Week 11: ShelterBox

Whew!  I am really far behind.  As I type this up, we are actually in week 21, so I am going to try to churn out a flurry of entries quickly.

One thing about living in earthquake country: it does tend to make you think about what would happen if (when!) the big one finally hits.  Natural disasters are not just for us folks in paradise however, they can and do strike all over the nation and the world.  Often they come with no warning, but even a few hours of warning isn't much help when your whole house is leveled (or flooded, or engulfed in flames).  In the immediate aftermath of a natural (or unnatural) disaster, people's needs are reduced to the basics: food, water, shelter from the elements.  It's providing that last element that ShelterBox specializes in.

Their goal is to deliver a kit that can be used by a family of four to provide basic shelter in the immediate aftermath of a disaster.  The standard box contains a tent, tarps and blankets, a small cook stove, a water purification system, a set of hand tools and some small toys for the kids.  It's all packaged in a large waterproof box that can be repurposed as well.  The contents of this box will be modified and customized for each disaster response with the goal of providing materials that are truly needed on the ground.  All told, it costs about $1000 per box to stock and deliver it to the disaster site.

Although I am not donating enough for an entire box this week, I feel confident my donation will at least help stock some of the elements in a box that will brighten the world of someone who is going through a pretty dark time.

Week 10: International Rescue Committee

In the past three years, Syria has been undergoing a civil war which has had a devastating effect on the civilian population, in particular the children.  Over 5 million children have been affected: injured, killed, lost friends and family members, lost their homes and schools, and been displaced to refugee camps.  This video from Save The Children gives you an idea of how this sort of turmoil can have a devastating effect on these children.

I couldn't watch that without wanting to help, but since Save The Children was a charity we had recently donated to, I went looking for others that are working to improve the lives of these kids.  I found this article that mentions several options and I picked International Rescue Committee, for their assistance to the refugees and for their very high rating on Charity Navigator.

Week 7: International Justice Mission

Slavery.  It's a really ugly word and yet it is a far too accurate one that describes the daily living condition of millions of people in the world today.  It is a concept so horrific and grotesque that I don't even want to confront the reality.  This post has been so hard for me to write because every time I try to force myself to look at this issue, it's so disturbing that I find my attention skittering away to anything else, just so that I can pretend that human slavery has been resigned to the far distant past.

Fortunately, there are people in the world who aren't adherents to the ostrich approach that I favor.  These are people who are not only willing to confront this reality, but spend day in and day out working to rescue those who are living under oppression and to bring the perpetrators of these crimes to justice.

International Justice Mission has a worldwide team of lawyers, investigators and aftercare professionals whose mission it is to rescue victims of violence and slavery, bring the perpetrators to justice and provide restitution and care for the victims.  They are kind of like super heroes who are lawyers by day.  Except this isn't a fantasy and they are using international law as their super power.  By donating, I'm kind of like the super hero sidekick.  Without the tights and cape.

Week 4: Water.org

There are many factors that keep far too much of the world in poverty.  And lack of access to clean water is may be the most important one.  Disease and parasites spread more easily without clean water.  When families have to spend an inordinate amount of time obtaining food and water, children don't have the luxury of attending school and adults don't have any time to spend on anything more than basic survival.

But there is more to providing clean water than just digging a well and walking away.  Families need a safe way to transport that water from the well to the household or else it becomes contaminated en route.  Sewage systems need to be established lest the groundwater become contaminated from wastewater borne diseases.  And all these systems need to be serviced and maintained.

This is one of the things I really like about the organization that is my choice for this week's charity: water.org.  They are looking at questions more complicated than "how do we dig a well?" but rather trying to answer "how do we provide clean water to people for the rest of their lives?"  Not only are they asking these questions, but they are answering them.  With $25 they do exactly that: bring clean water to a single person for the rest of his life.  

So today I positively changed a few people's lives forever.  Pretty cool accomplishment considering I'm still in my pajamas.