My daughter’s first exposure to volunteering came at an early age. I used to be a regular volunteer for Inn from the Cold (IFTC), an awesome Calgary charity that provides a place to sleep and warm meals to families without homes.  read more »

My daughter loves nature and science books. I’m a writer, so this perplexes me.

There is a vast world of children’s literature that I, as a reader, would much rather explore than learn about the mating habits of orcas, the many varieties of house cats or the unique properties of volcanic lava.

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Guest Blogger: Amy Lewis is currently completing herBachelor of Communications-Public Relations Degree at Mount Royal Universitywith an anticipated graduation Summer 2010. Amy has diverse range communication experience.  Including marketing, media relations and,event planning. For her first internship Amy held the position of marketingcoordinator for WorldSkills Calgary 2009. Amy enjoys exploring the variety of options that Public Relationspresents.

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The more I learn about the philanthropicsector, the more I am beginning to see the similarities between dating andgiving. I bet you’re scratching you’re head thinking this girl has got somecase of the crazies, but before you come to that conclusion hear me out.

I normally don't post two blogs in one day, but I read this blog this morning and want to share it with you.  Thank you Seth for allowing me to repost this piece!  You can follow Seth Godin on Twitter @thisissethsblog.  read more »

I volunteer at my daughter’s school. Sometimes when I’m sharpening pencils or making sock puppets, I wonder if this is really how I’m meant to change the world. Then I picture the mayhem of 30+ Kindergarteners trying to sharpen their pencils at once, and my work feels purposeful, meaningful. Call it the butterfly effect.  read more »

These days social media is being utilized for a variety of innovative campaigns; whether as a way to attract potential customers, garnering attention or brandrecognition. Einstein Bros. Bagels’ used a Facebook campaign as a way to gain fans(friends) of their product. Be my friend, get a free bagel! Was the motto behindtheir fan page. The bagel give away increased Einstein Bros Facebook fan count from a 4,700 to a336,000-plus. Their Facebook wall was plastered with praise from bagels eaters.   read more »

We pulled up to the coffee shop just as the latest news about Haiti came on the radio. Normally, my daughter wouldn’t be listening. She’d be daydreaming, watching cars go by. But I stopped, held breathless by the story of a man waiting for medical help for one of his daughters. His other little girl was already dead.  read more »

My daughter has a strange attachment to things. It startles me whenever it rears its adorable (nothing she does is ugly) head.

Since my daughter was born, we’ve been both the recipients and givers of many clothes to and from many different homes. It’s a karma-based system whereby you may not be giving hand-me-downs to the same family you get them from.  read more »

It is generally understood that private foundations can give money to any project as long as that project is for charitable purposes.  As this is fairly general the opportunities abound.  Limitations arise when you start seeing yourself solely as a grant-maker.  The focus of this post is on reassessing your assets as a private foundation.  read more »

Recently there has been much discussion in the blogging and print world about Kiva.  I am not going to weigh in on this debate because it just speaks back to my earlier blogs about questions to ask before making a donation.  read more »