Global Grassroots Empowering Women

Global Grassroots is a 501(c)(3) non-profit supporting conscious social change.  The programs are "driven by and for vulnerable women at the grassroots level."

The UN estimates that between 250,000 and 500,000 women were sexually assaulted during the 1994 Rwandan genocide. According to Amnesty International, 67 percent of these women, most left widowed by the conflict, contracted HIV.  Post-conflict, women are often left alone as widows to assume the traditional roles of men in rebuilding their lives, while taking care of their own children and even the orphans of their neighbors. Focused on daily survival, they are frequently unable to attend to their own emotional and physical rehabilitation needs.

Global Grassroots helps women address mind-body trauma healing, social venture development skills, leadership training, personal transformation practices, and initiating their own civil society organizations.  Often primary caregivers, women have the power to impact their children's, neighbors', and ultimately, their communities lives for good.  Global Grassroots provides the platform and tools for women to remake their world.

Helping After Irene

The Red Cross is accepting donations for relief efforts.  Call 1-800-RED CROSS, texting the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation, sending contributions to the American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, DC 20013 or donating online. 

To contribute to the Salvation Army's relief efforts, text "STORM" to 80888 to make a one-time $10 donation or contribute online.
Network For Good, an online hub of charities, nonprofits and volunteers, has a list of organizations offering relief.

Operation USA seeks to fill gaps in community health care and social services efforts after disasters. Text "aid" to 50555 or visit the donation page online.


When disaster strikes, Feed the Children rolls out its fleet of semi-tractor trailers stocked with the critical supplies, including diapers, baby products, bottled water, cleanup supplies, snacks to be used in the days and weeks of critical recovery time. To help Feed the Children help those in need, consider making an online donation.

AmeriCares is accepting donations.  The organization specializes in wound care medicines and supplies, water, and other storm-relief items.

The Samaritan's Feet

More than 70,000 Samaritan's Feet volunteers have put 3,000,000 impoverished children in shoes. No small feat!  --Yet, one this nonprofit takes to heart.  Three-hundred million live without any shoes, and foot-borne illnesses kill a million people each year.

A life spent barefoot isn't just limited to undeveloped nations.  Even in the U.S., youngsters go without shoes or have footwear that is too small.  Shoes open up choices to children in ways you may not think about.  They're able to attend school (because with shoes they can walk).  Sports become an option.

Samaritan's Feet operates in 40 nations and provide relief to war-torn and disaster-ridden areas.

Square Foot Gardening to End Hunger

Square Foot Gardening is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) entity with simple solutions to food insecurity.  Its ultimate goal is to end world hunger by reaching out to families and teaching them how to grow their own healthy food.    Families can improve their nutrition intake and benefit from quality time together centered around gardening.  The Square Foot Gardening plan uses less resources and requires very little work yet yields a harvest equal to a single row garden 5x its size.

The organization also teaches educational classes and support local community gardens and NGO projects overseas.  The nonprofit teaches food literacy in schools, donates gardens to many organizations, and helps promote healthy lifestyles.

Warrior 2 Citizen: Transition for Veterans and Families

Warrior 2 Citizen is a nonprofit created by veterans for veterans. The mission focuses on helping soldiers and their families transition from the front lines of war to the home front.  Post-traumatic Stress can lead to social isolation, tear families apart, and drive the veterans who suffer from the symptoms to suicide.  Warrior 2 Citizen knows how entirely preventable the worst situations are.  Social, economic, and emotional troubles can all be addressed and counseled before tragedy ever happens.

Warrior 2 Citizen emphasizes educational training, emotional healing, physical fitness, and building strong family bonds:

• All programs provide the means to transition the veteran and his/her family into civilian environments through sustained education, training, and counseling.
• Ongoing provision of safe time, space, and confidentiality enables the sustained healing and family bonding within a spiritual model (non-denominational) 30 day retreat.
• Build supportive social network, systems, and distributed education and training.
• Mimic the warfighter battlemind with sports activities and use decompression strategies to assist balancing the body, mind and spirit utilizing the benefits of an extreme sports camp platform and natural retreat environment

Learn more or donate by visiting http://www.warrior2citizen.com/.

You Snooze and Charities Win!

The snooze button on your phone alarm could do a lot more good than letting you catch some extra Z-z-z's.  Snooze for iPhone allows you to pledge a 25 cent donation to a nonprofit every time you press for more sleep.

The LetGive company processes the donation at the end of each month, and you have the prerogative of deciding to give more or less.  LetGive is a for-profit venture.  Their mission includes finding easy ways for charities to fundraise with technology.

A Little Girl and Charity Water

Young Rachel Beckwith hoped to raise $300 by her ninth birthday in an effort to help supply clean water to an impoverished African village.  The girl lost her life in a car accident before she reached her goal, but word spread quickly about her birthday wish for charity.  Washington state and then national news organizations picked up the story inspiring tens of thousands of donors to support her cause, Charity Water.

The fundraising campaign on charitywater.org has now surpassed the $1 million mark.  One hundred percent of these donations go directly to providing clean water to those in developing nations.