gifts we love :: donations to good causes

Most of us have our basic needs met – water, food, shelter, education. But there is a whole world out there lacking these basic needs and at times we, as individuals, are not aware of how little it takes to make a difference in the lives of the neediest in our global community.

After watching the great documentary on water, FLOW, I thought of charity:water and quickly found great information on their site. Did you know that Americans spend “$450 BILLION celebrating the holidays?” Did you know that this would “solve the water crises several times over?” It could provide water to the billion people who do not have access to safe, clean drinking water. I love that 100% of the money raised goes to “project cost & funding sustainable clean water solutions in areas of greatest need.” What I love more is that now you can give the gift of clean water to 1 person in a developing nation for 20 years for as little as $24! It’s a win-win-win and we LOVE that!

If you like the idea of micro-lending to entrepreneurs in developing countries (most of which are women), Kiva.org the way to go. They make it really easy for YOU to make small LOANS to real individuals who would not have access to other lending options. “Kiva’s mission is to connect people through lending for the sake of alleviating poverty. Kiva is the world’s first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend to unique entrepreneurs around the globe.” The best part is that YOU’LL GET YOUR MONEY BACK and then you can choose to LEND AGAIN & CHANGE MORE LIVES. Loans start at $25 – what we may spend on a dinner or a couple of drinks. What are you waiting for?

“Did you know that 90% of homeless adults need a new, warm coat each winter because they have no place to keep one over the summer months?” New York Cares runs a coat drive until December 31.  As the year comes to an end, it’s a good idea to clear the clutter and donate your gently used coats and clothing that have been taking up room in your closet. You’ll provide warmth, smiles and a little style to our city’s neediest. Here’s a few other options: the Salvation Army, Housing Works, or Opera Thrift.

NYMag.com also has a great listing of local charities broken down into categories: children, animals, environmental, homeless, cultural and even by neighborhoods. Click away & give!

Lastly, if you enjoy our shows here at Friends We Love and feel they would be a good resource for young people in our schools and universities, please donate to our educational initiative, Friends We Inspire. This past year we presented, filmed and held workshops for  400 middle and high school students at the Annual Human Rights Leadership Forum: Rhythm and Flow in Boston’s Northeastern University. Sport in Society’s Rhythm & Flow initiative is “dedicated to the study and implementation of how sport and music can play a role in societal issues and how they can help combat discrimination and promote human rights for all.” FWL also produced a “Call to Action” video of the participating students for the administration of President Barack Obama. The video was part of a presentation by Sport in Society which resulted in the formation of a White House Office of Olympic, Paralympic and Youth Sport!

These are other educational initiatives we’ve participated in 2009:

- Montage Independent Filmmakers series, screening Toronto, Canada
- Friends We Love to Talk T.O. presentation & screening at Manifesto Community Projects, Toronto, Canada
- The Renaissance Charter School, presentation & screening, Queens, NY
- Westchester Educational Media Center, presentation & screening, NY
- City AS High School, Screening with FWL artist Cacy Forgenie, Brooklyn

If you would like to donate, please stop by our “Donate” page. We are in the process of filing for the non-profit status of Friends We Inspire but while we wait, we have a fiscal conduit who will process your donation & provide you paperwork for tax purposes. Please contact us at info@friendswelove.com to make any donations to our educational initiatives.

Friends We Love :: Create, Educate, Celebrate!

Thank you & Happy Holidays!

This entry was posted on Saturday, December 12th, 2009 at 2:38 AM and is filed under FWL BLOG and tagged with charities, charity:water, clean, clean water, com, educational initiatives, flow, friends we inspire, friends we love, holiday donations, holiday gifts, housing works, kiva.org, little, love, manifesTO, micro loans, montage, nycares.org, nymag.com, opera thrift, Paralympic and Youth Sport, renaissance charter school, salvation army, sport in society, water, westchester educational media center, White House Office of Olympic. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.