Give With Your Kids Day
As I start wrapping things like a pink iDog for my daughters this Christmas, I have been thinking about how to give my kids another gift that feels even better to experience—the gift of helping someone else. Here’s what I propose: this holiday, give your child—or someone else’s child—$25 to spend on charity. You can give them $25 to spend at Network for Good (which has every charity based in the US) or Global Giving (which has a bunch of international projects) or the charity you work for. Let them choose how to spend it, either by letting them pick the charity or by designating their donation to a special project. Spend it together online, checking out pictures and project descriptions.
This will do two amazing things, one for your soul and one (of course) for your marketing savvy.
1.) In watching a child make this decision, you’ll feel wonderful about the child, your work, the holidays and the world in general, as when I helped my daughter decide whether to give to a teacher of Sudanese refugees or playground equipment for Gulf Coast kids.
2.) In explaining to a child what your charity and other charities do, something strange and transformative may happen. The way I described various charities and projects to an 8-year-old, I realized, was far more compelling than anything I had said in weeks. Wow, I thought, there is no better way to boil down the essence and power of a good cause. Look at your web page, then listen to how you describe it to a young person. You might realize you’re not telling the story you could be telling.
This is so true! My kids have been giving back to Cambodia for a few years —even at age 4 - my son willingly emptied his piggyback to help the Sharing Foundation
http://www.sharingfoundation.org/fundraising/get_involved/april_2004_olivia.htm