In the midst of the Gulf oil spill I have found a list of charities aiding the Gulf oil spill clean up that have been approved by the Better Business Bureau or BBB to be featured in My Monthly Charity this month.

Charities Assisting the Gulf Oil Spill Clean Up

• American Bird Conservancy
• Defenders of Wildlife
• Ducks Unlimited
• EarthShare
• Environmental Defense Fund
• Friends of the Earth
• Greenpeace Fund
• International Fund for Animal Welfare
• National Audubon Society
• National Wildlife Federation
• Natural Resources Defense Council
• Nature Conservancy
• Oceana

The Gulf oil spill is one of the worst disasters that I’ve ever seen. I can’t see how the spill can be completely contained while oil continues to leak into the ocean. As hurricane season comes full swing the problem will only become exacerbated. Hurricane Alex has already brought the spill to many Gulf Coast beaches. Help the Gulf out today by donating to any of the charities approved by the BBB above.

One major complaint I want to make about the Gulf oil spill is why the hell we didn’t treat this disaster with more urgency with government intervention from the beginning and bring in other oil companies to solve the problem! I understand that BP caused the problem and is the responsible party but this is one of the problems that needed to solve asap. There’s oil leaking into our oceans for crying out loud. It is BP’s responsibility but we really needed to come together on this one to stop the leak then call blame and repayment. Today is the 72nd day of oil spilling into our oceans and it doesn’t look like it is stopping anytime soon. If we don’t stop the leak oil will spread to the oceans around world if it hasn’t already started.

You can track the oil spill on CNN with its day to day animated oil slick spread, oil spill estimates and closed fishing areas at http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/04/29/interactive.spill.tracker/index.html.

We have a difficult task at hand as a nation to aiding the Gulf oil spill clean up. Be aware of scams whenever you’re making a charitable donation, especially when disasters happen like the Gulf oil spill. All the charities listed above have been identified to meet the BBB Wise Giving Alliance’s Standards for Charity Accountability.

Help the Gulf Oil Spill Clean Up Now

World Wildlife Fund
With Earth Hour 2010 just passing and Earth Day coming soon there is a strong focus on conservationism and the WWF plays a major role in promoting a better future for our dear Mother Earth.

South Colonie Dollars for Scholars
I wrote about the South Colonie Dollars for Scholars last August and I’m excited and proud to say as alumni that we, Pure Adapt, will be offering 2 scholarships for the South Colonie High Class of 2010.

Haiti & Chile Earthquakes
Major earthquakes that recently happened back to back deserve much attention and I featured them the last two months as the people of Haiti and Chile try to rebuild.
Red Cross – January 2010
Save the Children – February 2010

A major earthquake hit Concepción, Chile on February 27, 2010 which impacted Earth as much as to have shifted the Earth’s axis 3 inches and shortened the length of an Earth day by 1.26 milliseconds. Recorded at 8.8 on the moment magnitude scale it’s the 7th strongest in recorded history. Here we have another country devastated by a major earthquake less than 2 months after Haiti was struck. My Monthly Charity for February 2010 will be for the Save the Children organization as they prepare to send an assessment team to focus on the needs of children and their families.

Any disaster increases the vulnerability of children. And we know from experience that an earthquake of this enormity — with widespread destruction of homes, schools, infrastructure and piece of mind — will put thousands of children at risk, said Charles MacCormack, Save the Children’s president and CEO. – Save the Children Readies to Respond to Massive Earthquake in Chile

Our mission is to create lasting, positive change in the lives of children in need in the U.S. and around the world.

Our priorities are to ensure that children in need grow up protected and safe, educated, healthy and well-nourished, and able to thrive in economically secure households.

We provide a wide range of programs, including:

• Training community health workers to care for newborns and young children;
• Protecting vulnerable children from abuse and exploitation;
• Helping communities in at-risk countries to be prepared in advance of natural disasters; and
• Improving children’s health through regular exercise and nutritious food in the U.S.

– Save the Children Mission Statement

Save the Children does work around the world to help children in need and when an earthquake of this magnitude hits anywhere in the world it will surely be needed. There is an estimated 580,000 children that maybe affected by the quake. There will be a lot of children that will be in dire need of assistance after an earthquake like this and Save the Children will do it’s part to help.

How can we help? We can help the children of Chile by contributing to the Save the Children’s Emergency Fund which helps the organization respond to those in need in the disaster zone. Recovery efforts have just begun but every little contribution will make a difference.

Donate to the Children’s Emergency Fund Now >>

When a major natural disaster hits, the American Red Cross has been there for emergency aid for those in need since 1881. The recent devastating earthquake in Haiti prompts the return of the Red Cross as My Monthly Charity.

See my previous post about a string of tragic natural disasters in My Monthly Charity May 2008 featuring the Red Cross and all the great humanitarian things they do.

My Monthly Charity January 2010 will bring the Haiti earthquake aid to the spotlight featuring the Red Cross.

How the Red Cross is Helping

Funds Spent/Committed for Haiti Earthquake Response
American Red Cross Funds Spent/Committed for Haiti Earthquake Response [PDF]

In an operation that has involved more emergency response teams than any other single-country disaster in global Red Cross history, the American Red Cross has so far spent or committed more than $67 million to meet the most urgent needs of earthquake survivors in Haiti.

The American Red Cross is currently focusing on three areas through its emergency responders and partners:

1. Sending food to those in need, including 3 million pre-packaged meals and funding for World Food Program efforts that will enable them to feed up to 1 million people for a month.
2. Providing clean drinking water, including 3.5 million liters distributed to date in 68 settlements. Each day, the Red Cross is distributing enough water for 100,000 people.
3. Distributing shelter items, such as blankets, tarps, sleeping mats and tents, to families who have been left homeless.

The Red Cross is also meeting the health needs of Haitian survivors and providing support to Haitian families in Haiti and the US. This includes providing relief supplies, shipment of blood products, family linking services and providing Red Cross volunteers to the USNS Comfort, which have been in Haiti for one week.

Ways you can help the Red Cross:

• Make a donation
  • A new way of giving is now available right through your phone by texting “Haiti” to 90999 and a small donation will be made to the Red Cross. (See my post about “A New Way of Giving”)
• Volunteer your time
• Give blood

The effects of this earthquake has been magnified by the fact that Haiti is one of the poorest countries in the western hemisphere. Haiti will needs lots of help to recover and you can help today. Aid the Haiti relief effort today through the Red Cross

The recent devastating earth quake in Haiti has brought forth a new way of giving through text messaging. Help Haiti by making a $10 donation to the American Red Cross by simply texting “HAITI” to 90999. Michelle Obama has been all over TV promoting this simple way to give (see video below).

Mgive has provided this very simple way for people to make a donation in seconds to the Red Cross. Mobile donations have raised millions of dollars for Haiti already and still counting. Basically by texting “Haiti” to 90999, a charge will show up on your monthly bill or debited from your pre-paid balance and a $10 donation will be made to the Red Cross relief for Haiti. In a short amount of the time this way of giving has proven how powerful mobile transactions can be.

This is just the beginning of mobile transactions as our mobile devices become more and more powerful.

• Texting donations like the Red Cross has done
• Paypal Mobile offers an easy way to send money using text messaging
• iPhones offer the capability to be a credit card terminal.

I can imagine a future where my mobile phone will become my central hub for financial transactions. Think about your mobile phone as your credit card, debit card and all your club and store cards. We’re making our way there and texting a donation is just the beginning. Mobile transactions are coming to a phone near you!

Like always when new ways of transacting become popular there will also be scams out there. Always be aware of who your are giving to, donate to reputable organizations and check the organizations credentials.

Help Haiti today by making a $10 donation to the Red Cross today by texting “Haiti” to 90999 or visiting RedCross.org.

My Monthly Charity for the final month of 2009 will be the Network for Good. The Network for Good has made it very easy for me to give to charities with it’s one stop place to make donations securely. This is extremely helpful to me, especially for My Monthly Charity selections.

“Imagine what the world would be like if every time you were inspired to help someone or something, you could — with just a few clicks of a mouse, anywhere online. That’s the mission of Network for Good. We make it as easy to donate and volunteer online as it is to shop online, and we make it simple and affordable for all nonprofits, of any size, to recruit donors and volunteers via the Internet.” – Network for Good Mission

Some of their accomplishments:

• Have created a secure, convenient donation system that makes it possible to give to any charity, anywhere, anytime online
• Returned $25 to the sector for every $1 invested in Network for Good
• Raised over $300 million in online donations to more than 50,000 different nonprofit organizations
• Built a Volunteer Network that connects users across the country with more than 200,000 local, international and virtual volunteer opportunities
• Taken fundraising viral and raised well over $2.7 million via fundraising widgets
• source: Network for Good About Us Page – http://www1.networkforgood.org/about-us

The Network for Good works great for giving and charitable organizations. They give you research of over 1 million charities, track your donation history, volunteer opportunities, and much more. For charities they give them more exposure and an easy way for people to give to give to them. It really is a one stop donation location with everything you’ll need to make a quality donation decision.

Thank you to the Network for Good for making it easy to donate and help charitable organizations. Check it out for yourself at http://www.NetworkforGood.org.

The charity that I have selected for this November is the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation. The Toys for Tots Foundation collects new toys during the end of the year and distributes them as gifts for needy children during Christmas.

“The mission of the U. S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Program is to collect new, unwrapped toys during October, November and December each year, and distribute those toys as Christmas gifts to needy children in the community in which the campaign is conducted.” – Toys for Tots Mission

“The primary goal of Toys for Tots is to deliver, through a new toy at Christmas, a message of hope to less fortunate youngsters that will assist them in becoming responsible, productive, patriotic citizens.” – Toys for Tots Goal

The Toys for Tots Foundation does great work during the holidays to provide a little happiness and glimmer of hope to those children who are less fortunate. A brand new toy can go a long way for a child as a happy memory and hope. It can also be an important part to the development of the child socially and physically depending on the aspects of the toy.

As a company we are putting a brand new Porter Cable Buffer up for auction on Ebay with 100% of the proceeds going to the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation. This is a nice little charitable donation that we are doing for the holidays and a way for our customers to get involved, knowing that all proceeds will be donated.

Locally, schools in my area are doing “Stuff the Bus for Toys for Tots” drives, where they try to fill a bus full of new toys. This is fun little way to promote Toys for Tots and I’m going to have to stop by one of the locations at some point to donate a toy.

Year after year the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation makes a difference to needy children, find out how you can help Toys for Tots this holiday season.

For this October I’m recycling a charity I’ve done in the past because it has a personal meaning to me. Today is the last day of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and I’m selecting Susan G. Komen for the Cure once again for their efforts in ending breast cancer. See my post about Komen for the Cure from October ’08 below.

My Monthly Charity October 2008
October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and fittingly my charity for October 2008 will be the Susan G. Komen for the Cure charity for the fight against breast cancer. The Susan G. Komen for the Cure organization was started by Nancy G. Brinker as a promise to her sister to do everything in her power to end breast cancer. Founded in 1982 Komen for the Cure has become the world’s largest grassroots network of breast cancer survivors, activist and source of nonprofit funds to fight breast cancer worldwide.

“As Susan G. Komen for the Cure, we’ll continue to be the world’s largest, boldest and most progressive grassroots network of survivors and activists, the only organization fighting to cure breast cancer at every stage. To date, we’ve invested $1 billion in research, education and health services. And because so many millions of people are counting on us to fulfill our promise, we will invest an additional $2 billion over the next decade to do just that.” - http://cms.komen.org/komen/AboutUs/index.htm

Just this year in 2008 there is going to be an estimated 182,460 new cases of invasive breast cancer in women with approximately 40,480 deaths and 1,990 in men with 450 deaths (Statistics from the American Cancer Society Cancer Facts & Figures 2008).

Breast cancer has affected me personally and I’m extremely happy to say that my Mom is a breast cancer survivor. This is not only My Monthly Charity October 2008 it is also a honor to my Mom as a survivor. Join the fight against breast cancer and make a donation to Komen for the Cure.

Find out how you can help in the fight against breast cancer.

It’s been over 8 years since the 9/11 terrorist attacks and My Monthly Charity for this month will be a dedication to the victims.  I have selected the Twin Towers Orphan Fund (TTOF) for my September 2009 Monthly Charity.  Founded on 9/12/2001, the fund aids those children who have lost their parent(s) in the 9/11 attacks by providing educational and welfare assistance.

“The mission of the Twin Towers Orphan Fund is to help mitigate the damage caused by the terrorist acts of September 11 by ensuring the children of the victims have as normal a life as possible. To do so, the TTOF provides long-term higher educational assistance and helps meet mental and physical health care needs for children who lost a parent in the World Trade Center, at the Pentagon, or onboard the four downed airliners.” - Twin Towers Orphan Fund Mission

The founders of this organization were truly dedicated to their mission from the beginning. For the first 7 months the co-founders of  TTOF provided out-of-pocket money along with dedicated funding for operations to run the fund. At the beginning of the 2nd quarter of 2002, the 90 percent rule was implemented where 90% of  the funds would go directly to the children and the remaining 10% towards operation costs.  The fact that they have this 90% rule means the money is put to good use and the majority of the funds get to the children.

What the TTOF has accomplished so far:

• They have helped over 1,200 children in 26 states and territories including 32 babies born after 9/11
• Over $1 million dollars has been awarded to the children
• Nearly $4 million dollars has been distributed to fund over 700 higher educational savings accounts in the names of the child beneficiaries
• $3 million dollars has been allocated for mental and physical healthcare assistance
• Close to $400,000 has been reserved children of victims of future terrorist attacks
• The Twin Towers Orphan Fund is a long term support trust fund of about 23 years (when the youngest of the children have reached age 22).

The TTOF has accomplished quite a bit since inception and they are conquering their mission. Help those children that have fallen victim to the events of 9/11 and visit http://www.ttof.org/ to find out what you can do to help.

The charity that I’ve selected for this month is the South Colonie Dollars for Scholars.  This is a very small way for me to give back to my former high school.  South Colonie Dollars for Scholars is a local organization that helps create and extend scholarships to deserving students of  South Colonie High that are embarking higher education.

“South Colonie Dollars for Scholars is a volunteer, community based financial resource awarding scholarships to deserving high school seniors furthering their education with funding from grass roots efforts and local, state and national partnerships.” South Colonie Dollars for Scholars Mission http://www.socoloniedfs.org/

Established in 2003 it is one of thousands of local organizations nationwide affiliated with Scholarship America working to help students fund their college education. Scholarships are funded by local businesses, individuals, and fund raising activities run by students and the community.

As Pure Adapt continues to grow I hope that we at Pure Adapt, Inc. can sponsor our own scholarship.
A sponsored scholarship coming from four graduates of South Colonie High would be a pretty cool thing to do.