Helping Hearts, Blog of Anne Sanders

  I started this in 2011 when I started my blog. It’s a list for Black Friday of Christmas gifts that give three ways: to the recipient who gets a gift, to a charity who gets a donation and to the giver who feels good for giving to charity. Since then a new tradition has started with Giving Tuesday. After Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday, spend some time Tuesday giving to the charity of your choice. Now, here goes: the list of $50 and under gifts that give three ways for 2014. 1.        As a Relay for Life lover, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention one from the American Cancer Society’s website and almost everybody needs help with this—eating right to be healthy and prevent all kinds of cancer and other diseases. So, here’s the link to ACS’s healthy eating cookbook for $24.95. http://acs.bookstore.ipgbook.com/the-american-cancer-society-s-healthy-eating-cookbook-products-9780944235577.php?page_id=32&pid=acn 2.  ...

Yesterday, I started calling businesses in the area asking for donations. This month is American Red Cross month and next month is Volunteer Appreciation month. So, since I have been helping the Red Cross with their volunteers, I offered to get some goodies to give to them next month! About 96 percent of the services the Red Cross provides are done by volunteers. At our local Red Cross of Northwest Florida which covers four counties, that means just seven people are employed by the Red Cross. Everyone else is a volunteer. That’s awesome! All those people come together to help others at a moment’s notice in their time of need during a disaster.   The mission of the Red Cross is to prevent and alleviate human suffering in the face of emergencies by mobilizing the power of volunteers and the generosity of donors. It completes its mission well with the help of more than 13 million active volunteers. I want to give a shout out to Olive Garden and Red Lobster who immed...

This year marks the 20 th year of the federal AmeriCorps program. AmeriCorps is the network of local, state, and national service programs that connects over 80,000 Americans each year in intensive service to meet community needs in education, the environment, public safety, health, and homeland security. AmeriCorps’ members serve with more than 2,000 non-profits, public agencies, and community organizations. Today, I am interviewing AmeriCorps member Trevor Sikes about his experience in AmeriCorps. 1.       You’ve been an AmeriCorps member for how long now? Tell us a little bit about yourself, how you learned about AmeriCorps, and why you applied to the program.   My name is Trevor Sikes and I’m originally from Saratoga, Wyoming.   I went to college in Olympia, Washington at the Evergreen State College and majored in foreign affairs and cultural studies.   I have been an AmeriCorps NPRC member for about a year and a half. I am current...

I’ve mentioned briefly that I’m trying something new in the way of volunteering. Many of you know that I’ve been a volunteer for the American Cancer Society, have captained a Relay for Life team, and now am on the steering committee for my local Relay for Life. In fact, today I will be out recruiting teams and sponsors for that very Relay. But now, I have a new charity that I am learning about in a different way. I’ve also been pursuing a master’s degree in instructional technology and in my last semester (which I’m in now, oh yeah!) I must do a field experience such as an internship or real world project. I looked for an internship which is what I really wanted to do, but instead I found not one, but two projects to do. One is for the First Circuit Court of Florida. My university is helping them put a face-to-face course they teach online and I’m on the team to make that happen. The other is for the American Red Cross. The Red Cross is an organization that I’ve admire...

Natural disasters.   If it seems to you like we’ve heard about more of them in the last year than ever before, you’d be right.   In fact, President Obama issued a record 99 major disaster declarations in 2011, compared to the annual average of just 37 for the past 50 years. Looking at the recent string of tornadoes that tore through 10 states, killing dozens of people and flattening neighborhoods, 2012 may not be any better. Who deals with tragedies like natural disasters every day?   The American Red Cross . It reports that it responds to nearly 70,000 disasters a year worldwide, providing shelter, food, emotional support and other necessities to those affected. Red Cross Blood Services also collects and distributes more than 40 percent of America’s blood supply. And, more than 9 million people across the United States receive American Red Cross training in first aid, water safety and other skills every year. Once a year in March the president proclaims it ...