In the spirit of giving thanks, we thought we'd share with you each of our favorite charitable orgs, some of whom are really getting whomped by the economy this year. Not from individual donors per se (you guys are always so great!), but from the fortune 500 companies and Wall Street firms they tend to rely on.
Maybe we'll turn you onto a new charity, maybe we'll inspire you to give some extra love to your own.
Kristen: As a military wife, I've been fortunate to have my husband stateside. But many families are not, and often times, the kids get hit the hardest. Operation Purple Camp, part of the National Military Family Association, offers free weeklong camp experiences for kids with deployed parents as a means to help them deal with the stress and cope with having one or both parents away.
Liz: I'm a fan of donating to local arts organizations which help support the kinds of artists we feature at Cool Mom Picks, and don't often get the support of the big museums. A local NYC favorite: Brooklyn's Urban Glass, an awesome glassblowing school and studio with programs like The Bead Project that teaches economically disadvantaged women a marketable craft.
Julie: I've got a big box ready to bring to The Family Tree, a local Denver charitable organization whose mission is to help people overcome child abuse, domestic violence and homelessness to become safe, strong and self-reliant. Their impact stories are truly touching and demonstrate the positive effect of Family Tree on the local communities they serve. We're going to make a family trip to drop off all the goodies - an ideal way to start our holiday season.
Mir: America's Second Harvest recently changed their name to Feeding America, but they're still the same organization -- the largest domestic hunger relief agency in the country. The state of the economy means even fewer donations to local food banks, so they're in desperate need of funds to augment supplies for everything from soup kitchens to school programs.
Also a shout-out to The Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network who saved my sanity when my son was diagnosed with a life-threatening food allergy
Christina: Chemo Angels have volunteers who send encouraging notes and small gifts to a cancer patient for the length of their chemotherapy treatment. With each mailing comes hope, kind words and the knowledge that others care during an often frightening and lonely time.
Rita: I have been donating to Kansas City's Operation Breakthrough since I found out about them. They offer top-notch daycare to 674 children of low-income parents. I don't know where these kids would be spending their days otherwise, or whether their parents would be able to earn money to feed them. I wish we had 1,000 Operation Breakthroughs.
Betsy: My favorite charity, bar none, is The Heifer Society. For as little as $20 you can donate animals to villages; for years my family has been commemorating special events by donating a dairy goat that not only provides milk, but also gives families the ability to make cheese, yogurt and butter to sell. It really is a gift that keeps on giving.
Laura: One Laptop Per Child makes and distributes rugged, low-cost, low-power (they're solar powered! Cool!) laptops to kids around the globe for educational betterment and community development. Over the holidays, they're holding a Give One, Get One promotion--you buy one for yourself, and they donate one to a child living in a developing country.
