To commemorate the tenth anniversary of our mom's death, my siblings and I raised money and shaved our heads. In less than a year it will be 20 years, and I want to do something big again. I haven't grown my hair back in, so the head shaving event won't have the same impact.
In addition to looking for the big event, I'm going to take a different approach. Through
Charity Intelligence, I've found 52 charities for 52 weeks and I'm going to make a small donation to each. Every week I'll update this post with the new charity - my focus is on mostly local donations that matter to me. I'm also going to find a run each month (during running season only - I'm not a cold-weather runner!!!). You can join me over the next year for some or all of these (runs and/or donations), come up with your own plan, or cheer me on.
However, weekly donations doesn't quite feel like enough, especially with other events coming up in the next 18 months. My partner and I will both turn 40, and we'll celebrate our tenth wedding anniversary. Our child turns five. After my partner shared
our birth story, we spent a couple of years on the steering committee for a major fundraising event. I've always found the experience of donating time and energy more fulfilling than donating money (stuffing swag bags is strangely gratifying, once in a while), so we're looking for opportunities, ideally ones open to family participation, to work on something that matters to us. Once we've found something, then that will be where we focus our fundraising efforts.
I haven't found anything yet, but I'm going to start by donating blood every other month again (I had to take a break after a really weird virus and a trip to Mexico).
Update -
We're six months in, and I'm getting ready for the first run. I decided to make it my big event of the year. Southlake is where my mom received most of her cancer care, so it feels like a good fit for a fundraising push. The run is also the day after mom's birthday, which means the timing is ideal for a good fundraising story, and a good time for reflection (both sadness and gratitude).
If you can please consider donating to any of these runs, or picking a charity that matters to you. And, since someone was motivated to donate blood based on my renewed commitment to that, please take care of yourself - some of us don't have enough blood in us to give, which is all the more reason for those of us who can to do so!
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