A Big Project in the Making

Many posts ago, I talked about taking care of our corner of the world.  As horrific events have unfolded around us once again, I think we all realize that you can really never take a day for granted.  I am sure that many of us feel helpless and like we can't do enough, but if we take a step back and focus on our community, I know we could all make a difference.  I think the first step is to think about a few causes that you feel passionate about and channel your energy in that direction.  Set some goals, involve your family, and start taking steps to make a difference!

For me, I have two areas that I always come back to:  hunger and helping to promote literacy in children.  Today I am going to focus on promoting literacy in children.  I have spent a great deal of time over the past several months creating some goals to assist with this growing problem.  If you recall, I sent out a request for money to purchase books for a family service project at Christmas time.  Over the past five months, I have collected 100 new books to be distributed to those in need.  This is only the beginning!  It is my hope that we can continue to raise funds to purchase books or receive book donations from others.  

A friend and I have been collaborating on this project and we are beginning to contact school districts to reach out and find out how we can assist:  books for the classroom, providing a book for a child to take home, providing books for shelters, etc.  While my main focus is books, my friend's focus is on providing fleece tie blankets for those in need.  We have read some startling statistics about children in our area who have don't even have a bed to sleep on.  While we can't provide a bed, we would like to provide them with a book and a comfortable blanket to call their own.  We need to take care of the children in our community, as they are our future.

This project is definitely in the early stages of development.  It will take time to grow, but we are committing ourselves to making a difference for children in our community.  One of the wonderful things about this project is that it is child-friendly.  My kids can be involved in picking out the books and distributing them.  We can teach them the importance of helping others and they can see first-hand how beneficial it can be.  

I challenge you to come up with a family project, big or small, to make a difference in your community.  It's never to early to show children how to be compassionate citizens and the importance of helping others.  If your children are a little bit older, encourage them to come up with an idea and take the time to help them come up with a plan and follow it through.  I am sure they will be proud of their accomplishment and their eyes will be opened to the needs of others. 

If you would like to donate to this effort monetarily, please click on the donate button.  If you would like to help out in any other way, please let me know!