Now you have finished cleaning up from the nights fun and merriment, and its time to set foot firmly into the new year. Its time to sit down and set-forth your goals and resolutions.
Are you still pondering your New Years resolutions? Looking for ideas on how you can help a child in need this in 2008. You care about what is going on in this world and about what is happening to our children, and I know you are always asking yourself, “What can I do?”, and saying to yourself “Can I do more?”.
Last year I vowed to do more than just write, and well I guess I succeeded as on New Years Eve last year I opened the letter determining that Bridge to Freedom Foundation was a legal entity…a reality and no longer a dream. That dream has truly been an exciting reality this past year and we have laid the foundation, and so this year I resolve to move BTFF into solid action and begin to really serve clients and help survivors move into thriving lives. Now you don’t have to resolve to set up your on charity this year, but why not find a way that fits into your life to have a more lasting impact to a cause.
Therefore I wanted to give you a small list of easy things you can do this year to help a child around the world, or a child right here at home. I do hope this list is more than inspiring and you not only get into the spirit of volunteering for the New Year, but that you find your cause, and your way to help…I know it took me years to find the place where I was not just helpful and got that tingle of a good feeling, but the cause and way to help that I knew was actually making some sort of lasting difference, both within my self and for those who needed it the most. That is not to say that I, nor you couldn’t always do a bit more. But finding the cause which begins to resonate with in your every pore is the hardest part, and once you do, it is the most rewarding feeling you will ever find in your life. My cause isn’t a cause it’s a life long passion, and I will not quit the fight against human trafficking and modern day slavery until I leave this earth. I find myself unable to let go, and thus it is now a part of me…a large part of me. I find there is rarely a day that goes by that I do not have a conversation about my cause…every time I go to a bar, or a party I convert, or educate someone, not because I am up on a soapbox, but because I am passionate. When you are truly passionate I think it resonates within the depths of ones soul and people feel that. I know for me personally, I have found that people can see why I have become that way, and thus they see the need to help those enslaved in a world where freedom was supposed to be a given. Thus this is my New Years wish for you; I hope you find that cause, person, etc., that gives you passion, hope, courage and drive and that you never let it go!
- Host dinners to raise awareness for any cause and invite friends to donate a set amount as they enter, and then use the evening to begin discussions and inform your guests about the cause and how they can be more involved.
- Gather a group and collect and deliver books and toys, or go paint murals on the wall of a children’s hospital or community center.
- Become a Foster Parent
- Volunteer once a month at a local soup kitchen
- Council children and teens of abuse
- Volunteer at a shelter for battered women
- Become a Big Brother or Sister
- Write, talk, share
- Volunteer to work on a crisis hot line
- Volunteer to work at the local community/children’s center or on an after school program
- Donate your time, your resources (not just money)…share your skills
- Volunteer Overseas
- Help build a Habitat for Humanity House
- Get your church or community involved and start your own project (my church managed to get a school and church built in Guatemala…just imagine what you can do).
- Get your children involved
- Blog about a cause