Charity in the City: Giving over the Holidays

With the arrival of November comes two of the most popular months for charity and volunteering. More than 70 percent of us gave back during the holidays last year.  It’s my aspiration to see more of us giving back in 2010, even just for one day. For those of you who are already charitable during the holidays, these tips will get you energized for the months ahead.  For those who are just getting started, it will help you in taking that first step.

Reflect upon your own life. I often suggest this as a step first. You are going to find a deeper commitment to a cause that you can connect to personally. Start thinking of life experiences that either created a challenge for you, for someone you loved, or for something you witnessed. Whether its homelessness or cancer, all of us have interacted with some type of adversity. The altruistic connection will help you remain committed and feed your passion to do more.

Assess your time availability. We all live busy lives, but with thought and planning it is really easy to carve out a time for your giving life. Volunteer projects today come in all shapes and timelines. Whether giving up a few hours each week, an entire spring break, or going online every season to participate, you can find an initiative that fits your schedule best. Just like we make time for fitness, we need to make time for volunteering. Think of it as your soul on a treadmill.

Consider skills and interests that you would enjoy using while giving back. You can choose to do something that uses your professional skill sets, such as law, accounting, marketing and PR, or you can choose a personal interest such as animals, the environment, even sports to help youth.

Bring a friend or family member along. Like most things in our lives, the first time doing anything can often be the hardest. Think about it. First time going to the gym, first day at work, first date.  Make your first step easier by finding someone who can participate in the activity along with you. This is also where you can look to invite your family, even kids to join.

To read more stories from Atlanta INtown Paper, visit www.atlantaintownpaper.com

Helping Teachers Teach

As published in Atlanta INtown Paper  10/1/2010

It’s September, and school is back in session.  Often this is the season where we talk about ways to help youth who need resources to improve their educational experiences. While I think that is a vital need, I am taking a slightly different angle in this month’s column.  I am going to focus on ways to support our teachers and educators who work tirelessly to deliver our kids the best education available.

Due to budget cuts and a struggling economy, teachers are often left scrambling for adequate classroom supplies. In fact, did you know that teachers in the United States spend on average $500 out of their own pocket for classroom supplies? I’m sure those in lesser-funded schools are likely to spend even more.

For those of you who are parents and already active in PTA or who lend an extra hand in your child’s classroom, I applaud you.  Being an active parent in your child’s school is a great way to give back.  But too often there are classrooms and teachers that don’t have this support.

Luckily, there are organizations that provide an easy way for all of us to help teachers in our community. Here are two organizations that have creative and easy ways to help.

The Kids in Need Foundation is a dynamic organization with a mission to ensure that every child is prepared to learn and succeed.  The organization does this by providing free school supplies to under-funded teachers and classrooms most in need.  What’s exciting about the Kids in Need Foundation is its recent campaign with EXPO markers.  For every package of EXPO markers sold in the U.S. this September, EXPO will donate one marker to the foundation. In addition, the company will donate up to an additional 20,000 markers for every person who “likes” EXPO on its Facebook page. It doesn’t get any easier to make a difference.   If you can’t get to the store to buy the markers, you can donate $10 by texting “SCHOOL” to 85944. To find out about more ways to help, visit www.kinf.org.

DonorChoose.org was brought to my attention a couple of weeks ago by a friend.  I went to the site and absolutely loved what I saw.  This site actually allows teachers to upload classroom needs and projects that can then be browsed by potential donors. The donors then choose the classroom project they want to help support.  It’s a great way to get involved in helping teachers, knowing exactly what your money is helping to provide.  Plus, the kids post their “thanks yous” on the site for even more reward. To learn more, visit www.donorchoose.org.

There are many ways we can come together to support all of the classrooms in our community. If nothing else, the next time you cross paths with a teacher, say thank you.  They truly give so much to our youth and deserve all the support and gratitude we are able to give them.

Kate Returns to Camp

As a columnist, I love to share amazing stories of our neighbors who are giving back and changing our community and the world.  This month, I wanted to take a moment and share my own latest giving adventure.

It all started when Marilyn Midyette, CEO of Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta, approached me to participate in the organization’s inaugural Camp CEO this summer.

The concept of Camp CEO is to pair teen girls with some of Atlanta’s top female leaders. It is an opportunity for young girls to learn about leadership and success from women who best embody both concepts.

To know me is to know I have a major soft spot in my heart for kids, so the opportunity to mentor the young leaders was an easy “yes.” Plus, it’s been more than 20 years since I earned a Girl Scout badge – I was up for the challenge! And so were 22 other women including Kathy Betty, owner of the Atlanta Dream and Atlanta City Councilwoman Yolanda Adrean.

Although I was at camp to mentor and teach, to lead and to inspire, it was clear to me, within the first five minutes at camp that I would also be learning a lot from the Girl Scouts. It was an amazing experience and reinforced just how rewarding helping others can be to my own life.

The week was filled with highlights – from participating in team-building activities with the girls, to writing and performing a rap about the environment with my mentee, to bonding over a camp fire complete with my favorite, s ‘mores.

While the days were filled with fun, the cornerstone of camp was the “Dreaming Your Future” sessions in which the women individually shared life lessons in leadership with the girls. Appropriately, I brought my message about the importance of being a leader and giving back.

The biggest moment for me came shortly after my session when a young girl, just 15. approached me and said, “Thank you. Because of listening to you and hearing about how you started Kate’s Club and took something so horrible that happened to you and did something to help others, I’ve decided to change what I want to do.”

This young girl, very wise and very brave went on to share with me about her own personal health struggle she had overcome and the career she now aspired to create for herself, so that she could help ensure others didn’t suffer as she did. That moment shared between us was so important to her and also so validating to me. I just wanted to give these girls one moment, or thought to take away from this camp that would provide a seed for purpose and fulfillment as they grow up.

Just as I try to convey to you through this column each month, I wanted to deliver the message to these girls about how they could make a difference. But the Girls Scouts didn’t need me to introduce that message, because they are already delivering it. I saw it in every girl there and in their actions as leaders in their young lives.

For more information of the Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta, visit www.girlscoutsofgreateratlanta.org.

Charity in the City: Hudson Family Foundation

June means it’s time for a few of my favorite things: summertime, family time and baseball!  You can imagine my excitement when I found a way to include giving back into all of these elements.

When I heard what Atlanta Braves’ pitcher Tim Hudson and his wife Kim were doing this summer to help the community of Atlanta, I wanted to share it with all of you. Let’s put it this way, in my world, it’s a homerun.

One year ago, Tim and Kim launched the Hudson Family Foundation. Their mission is to provide assistance to children with physical, financial or emotional needs in Georgia and Alabama. In its first year, the foundation has raised more than $150,000 for children and families in need.

It’s been a fantastic start for the Hudson Family, culminating with Tim himself being honored by the Atlanta Sports Council as Atlanta’s Sports Person of the Year.  However, more than the awards and accolades, one thing remains most important to the Hudson Family: their own success is best rewarded by giving back to help others in need.

That’s why the Hudson Family Foundation is launching a unique opportunity for you to join them in their giving this month. To celebrate its first anniversary, the foundation is launching a fundraising initiative called Club One Five presented by STATS Atlanta.

Individuals and families are encouraged to join by pledging to contribute a specific amount of money for every win Tim records, every batter he strikes out, every start he makes, and the number of innings he pitches during the regular season.

Kim said moms can use the fundraiser as an opportunity to engage children in the importance of philanthropy and helping others.

“Club One Five is a fun way to follow Tim and his success, while raising funds for the foundation,” Kim said.  “We would love to get more people signed up and be able to celebrate as a community at the end of the season.”

That’s right, those club members who hold up their pledge until the end of the season, get to celebrate with Tim and Kim at an exclusive party to be held in late October at STATS in downtown Atlanta.

The next time you head out to the ballpark or tune in to a game on television, remember you have an opportunity to help the community at the same time.  For more information, visit www.hudsonfamilyfoundation.com and download the Clue One Five pledge form.

Charity IN the City: What is May without Mother’s Day?

What is May without Mother’s Day? I love this time of year when we stop to really appreciate moms. Moms are some of the biggest givers in our community and deserve all the praise possible during this special time.

I find great inspiration in moms who are making a difference inside and outside their homes. This is exactly why I have chosen to dedicate this month’s column and my Mother’s Day to Rita Young.

Rita Young is a mom, a professional, a volunteer and an activist. For years, these were all puzzle pieces in her life. A year ago, however, she was able to put these puzzle pieces together when she took on the role of public policy director for a non-profit organization called All About Developmental Disabilities (AADD).

AADD, located in Ansley Park, is Georgia’s top provider of needed services, education, and effective advocacy for children, adults, and families living with developmental disabilities. The organization’s statement is loud and clear: people with developmental disabilities, and their families, are among the most challenged and excluded people in society.

As its director of public policy, Rita serves as the organization’s leading voice each week as she lobbies legislation to improve the opportunities and treatment of our state’s citizens living with developmental disabilities.  As a mother raising a family that faces such challenges, her voice is filled with personal passion and purpose.

Rita’s passion to help comes from her own personal experience.  When Rita’s two boys were young, ages 3 and 2, they both were diagnosed with autism – a disability that affects an estimated 1.5 million people in the United States each year.

She spent many of those early years at home, taking care of her boys.  It was a full-time job just getting them to their therapies five days a week.  Her goal was focused and simple: to make her boys happy and give them every opportunity to thrive.

As she got more involved, she realized just how many families faced similar struggles. Informally, she began to connect to other parents and served as a catalyst for them to find the help they needed.  In fact, it is this connection to other parents navigating the unpredictable path of raising children with disabilities that led her to her position today with AADD.

Most of Rita’s job involves her testifying at the Capitol on behalf of the families she meets. She loves her job because it impacts so many others, including her own two sons.  Rita is able to enjoy her dream job with AADD and still enjoy a dream day that includes seeing her two sons, now 17 and 15 years old, smile.  Says Young, “The best days are when I see a grin on both of my sons’ faces; when we can all laugh out loud at life.  That’s important to remember, that there is humor in all of it, good times and bad.”

For more information on Rita’s work and AADD, visit their website www.aadd.org.