The Shoreline Basic Needs Task Force is a collaboration of community groups and concerned people, working to affect change that increases self-sufficiency among vulnerable individuals and families in need along the Connecticut Shoreline." Notes from meetings are downloadable here: http://shorelinesoupkitchens.org/news/shoreline-basic-needs-task-force
 One quote from their site reinforces how I feel about philanthropy and the Donations by the Dozen initiative, "We know that we could all end up needing a food pantry; that empathy makes us committed to being welcoming and caring. All our meals and services are free of charge."http://shorelinesoupkitchens.org/about-us/description Empathy may be one of the biggest components of why I am taking you on the Donations by the Dozen journey. I hope you find something with which you empathize  somewhere in the journey, something that inspires, motivates, teaches, or makes you more aware of something new or different. For whatever reason, I remain lucky and blessed enough to make these daily donations this year, even if I don't yet know what next year will bring. I think of myself as being more lucky to do this, because I physically cannot do all of the volunteering I wish I could, or it would be a volunteering for each day project. Whatever you find and whatever you do with what you find, please have a toast and cheers to charity for me? Thanks, m

You can find the Donations by the Dozen posts here on google, on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/graceinitiative/, on twitter https://twitter.com/MarciGoLightly, or on the Grace Initiative Foundation Tree, LLC's website http://www.graceinit.org/donations-by-the-dozen.html, where you can enter your email to subscribe for an email daily dose of Donations by the Dozen. Thanks and cheers to charity, m

11: 1/11 National Human Trafficking Hotline

http://www.nationaldaycalendar.com/national-human-trafficking-awareness-day-january-11/

Today's Donations by the Dozen goes to the National Human Trafficking Hotline 1-888-373-8888, who offers resources, tip lines, referrals, and most importantly, advocacy. 

What Is Human Trafficking? Human trafficking is a form of modern-day slavery. This crime occurs when a trafficker uses force, fraud or coercion to control another person for the purpose of engaging in commercial sex acts or soliciting labor or services against his/her will. (https://humantraffickinghotline.org)

Whether it is sex trafficking or labor trafficking, many humans victimized by traffickers go largely misunderstood in America. One of the reasons is the victims are so manipulated, guarded or threatened, they sometimes take years, if at all, to realize they are victims. Some of them know they are but cannot escape their trafficker to get help. The National Human Trafficking Hotline is an essential aid in helping get victims to safety and to help them heal: 

Anti-Trafficking Hotline Advocates provide assistance to victims in crisis through safety planning, emotional support and/or immediate connections to emergency services through our network of trained service provider and law enforcement partners. The National Hotline supports a victim's right to choose what next steps to take in a crisis, including whether or not to access services or report information about his/her experience to law enforcement. Anti-Trafficking Hotline Advocates will work with the caller to explore available options and the National Hotline will not take action without the consent of the caller, except in circumstances where we suspect child abuse or if we have reason to believe there is imminent harm to the caller or others. -(https://humantraffickinghotline.org/about-nhtrc/what-we-do)

In 2016, the NHTH received 20,424 hotline calls and reported 7,748 cases. Calls came from every single state in the United States as well as Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands. (https://humantraffickinghotline.org/states) Since it is National Anti-Slavery and Human Trafficking Awareness Day in America, perhaps you can just take a few minutes to read these tips for recognizing signs of human trafficking:https://humantraffickinghotline.org/what-human-trafficking/recognizing-signs.  I also know many people aren't always aware of how things like someone getting trafficked begin, but they do  - and far too often. A manipulation and power play can turn seemingly innocent situations into a trap where people fear for their lives or for those of their families. A girl I once met (details changed to protect privacy) had been so excited, because her boyfriend of six months wanted to take her to Seattle (from her home town, Portland) for a shopping spree. Upon arriving in Seattle, he just wanted to stop for a few minutes at an old friend's house. She only remembers walking in the front door, because the friend attacked her. She woke locked in a room, wearing only the shorts and shirt she'd worn leaving Portland - no shoes, no purse, no phone. The two men raped her and then brought in other people to beat and rape her. It took her over a year to escape. She concealed a knife and used it to run screaming from the house. Initially, the police arrested her on a weapons charge along with the "boyfriend" who was aiming a gun at her when they arrived. After a few hours at the station, they told her the history of the two men who had been forcing other women into prostitution too. They helped her get back to Portland where she sought hep and counseling. I only had a personal story related to Sex Trafficking victimization, but  labor trafficked victims are prevalent and need just as much support, awareness, and advocacy. We tend to only see those high profile cases in the news, but truly they can occur anywhere. It may help wrap your mind around things to read these myths and misconceptions: http://humantraffickinghotline.org/what-human-trafficking/myths-misconceptions or to read personal stories (names and details changed to protect privacy): http://humantraffickinghotline.org/material-type/hotline-stories

Having worked on RAINN.org's hotline, I know how well-trained, effective, and inclusive the help can be when talking to or online chatting to a staffer:  I applaud the NHTH wholeheartedly. Thank you for being there.

You can find the Donations by the Dozen posts here on google, on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/graceinitiative/, on twitter https://twitter.com/MarciGoLightly, or on the Grace Initiative Foundation Tree, LLC's website http://www.graceinit.org/donations-by-the-dozen.html, where you can enter your email to subscribe for an email daily dose of Donations by the Dozen. Thanks and cheers to charity, m

Ten: Smiles Make Me Smile

This one is going to take a bit of setup, so just keep smiling? Since August of 2014, I have been submitting photos to Johnson and Johnson's Donate a Photo app. It's pretty simple, I choose one of the current causes, add picture, and Johnson and Johnson donates $1 to that cause. So in 30 seconds or less, I can make a difference. I LOVE this app.
I try to donate to each cause at least once, but one of my top favorites is Operation Smile #UntillWeHeal. Did you now that a child is born with a cleft lip or cleft palate every three minutes? I didn't until I saw this adorable little girl on the app and wanted to know more. Every time I donate a photo, she makes me smile. 
I think we are all familiar with fitting in as children, but this isn't only about how a cleft palate or cleft lip appears, as you can see here: http://www.operationsmile.org/surgery/why-smiles. As you can see from the story, breastfeeding or feeding of any kind can be difficult of parents and result in undernourishment. Worse, parents, particularly in less privileged countries, may not feel equipped to handle a baby born with cleft lip or cleft palate, like Angeline who was abandoned in a pigpen at two months old. Thankfully, she was found and immediately adopted by a wonderful, loving couple who were able to get surgery for Angeline at age 2 through Operation Smile: http://www.operationsmile.org/patient-stories/angelines-story.

Operations Smile isn't just about helming smiles with surgery, it is about safe surgery for areas who may have medical access but not safelywith the #UntilWeHeal campaign:

UNTIL WE HEAL is a campaign to bring attention to the global lack of access to safe surgery. UNTIL WE HEAL is the first campaign to inspire and engage people to advocate for children who do not have access to the routine surgical care that could save their lives. UNTIL WE HEAL is bringing together the voices of people across the globe to call for safe surgery in every area of need. -http://www.untilweheal.org/about-movement

Today, I have donated my 100th photo in a row (466 total photos) - my first time with a streak this high, and I am super excited and smiling myself to be able to donate it to a smile and to offer the Donations by the Dozen daily donation to Operation Smile.  - it costs zero dollars and very little time each day to make a huge difference. I vote for your to smile while you read this and to download the app and find a cause you like. This smiley photo of my son having ripped his pants lifting someone to place decorations at his friends', Tom and Taylor Bogomolny's, wedding is one of my favorite pictures, so I obviously chose it for my 100 in a row celebration pic. If you use the app, you can monitor your own progress and see  your past photos, and you can also see how much of an impact the Donate a

Photo app is making.

I would also like to thank Operation Smile for always liking my Donate a Photos. I know how hard it is to keep up with social media, and every time they like my tweet, I again smile. Below is a video of the Vision of Operation Smile you might enjoy.

Thank you, Operation Smile #UntilWeHeal. Cheers to Charity and smiles 

Nine: Love 146 - Not a #Number

END CHILD TRAFFICKING AND EXPLOITATION

Please put this number in  your phone in case you ever need to report human trafficking: 1-888-3737-8888

January is National Human Trafficking Awareness Month.  Love 146 had to be my first choice of the month I first found out about Love 146 at a fundraising at Kent State University. I live near Kent and also not far from Toledo, Ohio, "Toledo being identified as the fourth highest ranking city in the nation for recruiting victims into the illegal trade." 
(https://www.odh.ohio.gov/en/features/odhfeatures/Human%20Trafficking%202015.aspx)
Before it was named, the co-founders of Love 146 were taken undercover to a brothel, in which children were being sold for sex. One child in particular caught their eyes, Child Number 146, and as the site states, "Her name became a number. Her number became our name." I am going to copy part of the story below because it is too powerful to miss:

We found ourselves standing shoulder to shoulder with predators in a small room, looking at young girls through a pane of glass. All of the girls wore red dresses with a number pinned to their dress for identification.
They sat, blankly watching cartoons on TV. They were vacant, shells of what a child should be. There was no light in their eyes, no life left. Their light had been taken from them. These children…raped each night… seven, ten, fifteen times every night. They were so young. 

Thirteen, eleven… it was hard to tell. Sorrow covered their faces with nothingness.
Except one girl. One girl who wouldn’t watch the cartoons. Her number was 146. She was looking beyond the glass. She was staring out at us with a piercing gaze. There was still fight left in her eyes. There was still life left in this girl….
All of these emotions begin to wreck you. Break you. It is agony. It is aching. It is grief. It is sorrow.

– Rob Morris

President and Co-founder  https://love146.org/love-story/

There are many ways we can all help with the human trafficking problem: donate, fundraise, volunteer and more. Two of the main things I would suggest are 1) be informed (https://love146.org/slavery/) and 2) report human trafficking (https://love146.org/action/report/) 1-888-3737-8888.  Here are other resources for identifying human trafficking  http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/orr/resource/fact-sheet-identifying-victims-of-human-trafficking
Love 146 also has e-cards you can send at any time along with you donation here: https://love146.org/ecards/, so when I donated our Donations by the Dozen today, I sent one to myself.
I have so many stories about our various nonprofits during this Donations by the Dozen journey, but here is one from last year. I was in Portland (actually for SMART, yesterday's Donations by the Dozen feature), and I had this lovely, clever, witty, professional and informative driver for the whole day as I visited other organizations you'll meet soon. As the day progressed and we chatted more and she told me her human trafficking story. She is not the only survivor I've met, but the main point I want to make is like any other life tragedy, sometimes we aren't aware that people right in front of us have been through so much hardship and, often, horror. But people can be helped, can survive and can even thrive with our help. The first half of the day, I only saw this amazing person who worked hard to finish school and support her family with professionalism and friendliness. She was one of the most together women I had met in some time, which is how the conversation began and led to revealing her history. We just never know who we will meet and what they've experienced.



You can find the Donations by the Dozen posts here on google, on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/graceinitiative/, on twitter https://twitter.com/MarciGoLightly, or on the Grace Initiative Foundation Tree, LLC's website http://www.graceinit.org/donations-by-the-dozen.html, where you can enter your email to subscribe for an email daily dose of Donations by the Dozen. Thanks and cheers to charity, m

Eight: Getting SMARTer in Portland for Jody

My friend Jody, who just celebrated her birthday,  works with the amazing Meyer Memorial Trust (MMT) and is  member representing the SMART board of today's Donations by the Dozen in Portland, OR. I admire MMT and use it as an role model for setting goals, daydreaming about philanthropic visions,  and achieving missions. MMT asks volunteers in Oregon to Start Making A Reader Today (SMART), and it's an amazing initiative matching thousands of volunteers with young students. "One child at a time. One volunteer at a time. One book at a time."Why? Because:Reading Matters.

SMART Knows Why Reading Matters
Reading is the gateway to learning, opening doors to faraway adventures, new possibilities and promising futures. Without strong reading skills, children will face a host of difficult challenges throughout their lives. That’s why we know Reading Matters. And that’s why SMART helps thousands of Oregon children each year develop the skills and self-confidence they need to read and succeed.

Check out this summary of the outcomes of SMART, and you can click on the image to go to the page for more.

Sorry for the poor quality of this pic

I highly believe in the importance of reading. I truly feel reading saved my life and continuously inspires me and expands my horizons. I was invited to the Author Fair in 2015 and had an excellent time seeing the works of other authors and meeting and signing books for people. We got to meet both volunteers and kids from the SMART program, and it was really one of the best days ever. If you are in Oregon, I strongly encourage you to check out SMART more thoroughly. My family and I have been supporters for a couple of years, and as a thank you, Jody sent me this incredible book published for SMART's 25th anniversary.
I feel like today's post is really filled with images, but I have to include this completely adorable Thank you video that appears on the donation confirmation page - seriously, how cute is this?

You've made a difference in my life in so many more ways, so thank you, Jody, or introducing me to the MMT and SMART - happy belated birthday.


You can find the Donations by the Dozen posts here on google, on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/graceinitiative/, on twitter https://twitter.com/MarciGoLightly, or on the Grace Initiative Foundation Tree, LLC's website http://www.graceinit.org/donations-by-the-dozen.html, where you can enter your email to subscribe for an email daily dose of Donations by the Dozen. Thanks and cheers to charity, m