A Toy Society Christmas

I've got a post rattling around in my head about the value of giving the fruit of your intellectual pursuits away to the world for free. This isn't that post. But one of the cool efforts that I'm going to point you to when I do get around to it is The Toy Society. As I read it, it started as one person who makes toys (I think they've all been stitched and stuffed, thus far) and leaves them in public places with a note telling whomever finds it to take it home. A gift thrown out to fate!

I probably found it highlighted on craftzine's blog or something and have been subscribed to them essentially from the beginning. I instantly wanted to get involved and do the same thing. And I could have -- with or without coordination, I suppose. But I never got around to contacting them. Even as I watched drops happening all over the world -- proof that other people were getting involved.

But now! Now they're organizing an event. With an explicit invitation for we readers to get involved in a massive holiday toy-drop. So I'm going to do two things. I'm going to email them right now. And I'm going to post this note so that you guys can maybe get involved too. So, what do you say? Let's make a better world this Christmas season through (nearly) anonymous giving.

Newman's Own

Paul Newman died last Friday at the age of 83. I really liked his charitable work. There's a good story at CNN about his work. Here's an excerpt:

But Newman, who died Friday of cancer at age 83, told the men he wanted to be remembered for the "Hole in the Wall" camps he helped to start across the world for children with life-threatening illnesses and to make sure that 100 percent of the profits from his popular food company, Newman's Own, would continue to benefit such camps and thousands of other charities.

You can read the rest of the story here: Newman's legacy: Good works.

Goodnight, Mr. Newman. Thanks for all your work. I'll keep buying Newman's Own products. And maybe I'll watch Butch Cassidy again. Here's the famous cliff scene if you'd like to watch it again.

Need help finding a charity?

Need help finding a charity? Or wonder if a charity is legitimate? Here's a good place to start:

http://www.charitynavigator.org/

They have all kinds of useful tips and guides (like what kind of questions to ask, protecting yourself from scams, donating your car, how to stop mail solicitations), as well as all kinds of lists (top ten charities in the red, charities in financial trouble, etc) and they make it easy to give money to the charity of your choice. Check them out.

Help an entrepreneur in a developing nation

Kiva is a site/organization on the net that allows you to loan money to individuals in the developing world. Here's what they say:

What is Kiva?
Kiva lets you lend to a specific entrepreneur in the developing world - empowering them to lift themselves out of poverty. Each pre-screened entrepreneur is hard-working and hopes to create a sustainable livelihood. All they need is a small loan. Choose an entrepreneur. Loan as little as $25. Receive updates. Get repaid as the business succeeds.

We've loaned some money through Kiva, and it seems to be an awesome organization. It's one of the few ways I've seen for people to directly help folks in need in developing nations. Check them out.