Reality: Be Real About Service

giving back • my world • Mom It Forward Mondays • tips for giving back

by Mom It Forward on August 1st, 2011 | No Comments »

Service—For many of us, our day-to-day reality is to take care of our families. This is something we work hard to do, all in different ways. But the big-picture reality is that, no matter what challenges we face, there are always others who have it worse. Your Season of Service challenge this week, should you choose to accept it, is to Be Real, to think of real ways to help others in small ways within your day-to-day doings. Here are some ideas.

10 Bite-Size Ideas for Being Real

Check into donating an unwanted timeshare at DonateForACause.org, which sells your real estate, takes care of all the paperwork, gives you a generous tax write-off, and directs the money from the sale to the charity of your choice.
Send a $5 donation to Real Life Children's Ranch, a residential group home in Florida for kids who have been abused, abandoned, or neglected.
Purchase an extra backpack and a few surplus school supplies when you go school shopping and donate them to GiveBackAPack.org, a nonprofit that collects and distributes supply-filled backpacks to kids in poor areas of Latin America, making school a reality for those who might not otherwise be able to attend.
Go to ChainStoreReaction.com and send a pre-drafted letter to one of the brands listed on their site, to help those brands realize the importance of not using slave labor in their manufacturing.
Reuse your junk mail by shredding it and stuffing it in the next package you ship.
Read Making It Happen: Pizza Parties, Chemistry Goddesses and Other Strategies for tips that really work to get girls more involved in math and science.
Help a small nonprofit, YFCED.com, for youth develop a social media strategy to promote events, gain recognition in their market, and determined how involved they need to be to keep a real and relevant presence in their area.
Take your kids to get their own library card, to get them really excited about reading.
Slip a note to any young woman who is expecting unexpectedly about RealAlternatives.org, an organization that helps them get informed about their choices.
Buy a few extra school supplies and/or gifts from this wish list to give to homeless children in Arizona, through The Real Gift Foundation.

How Will You Give to Others This Week?

What other ideas do you have for giving to others by going green?
How has going green made a meaningful difference for you this week?
How have others given to you this week and what difference has that made in your life?

How Else Can You Make a Difference This Season?

Make a meaningful difference this season by taking the Season of Service (SOS) Challenge. Here's how you can participate:

Commit to do one act of kindness/service based on the week's challenge.
Leave a comment with ideas relating to the week's challenge as well as your experience(s) performing it.
Enter to win each week's giveaway. Check out this week's prizes from GoodNites by clicking here.
Join #gno this Tuesday on Twitter to connect with other Mom It Forward moms about the challenge.