International Development Enterprises

Life is finally slowing down to a point that I can start getting caught up on things like blogging. I haven’t forgotten about my monthly charity post – I just haven’t had a chance to post it.

And now that life is settling down there’s only one thing to do – sign up for more!

This summer I’ll be participating in an Amazing Race style of event for Microsoft called the IT Grand Prix. Four teams of two people will race from DC to NYC to Houston to New Orleans. Along the way our challenges will involve stopping at different non-profits and solving some IT issue they’re having. The winning team gets to donate $10,000 to a charity of their choice. I volunteered to race with Susan, a fellow MCT and good friend of mine. And we’ve chosen the International Development Enterprises (IDE) as our charity.

While IDE may not have the flashiest name, they do great work. Their goal is income and job creation in impoverished rural areas. One thing that really drew me to this charity is their focus isn’t on handouts but rather on teaching people skills to improve production and their way of life. They work in 11 different countries and have touched the lives of over 19 million people.

If you’re interested in IDE, you can find out more here. And if you’re interested in finding out more about the IT Grand Prix, you can do that here.

Five for Fighting

Peter King probably does just fine on his own when it comes to exposure, but for those of you who don’t know him he’s a column writer for Sports Illustrated. This month I want to focus on a drive he started for Sgt. Mike McGuire.

Peter met Sgt. McGuire at a Cardinals game in 2005. Both men were there alone, sitting next to each other and happened to strike up a conversation. Half way through the game neither one of them was paying attention as Peter was riveted by everything Sgt. McGuire was telling him. Sgt. McGuire is a battalion leader for 100+ troops who specialize in IED removal (think The Hurt Locker).

Sgt. McGuire and his men are being deployed to a remote region of Afghanistan and will not have access to a large base. Large bases mean creature comforts such as televisions, gaming systems and even little things such as snacks. Small, temporary bases generally have none of those. This is where the USO steps in, providing these reminders of home. Of course, the USO needs money to provide those.

With the help of Five for Fighting singer John Ondrasik and the USO, Peter has launched the Five for Fighting drive. The premise is simple – donate $5 towards kits for Sgt. McGuire’s men and other battalions. Over the first couple of weeks enough money has been raised for Sgt. McGuire’s battalion, but a handful of others. There’s more to be done.

This is not about politics, nor is about what one feels about the war. It’s all about the troops – the brave men and women who are out their fighting and putting their lives at risk.

So, if the spirit moves, you can donate $5 here.

Just Give

I’m going to go slightly off track here with my charity, as this month I’m not going to highlight a charity as I am a way to donate.

As time has gone on, one thing that I’ve realized is I, and frankly most everyone I know, has really everything they might need. While receiving a present at holiday time may still be nice, in the end it doesn’t necessarily offer the recipient much beyond the feeling of receiving a gift and knowing one is loved.

One popular alternative is to donate to a charity in one’s name. A noble gesture to be sure, but depending on who the donation is being made in honor of it can be challenging to figure out what charity would best fit that person. This is where Just Give comes in.

Just Give is essentially a gift card, only for charities. Done completely online, when you purchase your gift card it sends an email to the recipient with a code to use for the donation. There are 1.5 million charities affiliated with Just Give; you’re nearly guaranteed to find one you’d like to donate to.

The site is available at www.justgive.org.

One Laptop Per Child

I was driving through San Jose the other day and I saw a billboard for OLPC and I got an idea for a new regular blog posting. I do pretty OK for myself, and it’d be nice to give back in some way shape or form. At the same time, it’d also be nice to start highlighting different charities that are maybe off the beaten path but who do good work.

The basic concept is this – once a month I’m going to donate to and highlight some charity. The only restriction is that it can’t be a famous charity – so no Red Cross, Goodwill, etc. Not to say they don’t do fantastic work, they do, but they get enough press. There’s also no restriction based on religion. If they do something worthwhile, they’re worth acknowledging. And if you have a suggestion, by all means let me know.

It only seems fair that the first charity I highlight is the one that was the inspiration for this category – OLPC. The goal of the organization is to donate laptops to children in developing nations, a need that desperately needs to be filled. Often times developing nations seem to get squeezed out when it comes to charity dollars. Everyone donates to third world countries that are battling just to stay alive, but once a nation progresses beyond this, or is simply already beyond that state, they are sort of forgotten. In order for nations to develop on the world stage they need technology; they need laptops.

The normal way OLPC works is you buy a laptop at $200 which is donated. They’re certainly not the most powerful laptops, but the important part is merely that children are exposed to technology. You can also simply donate to the cause, which is what I chose to do.

You can donate (if the spirit moves) here.