Mother’s Day – it’s really a shame that it’s only once a year because there are just so many great ways to show mom how much she means to you. One extraordinary and very funny mom I know also happens to be a Susan G. Komen for the Cure® Ambassador and graced our inaugural People Who Care feature last October. This would be, of course, Good Enough Mother author, René Syler.
Scheduled to appear on NBC favorite, The Today Show on Friday, May 9, you can catch her segment and help support Susan G. Komen for The Cure® by shopping for mom or any woman in your life this Mother’s Day right here on www.nonprofitshoppingmall.com.
We’ve tried to make it easy for you by adding a Shop For The Cure category but rest assured — you can choose any retailer, any product — and still give a great gift that gives back.
And while we’re on message for Susan G, Komen for the Cure®, I was genuinely surprised to find an email from American Airlines outlining its 20-year relationship with the organization and its Miles For The Cure campaign. Since supporting the first race in Dallas in 1983, American has become an Official Race Series Partner of the Susan G. Komen
Race for the Cure® team. Twenty-five years ago, when there were less than 50 events across the country, American was named the official carrier of the Races and has been a member of Komen’s Million Dollar Council since 1992. For those of us who are AAdvantage® members, we can earn an additional 5 AAdvantage® Bonus Miles for every $1 donated directly online to Susan G. Komen For The Cure® through the 31st of May. There are some pretty tight Terms and Conditions to this promotion but I thought I’d go ahead and post them so you could make an informed decision. By making a donation directly to the organization through American’s Miles For The Cure program, we can all share a role in supporting Susan G. Komen for the Cure® and its vision of a world without breast cancer.
Mileage cap for a 12-month period is 50,000 for U.S. members; 60,000 for international members
Bonus miles do not count toward elite-status qualification
Donations are tax-deductible minus the value of benefits received. Please allow up to eight weeks for the bonus miles to be posted to your account. Donations can only be accepted in U.S. dollars. All gifts are welcome; however, miles will only be earned for donations of at least $25 USD. Donations are tax deductible less $.022 per mile earned.
Susan G. Komen for the Cure® and Miles for the Cure™ are marks of Susan G. Komen
American Airlines reserves the right to change the AAdvantage® program at any time without notice. American Airlines is not responsible for products or services offered by other participating companies. For complete details about the AAdvantage® program, visit www.aa.com/aadvantage.
In this month’s blog, we cover a rather difficult topic – that of rape, sexual abuse and incest. Until we started working on this piece featuring Christina Ricci, the national spokesperson for RAINN (Rape, Abuse, Incest National Network) – the country’s leading anti-sexual assault organization, I wasn’t truly aware of the staggering numbers associated with these heinous crimes, their ongoing psychological effects and where public policy issues currently stand with respect to reporting, prosecuting and DNA testing. I was also sadly ignorant of the wide range of personal violence that often goes hand-in-hand with sexual assault. While disturbing on many levels, the wealth of information available on the RAINN website is an invaluable tool and I hope you’ll take the time to read through and learn from its hugely important messages.
The timing on this is especially crucial with schools letting out soon for summer and with graduation holidays just around the corner. RAINN is the go-to site for first-time freshman going away to college, anyone planning to move out on their own or those getting that first job away from home. On April 14, 2008, RAINN launched its newest outreach program, a safe, secure, anonymous place for victims to get help online. Using an instant-messaging style format, the National Sexual Assault Online Hotline allows sexual assault victims to communicate directly with trained crisis support volunteers available on www.rainn.org Together with its tele-based National Sexual Assault Hotline (800.656.HOPE), the organization will be able to provide a lifeline to victims trapped in situations where their only safe and secure link to the outside world may be through the Internet.
According to Scott Berkowitz, president & founder of RAINN, somewhere in America, someone is being sexually assaulted at the alarming rate of every two minutes. Almost half of these victims are under 18 and 80% are under 30. The new National Sexual Assault Online Hotline provides the services these young victims need, using the technology they embrace. In addition to providing support to victims of sexual assault, the National Sexual Assault Online Hotline provides information about recovery, medical issues, the criminal justice process, and local resources for family and friends of victims.
We hope you find this month’s feature a worthy one and that you’ll shop online to support RAINN programming now and going forward. We want to especially thank Christina Ricci for her participation in bringing this to our and your attention and before signing off, encourage you to become a RAINNMaker to support the organization’s ongoing initiatives.
We’ll have more on RAINN with our regular features in our May newsletter – coming soon.
One of the world’s deadliest diseases – malaria – is an indiscriminate killer, affecting all age groups and primarily found in the worlds poorest nations, whose populations are least able to combat it. WORLD MALARIA DAY was established in order to raise awareness for and understanding of malaria as a global emergency that is both preventable and curable. It replaces ‘Africa Malaria Day’ which has been commemorated on April 25 since 2001.
Africa Malaria Day was a day that was set aside by African governments committed to rolling back malaria and meeting the United Nations malaria-related Millennium Development Goals. But now Member states of the World Health Organization agree that greater awareness is needed. It is hoped that with an internationally recognized WORLD MALARIA DAY, communities and organizations worldwide will mobilize and get involved in this continuing battle.
You can help by shopping online here and choosing The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria as your nonprofit. The Global Fund provides more than two thirds of all international malaria funding.
There’s no way we could let Earth Day go by without saying something of note – however – with the hundreds of thousands of articles, blogs and events already out in the e-sphere to commemorate the day, we didn’t feel like we had any new or unique content to contribute. We hope you’ll take the time to visit our Shop Green section and purchase something you need while at the same time acknowledging those retailers and products that are good for you and the planet as a whole.
In the meantime, I found this article written by Jocelyn Rice and Amber Fields in Discover Magazine called 20 Things You Didn’t Know About Recycling, which I found to be both strangely fascinating and just a little disturbing. I’m sharing it for just those reasons and hope you’ll forgive me if you find it a bit too weird for your tastes. This is a cleverly written piece and flows well, especially when read in order.
Drink up: It takes three months for a recycled aluminum can to make it’s way back on the shelf in reincarnated form.
Or build a bridge: In 2002 researchers from Rutgers University built a 42-foot-long bridge over a river using plastic beams made from polystyrene cups and polyethylene milk jugs.
Or construct a boat: During World War 1, enough metal was salvaged from corset stays to build two warships.
As of press time, the boat Earthrace was being prepared for an attempt to break the maritime around-the-world speed record. It will use biofuel, some of which comes from liposuctioned human fat.
No fat here: During Britain’ 2007 Recycle Now week, svelte models strutted down Brighton beach wearing swimsuits made of steel cans.
These boots were made for flooring: Nike gathers old athletic shoes and turns them into raw material for “sports surfaces” like tennis courts or running tracks.
Meanwhile in China, more then 1 million unsold copies of British singer-songwriter Robbie Williams’s latest CD will be used to resurface roads.
Last year Chinese hair salons caused a stir by unlawfully recycling used condoms, possibly donated by local nightclubs into hair ties.
Elsewhere in Asia, an enterprising dental technician established the Japan Denture Recycle Association in 2006 to cash in on the precious metals in discarded choppers. Proceeds go to UNICEF.
Each year Americans junk more than 80 million dollar’s worth of copper, gold, silver, palladium and platinum in the form of retired cell phones.
Cell phones, laptops, and, um, personal massage devices: New British laws mandate that old electronic appliances-including sex toys-cannot be dumped. They must be recycled with other so-called e-waste.
E-waste is for the birds: An Australian nut orchard converts the shells of vintage Macintosh computers into houses for pest-eating birds.
Humans need house too: when Luiz Bispo built his house in Rio de Janeiro slum out of construction waste last year, city authorities threatened to destroy it. Now the house-which floats atop a junk-filled river on a base of plastic bottles-is being touted as an icon of sustainable development.
Cities have long been goldmines for recyclers: Beginning in ancient times, tanners collected human urine to use in turning animal skins into leather.
In the middle ages, urine was also used to make saltpeter, an essential component of gunpowder.
Cities get recycled too: Masonry from Roman settlements made a handy source of stone for medieval church builders.
But enough is enough: In 1821 Turkish soldiers surrounded Greek forces holed up in the Parthenon and started stripping lead from the temple columns to make bullets. The horrified Greeks promptly sent the enemy a fresh supply of ammunition to discourage further recycling.
Using every part: There are now sheep-poo air fresheners. Sterilized sheep droppings are turned into packets stuffed with grass-or daffodil- scented material.
Green to the end: The Doggone Project in Mannheim, Germany, can recycle deceased pets into fertilizer.
You, too: Ecopods, a British company, sells stylish coffins made from hardened recycled paper, available in a range of colors including indigo and silver leaf.
For those of you unfamiliar with autism and its varied spectrum of disorders, take this month to learn more, as April is Autism Awareness Month. Additionally, through a UN resolution passed in 2007, April 2 is now officially World Autism Awareness Day. This UN resolution is one of only three official disease-specific United Nations Days and will bring the world’s attention to autism, a pervasive disorder that affects tens of millions. The World Autism Awareness Day resolution encourages all Member States to take measures to raise awareness about autism throughout society and to encourage early diagnosis and early intervention.
Autism is a complex neurobiological disorder that typically lasts throughout a person’s lifetime. It is part of a group of disorders known as autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Today, 1 in 150 individuals is diagnosed with autism, making it more common than pediatric cancer, diabetes, and AIDS combined. A random disorder, autism crosses all racial, ethnic, and social boundaries equally and is four times more likely to strike boys than girls. Autism impairs a person’s ability to communicate and relate to others. It is also associated with rigid routines and repetitive behaviors, such as obsessively arranging objects or following very specific routines. Symptoms can range from very mild to quite severe.
Across the globe, the autism community is celebrating its members and holding special events to raise awareness and money for research to find answers to the questions of its increasing prevalence in children in all regions of the world. One of the most successful events bringing this community together is the Autism Speaks Walk Now For Autism - Virtual Walk sponsored by Toys R Us.
This month we offer an introduction to this growing global health crisis and its premier advocacy organization, Autism Speaks. In our interview with actor John Schneider, whose roles span from television’s Dukes of Hazzard to Broadway’s musical hit, CHICAGO, Schneider offers insights to his personal experience with autism and talks about his greatest role, as a father with an autistic son.
As a former Development Director for Special Olympics Southern California I have had many opportunities to interact with children and adults affected by varying degrees of autism. I am amazed at the progress that Autism Speaks has made in the short years since its inception and hugely impressed that the organization has been able to galvanize so many of the major autism nonprofits to act with one voice in its efforts to find answers to autism’s cause and to support the research efforts in discovering a breakthrough.
I’m also happy to highlight two of our retailers in conjunction with our focus on autism – please take a couple of minutes to see how they each support Autism Speaks
This April, more than 500 Barnes & Noble stores around the country will host special autism Storytimes. Everyone who has been touched by autism should know about them. A complete listings of all the event times and locations can be found here.
We’ll have more on these retailers and others in our April newsletter – watch for it on the 6th. We’ll also introduce some of our new partners, keep you posted on our financial, tax and insurance services and give you the scoop on how to stop junk mail AND save trees at the same time.
Please make a commitment to become a do-er and keep Do Something in mind when looking for volunteer opportunities for teens, young adults and you this summer. We thank our gracious hostess Emme for her support here and her ongoing dedication to awakening the spirit of giving inherent in each of us.
In case you missed us on The Montel Williams Show - Living Well: Five Ways to Change Your Life which aired on February 27, here’s an additional opportunity to participate in his audience give-away running through March 27. Montel and his panel of experts outlined the top 5 life-improving solutions that will help you improve your health. Terra Wellington, a sleep expert, explained why sleep is so important to our daily health. To ensure a good night’s sleep, Montel tried out a Tempur-Pedic bed right on stage and one lucky audience member won the bed and got to take it home! To help you live well, Montel is giving his viewers and our visitors a chance to win a Temper-Pedic bed too, valued at $3,600!
In addition to the bed you can also win 100% organic cotton luxury sateen sheets and duvets, valued at $404.90, from one of our retail partner organicstyle.com.
When doing your shopping you can donate to The Montel Williams MS Foundation as a charity choice to thank him for giving us the opportunity to make this happen.
I know that technically speaking, it’s still winter – but for some reason, I feel like spring has sprung. With retailers showing bright colors, lush florals and dreamy vacation spots that constantly sweep across my screen, I think I may actually have a case of spring fever. Okay, so it might be a little early, but the upside to my restlessness is that I’m energized, excited and feel a change on the horizon – a change for the good and one that, with the help of Do Something, can be driven largely by young people from coast to coast.
It so happens that our people who care spokesperson for March, Emme, supermodel, television personality, best selling author and big time Do Something supporter, feels like I do. Emme also believes that young people have the power to act, to make a difference and to implement change. We are delighted to welcome her here and to introduce Do Something and its mission to those of you who might be unfamiliar with this dynamic youth-oriented organization. Do Something aims to inspire, support and celebrate a generation of do-ers: people who see the need to do something, believe in their ability to get it done, and then take action. The Do Something website is a community where young people learn, listen, speak, vote, volunteer, ask, and take action to make the world a better place. Currently, only 23% of the youth demographic actively volunteers. Hoping to create a do something generation: a world where more than 51% of young people are involved with community action, the Do Something site has something for everyone with their highly interactive, multi-media approach to inspiring change.
I was first introduced to Do Something on a flight from LA to New York, when by chance I was seated next to Mandy Moore’s guitar player who was on his way in to play the Brick Awards. Later, as I was looking for a community service activity for my 15 year-old, I was hugely impressed by the wide variety of options available to him both locally and abroad. Do Something makes it easy to get involved – whether you’re young or ‘old’, just watch this video and find your SOMETHING!
Our March newsletter will follow within a couple of days – watch for information about new nonprofit partnerships, eco-friendly office supplies and culinary news.Thank you again to Billy Bush and the Lollipop Theater Network for hosting our February homepage. We will keep Lollipop on our list of nonprofit partners and we encourage you to visit their site and keep the good work they’re doing in mind when you shop.
I can’t believe it’s the first of February already – so much is happening here at nonprofitshoppingmall.com that I can’t even begin to cover all the new ground we’ve broken since the holidays in this short blog space. First of all, we actually have two blogs goin’ within this site – this one and another, dedicated to retail promotions, on our shop the mall page. There, you’ll find Valentine’s Day ideas from ICE.com and Organic Style and an overview of our new eco-lifestyle retailers featured in our shop green category.
Before I introduce Billy Bush for our February people who care feature, I have to say, if and when you have an opportunity to visit the Los Angeles area, you must visit one of Chef David Myer’ restaurants – the food is amazing and we thank him for sharing his time with us and with Surfrider Foundation.
Amazing in a wholly different arena is the work being done by Lollipop Theater Network, the nonprofit organization chosen by Access Hollywood’s Billy Bush and highlighted as our default beneficiary for the month of February. For those of you who either openly or secretly follow entertainment news and personalities, Billy Bush is pretty much a household name. In addition to his on-air duties at Access Hollywood, Bush also serves as a contributor for NBC’s top-rated morning news program, Today, and is a member of the Board of Directors for Lollipop Theater Network — a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing the magic of movies to children confined to hospitals nationwide due to chronic or life-threatening illnesses. Whether you’re a 5th grader, a college student or just love films, you’ll know that there’s nothing like counting down the days until the season’s big blockbuster movie hits the theaters. If you’re a child confined to a hospital bed due to chronic or life-threatening illnesses, you can imagine that the thrill of seeing that first-run movie is unlikely to be on the agenda. Through Lollipop, these kids don’t have to wait for DVD releases, because they literally roll out the red carpet, distribute movie tickets and memorabilia, and screens movies only available in theaters. To ensure that no child ever misses a movie, Lollipop provides multiple screenings in group and bedside settings. In this month’s People Who Care feature, Billy Bush tells us how his commitment to Lollipop was sealed with his appearance on Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader, when he missed the answer to the question, ‘What was Civil War general “Stonewall” Jackson’s real first name?
Universally revered as the Mother of the modern day Civil Rights Movement, this new rose pays tribute to Rosa Parks’ birthday on February 4th and features lush, vibrant red, large-headed, long-stemmed, long lasting roses with minimal thorns in one or two-dozen bouquet options.
On December 1, 1955, 42-year-old Rosa Parks boarded a segregated bus in Montgomery, Alabama and ultimately changed a nation. When a few stops later, a white man boarded the crowded bus and had to stand in the aisle, the driver demanded that she give up her seat for the man, but Parks remained seated. The driver called the police, who arrested Mrs. Parks, but her courageous act initiated a citywide bus boycott led by Martin Luther King, Jr. that lasted 381 days.
On February 1, 1956, the Montgomery Improvement Association filed suit in the U.S. District Court, challenging the constitutionality of segregated public transportation. In June of 1956, the U.S. District Court ruled in favor of the Improvement Association. When the city appealed the decision to the Supreme Court, the higher court affirmed the lower court’s ruling, declaring segregation on buses unconstitutional. The decision was implemented on December 20, 1956. With her quiet strength, Rosa Parks gave birth to the modern day civil rights movement.
We will honor her memory through February 20, 2008 with our special 10% contribution offer, matched by another 10% from Organic Style for a total of 20%. We hope you will keep her in your thoughts as well by purchasing these lush, vibrant red roses through our site now and throughout the year to support The Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self Development.
The Rosa and Raymond Institute for Self Development was founded by Rosa Parks in 1987, in honor of her husband, with the aim of motivating and directing youth to reach their highest potential through multicultural, hands-on experiences that build practical day-to-day living skills while nurturing a global and inclusive perspective. Based on Mrs. Parks’ philosophy of ‘Quiet Strength’, The Institute’s core program ‘Pathways to Freedom’ traces the Underground Railroad into the civil rights movement and beyond. Students, traveling primarily by bus, experience a unique, empowering and interactive research journey that brings the history of the civil rights movement to life, giving the participants the needed skills to model Mrs. Parks’ work for human rights in all areas.
It’s that time of the year again when we make lofty promises to ourselves – like getting really fit, working out everyday, eating healthier and getting a better handle on world news and national politics. Unfortunately, a lot of those promises get broken within days and we’re right back to doing what we do – we work out when we can, we try not to binge on sweets and we’re confounded by conflicting news stories that make getting a handle on what’s happening here and abroad hard to follow. In our perfect world, New Years resolutions shouldn’t be focused so much inward and, perhaps, take on a broader scope to look at the world around us. The thought of clean air, clean oceans and clean living sounds like a resolution that we, as a community, should seriously consider making and keeping. With that said, let’s welcome avid surfer, beach lover and world renowned Chef David Myers to this month’s People Who Care feature. Not only is he committed to eco-practices like serving locally grown organic produce and the freshest of seafood in his LA based restaurants, Chef Myers is committed to the Surfrider Foundation and its strategic initiatives of clean water, establishing marine protected areas, beach preservation and greater public access. Please check out action sports retailers Swell and Becker Surf for their special deals to support Surfrider Foundation throughout the month.
Chef David Myers was one of Food & Wine’s ‘Best New Chefs’ in 2003 and Angeleno’s ‘Chef of the Year’ in 2005 — pretty impressive for a chef who’s only in his mid-thirties. He’s owned and operated the West Hollywood hotspot Sona for six years (the only LA restaurant ever to receive 5 stars from Angeleno and listed in National Geographic’s 10 Best of Everything), the jewel-box patisserie Boule for three and a half and the recently opened, Comme Ça which brings a truly authentic taste of Parisian life to Los Angeles with its French neighborhood brasserie classics.
His fabulous cuisine and surfer-boy good looks have allowed David to cook his way into the hearts of foodies all over the country with appearances on The Today Show, CBS The Early Show and The Tyra Banks Show, each time demonstrating culinary tips on everything from budgetary cooking to the unusual and the exotic.
It’s not just David’s cuisine that gets talked and written about. His innovative staff bonding — gathering his staff for an early morning beach boot camp-has been featured in Gourmet as well as on MSNBC’s Your Business, and his tips on staying slim while working in a kitchen were included in both People and Food & Wine (to help us all stay slim – we’ve added two new health and fitness retailers to our roster; My Yoga Online and Dick’s Sporting Goods).
So in addition to running his FoodArt Group restaurants in LA, Chef David Myers, together with Chef Jill Davie are TV’s newest ‘go-to’ chefs with a specialty in navigating the vast world of kitchen essentials in the original new series Shopping with Chefs on the FINE LIVING TV NETWORK, airing nationwide Saturdays and Sundays at 1pm ET. Each weekend, the two help the time-starved, chef-at-home cook better by shopping smarter.
Taking off their chef hats, these two hit the streets to show how the experts shop for the most important room in the home - the kitchen. Whether you’re a casual cook or an accomplished chef, the first step to a successful meal is making sure you have the right stuff, which is where our new insider friends step in. From a kitchen knife to the kitchen sink - you know you need one, but how or where do you find one, let alone which one to pick? One way to start is to shop with a chef and, once you find what you’re looking for, check with foodie retailers like Chefs Catalog, Sur La Table, Chefs Corner and KlinQ.com to purchase and furnish your perfect kitchen.
Non-stick pans are best for making omelettes. Some cast iron cookware comes with an enamel coating that comes in many colors and doesn’t need seasoning. Consider buying wood, plastic or silicone utensils for use with your pans. Metal utensils can scratch surfaces and chip non-stick coatings.
An oven without all the “bells and whistles” usually does a good job and will cost less. If your kitchen space is limited, chose a size that takes up as little counter space as possible, yet has enough cooking capacity to fulfill your needs. Look for a model that cleans up easily.
If you don’t need large amounts of juice, consider a hand juicer over an electric one. They are usually less expensive, easier to clean and are usually smaller and easier to store.
Bread-makers are a good idea only if you plan to make bread regularly. Otherwise the expense and loss of counter space isn’t worth it. If you plan to make a variety of breads, look for a machine with extra cycle options. Consider a machine with a smaller capacity. Homemade bread goes stale faster than store-bought because it doesn’t have the added preservatives.
New are the salad scissors, used for chopping up the ingredients in your salad. The scissors have a double-sided blade and micro serrated edge that stays sharp for a long time. They also have a safety feature that keeps the scissors closed while storing them. Cost is about $20. Combine with the new salad dryer bag that keeps salads fresh, crisp, and ready to serve.
FINE LIVING TV NETWORK, now in more than 48 million subscriber homes, is the first television network dedicated to helping time starved families do more with their time and money. For a cable provider near you, check your local TV listings or visit www.fineliving.com/tv.
We’ll be back soon with lots more information as to what’s going on here at nonprofitshoppingmall.com – for a quick preview tho – check out our new and improved SHOP GREEN section. With a number of new stores and new subcategories — we hope we’ve made it easier for you to find what you’re looking for there!