I recently attended my son's National Honor Society ceremony at the high school where he attends. The ritual is for several seniors to present speeches dealing with character, leadership, service, etc. One speech, in particular, caught my attention. The presenter, student Beth Kerlin, delivered a simple, yet profound idea: leave the world a better place….
Category: Encouragement
Spread the Word to End the Word Today
Today is Spread the Word to End the Word day. I learned about this event from Laura at the 25 Days to Make a Difference blog. What is Spread the Word to End the Word day? It is a National Awareness Day, established by Special Olympics, to raise awareness of the hurtful effects of the…
365 Club Still Growing
December 31, 2008 marked the beginning of an exciting group of people worldwide. Inspired by the small random act of kindness by Dave Ferguson, Lead Pastor of Community Christian Church in Chicago, the group was formed on Facebook. Soon 100's were joining to become a part of a community who pledged to do at least…
Will You Spread the Word to End the Word?
Laura is a friend of mine who creates the 25 Days to Make a Difference blog. She is a young girl with a big heart. On March 31st, she is hosting a blog carnival to support the Special Olympics’ Spread the Word to End the Word Day. It is a National Awareness Day to raise…
What Words Describe You?
Wordle creates “word clouds” from text that you provide. Greater prominence is given to words that appear more frequently. The image below is a based on the text of the Everyday Giving Blog. I feel great looking at this image with words like Hope, Thanksgiving, and Life popping out at me. But what if an…
Give Encouragement To Caregivers
Who are the caregivers in your life? Perhaps they need the gift of your encouragement. This is an excellent form of everyday giving. Caregivers carry a unique weight on their shoulders. Plus, November is National Family Caregivers Month. How are you going to give encouragement? There are more than 50 million family caregivers across the…
Contagious Smiles
Celebration after successfully performing a “nose transplant” on FRMC employee I recently went into the hospital. But it wasn’t to get tested or treated. It was to help provide some humor to the patients and staff at Frye Regional Medical Center in Hickory, North Carolina. A volunteer team called Charlie’s Chaplains visits their local hospital…
You Don’t Have to Join a Circus to be a Clown
Did you ever think about being a clown? I didn’t, until I discovered a hospital clown ministry made up of volunteers. Several weeks ago my clown journey began as I was doing some research on laughter and humor therapy. I met Becky Cortino through a free online class she was teaching on the topic called…
Brush Up On Your “Giving Reading”
I am amazed how time flies. Our first high school football game starts tonight! (wasn’t it just yesterday that the kids got out of school for the summer?) Anyway, as we peer into the near future, we see school supplies, buses, teachers, homework, routines, and reading assignments. This is a great time to consider a…
This Blogger Neighbor Doesn’t Clown Around about 52 Ways to Change the World – SocialButterfly
Image by wgbhmorningstories via Flickr Alexandra Rampy (aka SocialButterfly) interviewed a very busy and generous seventeen year old. Julie Zauzmer is a young podcaster and a volunteer clown when she’s not attending class. She has a great outlook on giving that she talks about on her podcast. I have already subscribed to her 52 Ways…