Two Daughters' Efforts To Increase Access to Healthcare and Empower Women With Cancer

I know all too well what it means to lose a mother to cancer.  Terry Kaye and her best friend experienced this loss too.  And like so many, they wanted their mothers' deaths to have a greater meaning.  But unlike most people, they put that desire into effort.  The result was the founding of the Saralee and Carol Foundation -- an organization whose mission is to increase access to health care and to ensure that all women living with cancer are empowered to be their own best advocates.

For more information about the SareLee and Carol Foundation and to learn more about their project to gain a Pepsi Refresh Grant in the month of October, check out their website.

And for more information about the Mad As Hell Doctors event on October 1st, visit their site.

What's Your Type?: Interview With Author Berit Brogaard

A few years ago, the line to use to describe that guy who just didn't seem to be the one to everyone but you was, "He's just not that in to you."  It even spawned a book and a short lived talk show for its author.

College professor Berit "Brit" Brogaard is taking a new approach to the topic of one sided "relationships" in her upcoming book Lovesick Love.  In it she describes serveral "types" of both men and women that epitomizes those who make the mistake of thinking they are in a relationship when they are really not.

For more information about Berit, visit one of her websites.

Making Wishes Come True: An Interview with Shimmy Mehta of Angelwish

When you were a child did you have a special wish?  Was there one toy you were desperately hoping to receive for a holiday or your birthday? 

In A Christmas Story we empathize with Ralphie's childhood desire -- borderline obsession -- for the "it" toy. By contrast in Jingle All The Way we sympathize with the parental angst and guilt associated with working to get said "it" toy for our child.  Now imagine this childhood desire and parental angst in the context of a family dealing with a chronic illness. 

I had the pleasure of speaking with Shimmy Mehta about his organization, Angelwish, which seeks to connect community angels with children and families with wishes.

Angelwish believes that who knows better what an 8 year old child might like than another 8 year old child. Therefore, they take monetary donations and place them in the hands of volunteer youth shoppers during "Giving Sprees" at toy stores. Here is a great video about one of these wonderful events.



Kyra Sedgwick hosts the the 2nd Annual Angelwish Giving Spree from Angelwish.org on Vimeo.


For more information about Angelwish and how you can help make a wish come true, visit their website.

Everybody Wins When Everyone Can Read Well: An Interview with Everybody Wins! Executive Director Rich Greif

Literacy is so important not only in academic success, but success in life. Organizations like Everybody Wins! not only address the issue of increasing literacy and appreciation for reading among young students, in the process, they are creating lasting relationships.

I had a great talk with Everybody Wins! National Executive Director, Rich Greif about this special organization and his own personal story of building long term relationships with young students.

In addition, Rich -- being the master at communication through social media -- gave some insight into how non-profits can use this powerful tool to attain and maintain relationships with partners and prospects.

For more information about Everybody Wins!... Follow them on Twitter. Connect with them on Facebook. Link up on LinkedIn. And check out their website at http://everybodywins.org/.

You Say It's Your Birthday....It's My Birthday Too-o!

Happy Birthday to me!

Macolm Gladwell on Spaghetti Sauce: A Culinary Story of Choices and Happiness

Here is an interesting video from TED.  It is author Malcolm Gladwell talking about of all things....spaghetti sauce.  More to the point, he is talking about how choices impact our consumerism and vice versa.

An Effort to Help the Unemployable: An Interview with George Lee of Jobs Foundation

In this economy there are a lot of people looking for a job; but imagine if you were among the category of "unemployable" and looking for a job. 

Someone who is unemployable does not have a job and is unlikely to get a job, because they do not have the skills or abilities that an employer might want.  Likewise, certain past circumstances might impact ones chances for employment.  Those who were previously incarcerated fall into this category because of potential employers' not wanting to take that leap of faith in a person's rehabilitation.

For those in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, there is hope...in the form of George Lee and the Jobs Foundation, a non-profit whose missions is to "empower individuals toward economic stability and find personal fulfillment in their work" by providing paid on the job training to economically under served adults.

I had an opportunity to talk with George Lee about his organization and why he -- a success entrepreneur -- decided to jump into the not for profit arena.

For more information about the Jobs Foundation and how you can contribute, contact them through their website.  http://www.jobsfoundation.org/