Another day on sparked.com
I started with simply reviewing a website geared towards raising funds for childhood cancer - www.alexslemonade.org
I then gave feedback on an Ad to recruit board members for Sexual Assault Response Services of Southern Maine.
I also helped spread the word about the We Women Foundation's online campaign Educate One, Empower Thousands - check them out on facebook!
Lastly, I took action to support the Water for the World Act. Clean water and sanitation are basic human rights. But 2.6 billion people lack access to improved sanitation, including 1.2 billion people who have no facilities at all. The majority of the illness in the world is caused by fecal matter -- in fact, 50% of the hospital beds in the developing world are occupied by people suffering water-related diseases and, every 20 seconds, a child dies from a water-related disease. Among those with the least access to clean water are the more than one billion people around the world who live in slums.
Hope everyone has a good weekend!!
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Friday, November 18, 2011
Day 322
Cold/Flu symptoms stopped me from going to the Baylor Clinic today so while stuck in bed I wrote some letters for human rights through Amnesty International:
I've been reading the Guantanamo Files and am horrified with the treatment of prisoners (or rather, the many innocent people) held there, so today's letters were for the people being held there.
The first letter I wrote was to stop Congress from making Guantanamo permanent. We are facing one of the biggest crises at Guantanamo since “war on terror” detainees were first transferred there nearly 10 years ago: Congress may soon vote to make indefinite detention and unfair trials permanent. The 89 people there who are approved for release could remain forever. The 46 slated for detention without charge could be denied due process forever. The 36 referred for prosecution could only be tried in unfair kangaroo courts. The United States government should be protecting human rights, not violating them.
Along the same lines I wrote a letter urging the Senate to remove Guantanamo provisions from the National Defense Authorization Act that has provisions that would keep Guantanamo open, further entrenching indefinite detention and unfair trials.
The next one was to ask our government to charge or release Shaker Aamer, a former UK resident detained at Guantanamo, who has been held without charge for nearly 10 years – despite the UK government’s repeated requests that he be returned to his wife and four children in London. Indefinite detention is a human rights violation. It must end.
The last one I wrote was for Saeed Mohammed Saleh Hatim who remains detained in Guantánamo without charge or trial after eight years, despite the fact that on December 16, 2009, US federal judge Ricardo Urbina found his detention unlawful and ordered his release. The government is appealing Judge Urbina's ruling and it is not known when the US Court of Appeals will hand down its decision. I wrote to urge the administration to release Saeed Mohammed Saleh Hatim immediately and allow him to be reunited with his family in Yemen.
Please read through some of these cases (Guantanamo Files is a great place to start) and stay informed with what's going on - the human rights violations you will read about are truly horrific and disgusting! Hoping and praying for those still going through the torture...
I've been reading the Guantanamo Files and am horrified with the treatment of prisoners (or rather, the many innocent people) held there, so today's letters were for the people being held there.
The first letter I wrote was to stop Congress from making Guantanamo permanent. We are facing one of the biggest crises at Guantanamo since “war on terror” detainees were first transferred there nearly 10 years ago: Congress may soon vote to make indefinite detention and unfair trials permanent. The 89 people there who are approved for release could remain forever. The 46 slated for detention without charge could be denied due process forever. The 36 referred for prosecution could only be tried in unfair kangaroo courts. The United States government should be protecting human rights, not violating them.
Along the same lines I wrote a letter urging the Senate to remove Guantanamo provisions from the National Defense Authorization Act that has provisions that would keep Guantanamo open, further entrenching indefinite detention and unfair trials.
The next one was to ask our government to charge or release Shaker Aamer, a former UK resident detained at Guantanamo, who has been held without charge for nearly 10 years – despite the UK government’s repeated requests that he be returned to his wife and four children in London. Indefinite detention is a human rights violation. It must end.
The last one I wrote was for Saeed Mohammed Saleh Hatim who remains detained in Guantánamo without charge or trial after eight years, despite the fact that on December 16, 2009, US federal judge Ricardo Urbina found his detention unlawful and ordered his release. The government is appealing Judge Urbina's ruling and it is not known when the US Court of Appeals will hand down its decision. I wrote to urge the administration to release Saeed Mohammed Saleh Hatim immediately and allow him to be reunited with his family in Yemen.
Please read through some of these cases (Guantanamo Files is a great place to start) and stay informed with what's going on - the human rights violations you will read about are truly horrific and disgusting! Hoping and praying for those still going through the torture...
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Day 321
Today was quite a crazy day. Hema spoke with Vearn and was informed that there was no service today at SafeHouse. Then roughly around 5pm, I get a call from LeBlanc saying that there was going to be service. A youth pastor that usually comes to SafeHouse about once a month happened to come by today and noticed that there was no service. So on the spot he decided to sponsor the meal and do a service.
I arrived at SHO and there was so much to be done. The pastor had ordered 25 pizzas from Fellini's Pizza and they needed to be picked up. So we went to Fellini's, stopping at Publix on the way to buy lemonade, and picked up the pizza. When we returned to SHO I helped pack the plates up with food. We packed them pizza and brewed some coffee. In a matter of two hours, we were able to prepare a meal for about 100 people. :)
Hema was not able to make it to SafeHouse on the short notice, but she had already done some work on freerice.com and donated 2000 grains of rice, since she thought we would not be able to go to SHO.
In the end, I was glad I was able to make it to SHO today since it had been quite some time since my last visit. It was great to see people come together at the last minute to help out and get a meal served. Thank you to everyone that was there today and was good seeing everyone again :)
I arrived at SHO and there was so much to be done. The pastor had ordered 25 pizzas from Fellini's Pizza and they needed to be picked up. So we went to Fellini's, stopping at Publix on the way to buy lemonade, and picked up the pizza. When we returned to SHO I helped pack the plates up with food. We packed them pizza and brewed some coffee. In a matter of two hours, we were able to prepare a meal for about 100 people. :)
Hema was not able to make it to SafeHouse on the short notice, but she had already done some work on freerice.com and donated 2000 grains of rice, since she thought we would not be able to go to SHO.
In the end, I was glad I was able to make it to SHO today since it had been quite some time since my last visit. It was great to see people come together at the last minute to help out and get a meal served. Thank you to everyone that was there today and was good seeing everyone again :)
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Day 320
Giselle covered today and between her new job, familial obligations, and the tornado warnings last night (j/k)... Giselle still made the time to log onto Freerice.com before the clock struck 12! We're dedicated to Chandni's mission to complete the remainder of these 46 days seamlessly and make whatever impact we can!
Being fluent in Spanish, she dominated that Spanish category and donated 1200 grains of rice!
She also stopped by Kroger to purchase a few canned goods to donate towards Hosea Feed the Hungry. Her work place is hosting a canned food drive.
In the meanwhile, I've been coordinating with all of our friends to participate in Safehouse Outreach's Christmas Party, and sponsor a child for Christmas! Giselle's about to pick her kid and let me know (lol).
If any of you are still interested, please contact me and Chandni via email so we can give you additional details!
~Dona
Being fluent in Spanish, she dominated that Spanish category and donated 1200 grains of rice!
She also stopped by Kroger to purchase a few canned goods to donate towards Hosea Feed the Hungry. Her work place is hosting a canned food drive.
In the meanwhile, I've been coordinating with all of our friends to participate in Safehouse Outreach's Christmas Party, and sponsor a child for Christmas! Giselle's about to pick her kid and let me know (lol).
If any of you are still interested, please contact me and Chandni via email so we can give you additional details!
~Dona
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Day 319
All that clicking that they do.... Does it even make a difference?!? Well logging onto Care2.com today answered that question for us and you! "Since Children International became a part of the Click-to-Donate program in 2004, Care2 has sponsored 16 needy children from nine countries -- contributing over $21,000 to their care. Thank you to those who continue to click each day, providing children with materials and opportunities for a better life." That's just one example! And I'm certain there's several more testimonials as to how we make a difference within the Care 2 community. Hema, Raksha, and I were all able to login to Care2 this evening and make a difference.
Here's what Hema had to say... "Here is what I did on Care2. 1. I signed a petition so that Pennsylavania will develop stronger laws about reporting child abuse. Recently, Penn State's football coach failed to report instances of child abuse that occured for many years. We do not want to have another repeat of this. 2. I signed a petition that would save the lives of street dogs. There are a lot of dogs that are homeless all around the world and they all face being poisoned, electrocuted or shot as a result of misguided efforts to manage overpopulation. HSI (humane society international) will work with local communites to prevent these dogs from being killed and getting them the help they need to find a loving home."
Along with that, I stumbled upon a video on a mutual friends site for Children's Healthcare of Atlanta. The video was on Youtube, and for every view a $1 is donated! I'd shared the video with friends, and here's what one had to say... "Kim M. Braud - Wow, that is powerful! Very touching - thanks for sharing.."
It wasn't a physical day for us as planned, but we are grateful for the opportunity to be able to contribute our time and efforts online. It's simple, it's easy, and we can all do it. What can you do to give back during the holiday season? Just look around! Ask. We'd be glad to help!
Here's what Hema had to say... "Here is what I did on Care2. 1. I signed a petition so that Pennsylavania will develop stronger laws about reporting child abuse. Recently, Penn State's football coach failed to report instances of child abuse that occured for many years. We do not want to have another repeat of this. 2. I signed a petition that would save the lives of street dogs. There are a lot of dogs that are homeless all around the world and they all face being poisoned, electrocuted or shot as a result of misguided efforts to manage overpopulation. HSI (humane society international) will work with local communites to prevent these dogs from being killed and getting them the help they need to find a loving home."
Along with that, I stumbled upon a video on a mutual friends site for Children's Healthcare of Atlanta. The video was on Youtube, and for every view a $1 is donated! I'd shared the video with friends, and here's what one had to say... "Kim M. Braud - Wow, that is powerful! Very touching - thanks for sharing.."
It wasn't a physical day for us as planned, but we are grateful for the opportunity to be able to contribute our time and efforts online. It's simple, it's easy, and we can all do it. What can you do to give back during the holiday season? Just look around! Ask. We'd be glad to help!
Monday, November 14, 2011
Day 318
After a morning safari (on horseback) I was rather motivated to sign some environment and wildlife petitions on care2.com
The first was to save pandas by protecting their homes; then to protect the Arctic refuge, home to polar bears, musk oxen, caribou, and millions of birds from around the globe; another was a petition to reforest and rebuild Haiti's environment; the last was to keep endangered spider monkeys in Nicaragua safe.
I also visited the click to donate section on the website as well as those on thehungersite.com
Another quick way to make a difference :)
The first was to save pandas by protecting their homes; then to protect the Arctic refuge, home to polar bears, musk oxen, caribou, and millions of birds from around the globe; another was a petition to reforest and rebuild Haiti's environment; the last was to keep endangered spider monkeys in Nicaragua safe.
I also visited the click to donate section on the website as well as those on thehungersite.com
Another quick way to make a difference :)
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Day 317
It's been a wonderful day in Gabs, so I'm ending it with a visit to sparked.com
I started with Insight Prison Project. Their mission is to transform the lives of those impacted by incarceration through programs designed to develop behavior inspired by insight, accountability and compassion. They asked for some feedback on their website: www.insightprisonproject.org
The next one was helping Bend Spay and Neuter Project with simple fundraising ideas. As well as reviewing their website and providing feedback on the appearance of it: www.bendsnip.org
Hoping you all have a good Sunday!
I started with Insight Prison Project. Their mission is to transform the lives of those impacted by incarceration through programs designed to develop behavior inspired by insight, accountability and compassion. They asked for some feedback on their website: www.insightprisonproject.org
The next one was helping Bend Spay and Neuter Project with simple fundraising ideas. As well as reviewing their website and providing feedback on the appearance of it: www.bendsnip.org
Hoping you all have a good Sunday!
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