Make A Difference Day - October 27, 2012

About Make A Difference Day:

For more than 20 years, USA WEEKEND Magazine and Points of Light have joined together to sponsor Make A Difference Day, the largest national day of community service. Make A Difference Day is a celebration of neighbors helping neighbors. Millions of volunteers from around the world will unite in a common mission to improve the lives of others on Make A Difference Day, Saturday, October 27, 2012.

Thousands of projects are planned each year involving corporations, communities, nonprofit organizations, entire states and individuals. Many of the 250 HandsOn Network affiliates lead projects across the nation.

The stories told around Make A Difference Day show that anyone - regardless of age, location or resources - can accomplish amazing things when they take on the problems they see in their community. Recognizing the power of Make A Difference Day, other organizations join with USA WEEKEND and Points of Light each year to inspire and recognize the valuable work of volunteers. Newman's Own supports the day by awarding $10,000 to the charities of each of 10 National Honorees and three City Awardees.

On Saturday October 27, 2012 from 9am to noon, Kids Without Borders will have a limited work party at our office/storage located in Sammamish, WA.

How you can help/involved:


- We collect children's clothes and products to stock our Clothing Bank in Tukwila. The Clothing Bank serves a large population of immigrants, refugees, low income families in the Tukwila School District area.. Items we accept are new or slightly used: children clothes, shoes, hats, coats, jackets; blankets, school supplies, toys, ...

- We collect NEW toys, NEW children's coats and jackets, NEW children's socks and underwear, for the sick children staying at the Ronald McDonald House.

- We collect the following items for our programs and projects in Viet Nam and other countries: working cell phones, personal audio players (portable CD or DVD), working laptop computers or notebooks, working cameras.

- You can drop off the following products at our warehouse in Sammamish on Saturday (9am to noon).
Public Storage
23025 NE 8th Street
Sammamish, WA 98074
Kids Without Borders Unit 633 & 634

We will have limited needs for volunteers to help us with packing and organizing (clothes) for upcoming events: CARE nights for children in Tukwila, Harvest Festival in November in Bellevue, and upcoming humanitarian mission to Viet Nam.

For additional information please email us at info@kidswithnoborders.org

We invite you to join us in service on Make A Difference Day 2012.

Forgiveness

Our friend and supporter Penny LeGate joined Kids Without Borders on Saturday (Sept. 22, 2012) at the GlobalFest Stand For Girls event in Seattle. Penny was there to share information of The Marah Project . Click on the link to learn more on how you can support.

The Dad Next Door: Forgiveness

BY JEFF LEE, M.D.

http://www.seattleschild.com/article/the-dad-next-door-forgiveness

I recently saw a couple of videos on the same day, a few hours apart. They were created to celebrate the lives of two great kids, both of whom I’ve known for many years. They were pieced together from old home movies, set to nostalgic music, and presented to big gatherings of adoring family and friends.  

It was all there: the first breaths in the delivery room, the saggy-diaper waddle across the kitchen floor, and the sleepy little angels curled up with their siblings in bed – like kittens in a cardboard box. There were vacation scenes on the beach, and family portraits by the lake. There were those awkward pre-teen years, and that miraculous metamorphosis into beautiful young adults.

Two amazing kids. Two wonderful, loving families. Two vibrant communities, gathered together to celebrate their lives.

But there was one difference. One film was created for a bar mitzvah party. The other was for a memorial service.

The girl who died had lost a long, tortuous battle with addiction. It was the kind of story you might hear about secondhand, and sadly shake your head. You might speculate what kind of abuse or neglect or character defect must have led her to such a horrific end. But I knew better. 

This was a kid with as much life and light in her as I’ve ever seen in one human being. I knew her since she was 10, and every memory I have of her is full of joy. She was smart, and creative, and talented, and kind. Her parents and her sister are the sweetest, loveliest people you’ll ever meet.

So what happened? That’s what you want to know, right? What rare and awful force seized such a beautiful child and wrenched her away from the life she should have had? I wish I knew.

If there was something I could offer you, I would – some comforting explanation why her story was destined to veer off on its own tragic course, leaving your kids and mine to sail safely through their happy lives. Believe me, I’ve looked for one. But all I come up with is confusion and grief – and of course fear. Plenty of fear.

We parents act as if we control our children’s destiny. We like to think that the safety-rated car seats, and the healthy organic snacks, and the carefully choreographed play dates will inoculate them against pain, and terror, and despair. We like to pretend that we can protect them from all the cruelty of the world with the invisible shield of our love. Not because that makes any sense, or because we really believe it – but because the alternative is too frightening to consider.

The problem is, bad things do happen. Sometimes horrible things. And every time they happen to a child, their parents sift through the wreckage for days and gather up blame. They live with the guilt, not only of survivors, but of failed protectors. They look in the mirror every morning and ask themselves: “What did I do wrong? Where the hell was my invisible shield?”

There’s an old Yiddish saying: “You can never be happier than your least happy child.”  Eventually, bad things happen to each and every one of our children, and we feel every arrow that slices through their hearts as if it pierced our own. If we look hard enough – and we always do– we find a way to blame ourselves for their suffering. Sometimes rightfully so. But ultimately, if we want to be any real help to them, we have to learn to forgive ourselves.

Don’t pull out your long list of parental failures and count them as you toss and turn in your bed.  We all have a list like that, but it’s not as long as the list of the ways we loved, and the ways we tried. And in the end, neither list is inscribed with our children’s fate. Sometimes bad things just happen to good people. Sometimes they happen to good people’s kids. 

The day after the bar mitzvah and the memorial service, I took my own kids out to a movie. It was a quirky, goofy comedy, but I spent most of it on the edge of tears. I kept sneaking peaks at my daughters’ faces as they laughed and giggled in the flickering light. In my mind, I tried to cast an invisible bubble around them – around all of us. 

Not so much to keep out the darkness. More to keep in the light.

For Mike and Penny and Molly, with much, much love.

International Day of Peace - September 21, 2012

The International Day of Peace was established in 1981 by resolution 36/67  of the United Nations General Assembly to coincide with its opening session, which was held annually on the third Tuesday of September. The first Peace Day was observed in September 1982.

In 2001, the General Assembly by unanimous vote adopted resolution 55/282 , which established 21 September as an annual day of non-violence and cease-fire.

The United Nations invites all nations and people to honour a cessation of hostilities during the Day, and to otherwise commemorate the Day through education and public awareness on issues related to peace.

Each of us can be a messenger of Peace.

September 11 Remembered

For everyone who has volunteered or helped someone, these lyrics are dedicated to you.

I wanna to leave my footprints on the sands of time
Know there was something that I left behind
When I leave this world I’ll lea

ve no regrets
Leave something to remember so they won’t forget

I was here, I lived, I loved
I was here, I did, I’ve done everything that I wanted
And it was more than I thought it would be
I will leave my mark so everyone will know I was here

I wanna say I lived each day until I died
And know that I meant something in somebody’s life
The hearts I have touched will be the proof that I leave
That I made a difference and this world will see

I was here, I lived, I loved
I was here, I did, I’ve done everything that I wanted
And it was more than I thought it would be
I will leave my mark so everyone will know I was here

I just want them to know
That I gave my all, did my best
Brought someone some happiness
Left this world a little better just because I was here

I was here, I lived, I loved
I was here, I did, I’ve done everything that I wanted
And it was more than I thought it would be
I will leave my mark so everyone will know I was here

I was here, I lived, I loved
I was here, I did, I’ve done
I was here, I lived, I loved
I was here, I did, I’ve done
I was here

Link to music video

Volunteering in Viet Nam

Letter from one of our volunteer, Rena. Rena (on right in photo) spent her summer vacation volunteering at the Picasso Thu Duc Orphanage (Saigon, Viet Nam) on behalf of Kids Without Borders. Rena has returned to the U.S to finish her study at Harvard.

Dear Uncle Son,

I had a wonderful time volunteering at the orphanage. My time there consisted of teaching conversational English lessons to the older kids and feeding and playing with the infants and toddlers. Each experience was valuable in its own way.

With the younger kids, I was able to light some smiles on their faces just by picking them up or making silly faces at them. They really longed for attention, and I was glad to be able to provide them with that.

I also enjoyed teaching English to the older kids, who were around my age. Although we came from completely different cultures and backgrounds and had somewhat of a language barrier between us, I got to know my students pretty well. They eager to both learn English and befriend us. We focused on teaching informal, conversational English by playing fun games and facilitating casual conversations. I had an incredibly fun time with the students both inside and outside of the classroom, and they really helped make my first experience in Viet Nam a unique and memorable one.

Thank you for a wonderful experience, I hope this opportunity will continue to touch the lives of the many volunteers following me!

Best,

Rena

Note: above photo, Linh (left) and Rena (right) with a caretaker and children of the Picasso Thu Duc Orphanage. They arranged for the purchase of a new dryer in the photo for the infant ward. Fund for this dyer was provided by the Lantern Projects (California).

Kids Without Borders Power Of One

July - August 2012

Letter from one of Kids Without Borders volunteer. Linh, her brother and friend Rena, spent their summer vacation volunteering on behalf of Kids Without Borders teaching English and caring for the orphans in the Picasso Thu Duc Orphanage (Saigon, Viet Nam). Linh has just returned to the U.S to complete her study at Harvard.

Dear Chu Son,

Today was my last day meeting with my students and the children. I haven't left Vietnam yet, but my heart feels heavy and sad inside. Although the time I had was short, it was such a wonderful and beautiful experience,  definitely one of the best times I had working abroad.

Many of my students gave me goodbye gifts. I feel so grateful, but I am also worried that they have spent money to buy me gifts. They are so thoughtful. One student, Mai, wrote me such a touching letter saying that all he wished was for Rena and me to come visit them every summer but stay longer than this time. The students have really enjoyed our English lessons and I am glad to have helped them in some way. I will miss them all dearly. Please update me on their lives and such when you come in November.

As for the children, I could not bear to put them back in their cribs today. Everyday, I have been seeing them. Their faces brighten up as they see Rena, Canh, my cousin, and me at the door. They jump up and down to greet us. At the end of each day when we try to put them down in their cribs, they whine and cry. All these children need is to be be cradled and held and they can never get enough. Often, we try to stay with them a little longer to get them to stop crying. But today, I did not stay longer because I knew that I would cry if I did. It is always hard to say goodbye to people you have connected and bonded with.

Thus, I would like to sincerely thank Chu Son and the organization, Kids Without Borders, for providing this once-in-a-lifetime experience for me. I am not certain whether I have made an impact or a difference at the orphanage, but it has certainly made an imprint in my heart. This experience has further inspire me to not only become a pediatrician, but to also continue volunteering even after I become a doctor. Again, I thank you with all my heart. I hope that someday I would be able to volunteer with Kids Without Borders again.

Linh

Taylor Bridge Wildfire

Wednesday August 15, 2012

Early this morning we learned that the Taylor Bridge wildfire between Cle Elum and Ellensburg has destroyed more than 60 homes, killed unaccounted animals (cows, horses, and other livestock) and scorched so far more than 28,000 acres. 900 people have been evacuated, and many are working to save their homes by whatever means they have.

After several text messages and a phone call, KWB volunteers Katrina and Son Michael met up at Kids Without Borders office/storage in Sammamish. They loaded their vehicle with boxes of new children clothes, shoes, baby products, ... The car was packed to the maximum with enough space left for a driver and one passenger. Driving on I-90 through Cle Elum, the wildfire was visible from the highway. They arrived in Ellensburg in one hour and stopped at one of the designated fire relief centers.

How the Taylor Bridge wildfire quickly spread.

Monday
1:19pm  fire reported at bridge construction project at Taylor and Hart roads. It rapidly grows to 100 acres.
5:45pm  2,800 acres.
10:15pm  10,000 acres; evacuations begin; about 25 structures destroyed.

Tuesday
12:07am  16,000 acres.
2:00am  26,500 acres; 60 buildings destroyed.
5:20am  27,000 acres.
5:00pm  28,077 acres; 70+ buildings burned.

Follow their day of service via: Kids Without Borders