How to Be an Everyday Philanthropist: 330 Ways to Make a Difference in Your Home, Community, and World - at No Cost!

Synopsis

Almost every daily action can result in a small but deeply meaningful act of giving. Here are 330 unexpected ideas for making a difference -- ideas that have nothing to do with the size of your bank account and everything to do with using assets you already have. As Julie Salamon, author of Hospital, says, This book is the perfect guide for those who want to do the right thing, but can't figure out how.

Get Generous, Get Creative:
Use your belongings: You're not just giving away stuff: You're keeping an abandoned animal warm, helping a woman land a job, making a sick child's dream come true.

Use your family: Give new meaning to quality time: Adopt a puppy; become a frog watcher; be a host family for the Fresh Air Fund; deposit change in a Giving Jar; sign up for National Family Volunteer Day.

Use your talents: Match your skills with a cause: Are you a whiz at Web design, accounting, writing? Help a school in Guatemala design a brochure; organize the books in your community center; write a grant proposal for a local homeless shelter.

Use your computer: Give back without leaving your desk: Use a search engine that donates money to charities each time you click; be a virtual mentor to an orphaned teen; sign online petitions about vital issues.

Children's Literature

Author Boles has written an interesting resource book describing how anyone can make a difference in the world at no cost. She offers 330 ideas detailing how to do this by using your talents, time, computer, family, community, and more. In the introduction, Boles stresses that a philanthropist tries to make a difference with whatever riches he or she possesses. She gives examples of people who have come up with ideas to better their world. An example is Jed Koslow who ran a triathlon to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Another way to offer help is through the Internet. A site named Games for Change offers a series of digital games that promise awareness of social problems. At Orphan.org, a virtual mentor can connect with a parentless teen to talk and offer advice. Another way to offer help is through volunteerism, which only requires the budding philanthropist's time. Volunteer opportunities are everywhere. Boles book lists online sites dedicated to volunteer services. Giving backing to your community can also offer endless opportunities. For example, Gretchen Holt of New York City, along with volunteers, baked almost 100,000 cookies to raise money for pediatric cancer research. Their efforts raised $400,000. There is something for everyone in this book, both young and old. It is a much needed resource in a world that needs many Everyday Philanthropists. Reviewer: Della A. Yannuzzi