Monday, May 5, 2014

Pay It Forward



I've learned early on that it is better to give than to receive. Because of this, I have always tried to lend a hand whenever possible. I used to think that the only way to lend a hand, to help the community, is either with time, such as volunteering, or using money to donate to a charity. I have volunteered at the library and I had been doing that for years, off and on. I would have volunteered at other places as well if I had a way to get there. I also had no money to donate to any charity either (and I still don't).

Fortunately, there are other ways to donate to a charity or to do something good for the community. During college, my sorority and I participated in the 5k run/walk for the American Heart Association. A year or so ago, I donated my hair to Locks of Love. A couple of weeks ago, I found some old cellphones that I still had around the house. I plan to donate those to a charity for domestic abuse victims. You can also donate cellphones to people that are in the Navy. You can also raise money for a charity by having fundraisers, or you can collect things for a charity. I have a friend who holds a food drive every year. There are people who uses Youtube or Twitch to do livestreams for charity. There are some celebrities who do good things for the community. You can do a google search to find out ways to donate, what charities to donate to, and/or what you can do for the community.

I would be careful though and do a lot of research on different charities, especially if you don't know the charity that well, because some of them may actually be scams that just want your money, either for personal reasons, or for reasons that you may not want to support. I have found a list for charities you can support, but like I said, do some research, but this may give you an idea of the kind of charities that are out there.

Here is the list:


I do have some favorite charities of my own that I support. Some of them are well-known, some may not be well-known, and there are a few local charities I support. Here are the links to those charities:

American Red Cross

The American Heart Association

St. Jude's Research Hospital

Locks of Love:

Autistic Self-Advocacy Network (ASAN)

Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation

National Institute of Mental Health

American Library Association

Florida Library Association



I think that if we all did something good for the community, we could make the world a better place. There's a song that I have been listening to. The lyrics seems to descibe exactly the way I feel. I want to make a difference in the world. 




Until next time, God Bless.
- Chloe