Between the treatment and the travel, the expenses were devastating.

Help came when a family friend, Greg Selke, a high school athlete and classmate of Daniel’s, raised the idea of a charity footrace. The event, dubbed “Daniel’s 5K,” was first run in 2006. Daniel himself participated in that first race even though the cancer had already spread to his spine, liver, and lungs. Sadly, just a few months later, the disease claimed his young life. But the race that bore his name had taken on a life of its own. After Daniel’s passing, rather than letting the race become simply a memory, his father and mother, Dean and Tammie, took over administrative duties for Daniel’s 5K. They rededicated the event to raising funds for other worthy individuals and organizations.

Since then Daniel’s 5K has raised thousands of dollars for local and national causes. For Daniel’s family, as for countless others, charity begins with neighbors helping neighbors—using innovative means to confront the tragedies that hit us where we live.

The decentralized nature of this model of charity makes it different from the kind with which most of us are familiar. Using the latest technology it is increasingly possible to take direct action to address needs close to us—whatever the scale—whether a natural disaster, a medical catastrophe, or the renovation of a community center.

This approach requires work, to be sure, but many prefer the direct approach to sending a check to a distant foundation. The person-to-person aspect was especially important to Dean. “Everyone that participates in our race gets a thank-you note telling them the specifics of where the money is being spent,” he says. “And once we get the thank-yous from the people we donated the money to, we pass those along as well.”

Now grassroots tactics can intersect with contemporary social media—from Facebook to LinkedIn and beyond. Amanda Justus, co-founder of 31 Heroes, a charity dedicated to servicemen, managed to put together a national fundraising event at locations across the country using only Facebook, WordPress (the software behind many websites), and online message boards.

A resident of Virginia Beach, Virginia, Amanda was drawn to philanthropy primarily out of concern for her community. Just this past August a helicopter crash killed 30 American servicemen, many of them members of the famous Navy SEAL Team Six, plus one dog. Seventeen of the soldiers had been based in Virginia Beach. “It hit so close to home. The whole community was reeling, asking what they could do,” says Amanda. “People were frozen, wanting to help, but having no idea how.”

Brainstorming with friends, Amanda thought to address the crisis in her hometown using her affiliation with another community, albeit a virtual one. Amanda is a CrossFit athlete, practicing an intense full-body workout program favored by firefighters and, not coincidentally, military personnel. She drew upon the loosely knit, national network of CrossFit gyms and was amazed by the speed and scale of the response. “The crash took place on Saturday, August 6th. We set up a Facebook page on Sunday morning, and by Sunday night we had almost a thousand fans. By Tuesday we were up to two thousand.”

The 31 Heroes event played out very simply. Participants paid a registration fee—$31, in fact—and gathered at their local gyms on September 3 to participate in a special workout routine. “In the end we had over 10,000 people participate,” says Amanda. “The way it spread was just viral.”

The key to her success, she believes, was the speed with which it rolled out. “After a major tragedy, everyone wants to do something immediately—but that desire tends to fade away soon after,” she says. “We wanted to right away get on top of that, so the opportunity would be right there for people who were ready to give.” Social media made that rapid response possible.

For all the success of 31 Heroes, Amanda is content to stick with her strengths. Her passion for the cause made her a natural fundraiser, but, “we don’t ever want to be responsible for saying where the funds go,” she says. Indeed, few beginners have the financial background and connections needed for effective disbursal of funds. The solution that both she and Dean found was partnering with established charitable foundations—organizations with grantmaking know-how and apparatus already in place.

When choosing and evaluating charity partners, good neighbors stay close to home, often giving to organizations with whom they have had dealings in the past. The Myslivecek family, for instance, divides the proceeds of Daniel’s 5K among organizations that assisted them during their son’s illness such as Melanoma Hope, the Make-a-Wish Foundation, and Rochester’s Golisano Children’s Hospital. “During Daniel’s treatment, without these organizations, it would have been impossible for us to manage on our own,” says Dean. “So we thought, let’s give something back.”

Using the latest technology it is increasingly possible to take direct action to address needs close to us. From left: Mackenzie Tobin-Padell, John Weiss, and Amanda Justus, the 31 Heroes team. Photo by Mario Gandia.

The choice of a giving partner was not difficult for Amanda either. A military spouse herself, she was familiar with the work of the Navy SEAL Foundation long before the tragic events of August 2011. “I have good friends who are military widows who have benefited greatly from the Foundation,” she says. “I knew that they were a trustworthy organization.” She stresses the importance of due diligence when choosing a charity with which to work: “You want to be a smart consumer with who you give money to.” (For advice on how to tell good charities from bad, and for instructions on how to file a complaint against a fraudulent charity, visit the Federal Trade Commission’s Charity Fraud website.)

Before these new charity organizations could start raising funds, their journey had an unlikely first stop—the Internal Revenue Service. Although the IRS may not inspire charitable thoughts, it is at the forefront of philanthropic support in the U.S. All nonprofit organizations are required to register with tax authorities, and, in return, the IRS provides step-by-step instructions for formalizing your organization, laying out your rights and obligations under the law.

The beauty of it is that you don’t need to know much to get started. “I had helped out with charity events when Daniel was first diagnosed,” says Dean. “I was behind the scenes with auditing and such, but that was the only time I’d ever been involved in anything like that. For the most part, the knowledge I’ve picked up has come from the person who does our taxes.”

Daniel’s 5K made the transition from a one-time, ad hoc event to an annual institution. 31 Heroes is still a work in progress. “We raised about $300,000 this year, which was fantastic,” says Amanda. “With that kind of response, everyone was asking if this was going to be an annual thing.” She and her team would like it to be, but the long-term prospects for either organization are far from certain. Studies show that approximately half of all nonprofits close up shop within their first 10 years of operation. One hurdle is unexpected overhead expenses, including permit fees and liability insurance.

Fundraisers usually take the form of athletic contests, games of chance, or auctions—all highly-regulated activities. “There are a lot of hoops to jump through, especially for a 5k race,” notes Dean. There can also be incidental expenses involved in helping participants get the most out of the event. The Mysliveceks, for example, employ an organization affiliated with U.S. Track and Field to ensure that the course for Daniel’s 5K is properly accredited and that race results are accurately timed and official.

Despite these high operating costs, charities can still thrive, even in the midst of a recession. “With the state of the economy right now, you’d think that more people would say no,” says Dean. “But I feel there’s some higher purpose at play. Because some people don’t really know exactly who Daniel was; they don’t know us all that well; they have no idea how a 5k can support melanoma. But they don’t say no.”

The most effective charities make it easy to say yes by finding ways to use donations of all types—not just cash, but goods, services, and the time and talent of volunteers.

“After the first year, we stopped buying trophies and started giving gift baskets as prizes,” says Dean. The baskets are stocked with donated merchandise and gift cards from area merchants. “People don’t just say yes for the exposure, or the advertising,” he says. “They do it because they think it’s a good idea.”

Donor partners are rewarded with advertising and exposure, of course—and it is this cycle of goodwill, of doing well by doing good, that keeps donors coming back. Even 31 Heroes, which came together quickly and on the cheap, offered a simple premium to entice participants—although Amanda groans remembering it. “That was the toughest part of doing it this year—handling 10,000 T-shirt orders!” she says, laughing. “It was brutal, because it was just the three of us, and we weren’t about to pay someone else to handle the disbursing of shirts.”

The tale of the T-shirts points to perhaps the most important lesson for any budding nonprofit: Be aware of your limitations. Keeping the organization’s goals realistic helps to avoid burnout and frustration and may be the best way to ensure sustainability. “The great thing about Daniel’s 5K is that the committee is kind of laid-back.” says Dean. “We don’t have outrageous expectations for what this is and what we can accomplish.”

Amanda agrees, adding that the same wisdom applies when an event succeeds beyond expectations. “When we put together 31 Heroes, I thought we might possibly get 2,000 participants,” she remembers. “But we quickly outgrew the capabilities of our registration software!” Despite the unanticipated work, the team never seriously considered capping participation at a manageable number. “People want to help, and it’s better to apologize for our slowness in processing the registrations than to cut off the potential money we could be raising.”

The community of participants, bound by a common cause, found it easy to forgive her; and that sense of fellowship, she says, is the greatest reward of her experience. “Just when you think that everything’s gone to hell, it’s very cool to see people come together, amidst tragedy,” she says. “Watching how people have been willing to rally together—I feel very blessed to be in the center of it, and watch it all around me.”

All You Need Is Love The Saturday Evening Post

The warehouse is located 10 or 11 blocks north of the Victorian homes and upscale shops for which the city of Burlington, Vermont, has, time and again, been rated as one of the ten best places to live in America by a slew of national media. But here there are no houses trimmed in lacy gingerbread and no chic shops. Instead, sagging homes line the street surrounding the warehouse, which—along with a small kitchen—is home to the Chittenden County Emergency Food Shelf.

A freezing rain pelts the 60 or so men and women gathering outside. Inside, eight volunteer students from the University of Vermont (UVM) dressed in jeans and khakis are working furiously to bake chicken, warm up Tater-Tots, re-heat donated pizza, chop vegetables, make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and put bananas and beverages within easy reach of anyone who comes through the door.

Six nights a week, the Salvation Army makes dinner for those who have fallen through the safety nets of the city, state, and nation. But on Sunday, the Army’s day of rest, the UVM kids take over and make sure that anyone who’s hungry gets fed.

The students are more than just short-order cooks. With $85 from UVM, the group has spent the afternoon shopping for bargains at PriceChopper; scavenging for pizza seconds at American Flatbread, Uno’s, and Domino’s; and sweeping up not-quite-stale pastries at Starbucks. They arrive here at the Food Shelf by 4:30 p.m.

This year the program is headed by a tall, blonde chemistry major from Ohio. At age 22, senior Carly Hodgins has been a part of this group for four years and is a masterful organizer. She bursts through the door loaded with bags of bread, boxes of pizza, and a carful of fellow students. Within minutes every hand is scrubbed, chicken is in the oven, salad is being tossed, pizza is warming on the stovetop, and this observer is put to work too, chopping what seem to be a zillion carrots.

Here are the stark facts about hunger in this plentiful nation. While 96,000,000,000 pounds of food are thrown away every year by the food industry—that’s 96 billion pounds—someone in 1 out of every 10 households in the United States is either hungry today or at risk of being so tomorrow.

Why they are is a matter for sociologists and politicians to debate. But for these kids, it’s beyond politics: When people are hungry you feed them.

“Time to open up!” Carly yells.

The door swings open. Men and women who’ve been waiting outside silently flow into the building, single file. There’s no pushing or shoving, just focused intent. Ten steps inside the door each man or woman picks up a waiting plate and the students start piling it with food. Every person gets a portion of meat, vegetables, salad, potatoes, and pizza. When the last person heads for a table, those who’ve been through the line can come back for seconds. The kids will serve until they run out of food.

Carly stands at the end of the food line and offers a beverage. “Apple juice?” she asks, looking straight into the eyes of each diner. “Orange juice?” Her smile is a flash of sunshine, her warmth a benediction.

As she reaches out to steady someone’s hand, I remember words buried long ago in my heart: “I was hungry and you gave me food. I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger and you welcomed me.”

When the last meal has been served and the last diner has gone back into the darkness, I wipe down a steel table in the kitchen and think about what these kids have accomplished: Tonight, no one in Burlington will go hungry.

To contribute to a food bank, please contact Feeding America (feedingamerica.org). Excerpted with permission from Blessed: Living a Grateful Life, © 2011 G. Ellen Michaud, published by The Reader’s Digest Association, Inc., rd.com.

Edited on Dec 8, 2011: Blessed was named 2011′s “Best Inspirational Spiritual Book” by USA Book News.

Feeding the Hungry Can be a True Holiday Blessing The Saturday Evening Post

Nothing is as welcome to Americans in military service as the knowledge that their families are safe, secure, and supported back home.

Thanks to the American Red Cross, men and women on a mission, in training, or stationed far from home can stay connected.

The Emergency Communications Service, a division of the American Red Cross, offers emergency communications for family members of  Americans on active duty and members of the National Guard and Reserves.

It also helps families prepare for the deployment of a loved one. Last year, Red Cross workers briefed 974,573 departing service members.

They provided information about family support services and how the Red Cross could assist them with emergency funding for food, fuel, or transportation.

The American Red Cross Service to Armed Forces also recruits volunteers for military and veterans hospitals throughout the country. It has expanded work in military hospitals to support the recently established Warrior Transition Units, which help wounded service members facing surgeries, lengthy recovery periods, and rehabilitation.

Parade-goers salute the color guard during a Veterans Day tribute in Indianapolis, November 11, 2009.

During fiscal year 2008 the Red Cross handled over 630,000 emergency communications services for military families worldwide. It provided over $5.8 million in financial assistance to more than 5,000 uniformed service members, their families and veterans in partnership with the Military Aid Societies.

Here’s Where You Come In …

All of this work is supported by volunteers and donated funds. Your contribution to the American Red Cross offers priceless peace-of-mind to the men and women facing the hardest challenge of national service.

Show your support by donating to the American Red Cross at 1-800-RED-CROSS.

For more information, go to redcross.org.

Help Our Soldiers Overseas The Saturday Evening Post

Last Christmas Eve, Heather and her family, including her two children, ages 3 and 7, prepared a full-course dinner for an elderly housebound neighbor and her son, who has muscular dystrophy. Heather made a rack of lamb with green beans and potatoes that her kids helped mash. They stayed for an hour and chatted before heading home to prepare for a visit from Santa.

“I think it’s that kind of direct experience, where you can sit down and talk to people, that many find so meaningful,” says Heather, president and founder of The Volunteer Family (thevolunteerfamily.org), a Boston-based organization dedicated to matching families with volunteer opportunities, both during the holidays and year-round. “It’s a great way for parents and grandparents to involve the kids.”

In a holiday season that stretches from before Thanksgiving to just after the New Year, it’s nice to hear stories about people giving instead of receiving, especially when Christmas isn’t even a holiday they celebrate. Last December Gary and Debra Danoff and their two teenage sons drove to the Washington, D.C. Jewish Community Center (JCC) and spent Christmas morning in the Center’s kitchen preparing a feast for homeless shelters. Everyone pitched in to cook large quantities of lasagna, chicken, and vegetables for delivery to area shelters.

The Danoffs were in good company. Across the city, at least 1,000 volunteers fanned out across the region to provide food and gifts to the Capitol’s neediest residents as part of the D.C. JCC’s annual “December 25th Day of Service,” now in its 22nd year.

Heather Jack brings dinner to neighbor Alice Cook.
Photo by Art Illman.

“It’s a great feeling to watch volunteers come in and out of the building,” says Erica Steen, director of the Morris Cafritz Center for Community Service at the D.C. JCC.

“We draw an amazing smorgasbord of people from all ages, backgrounds, and races. We get grandparents and grandkids, entire families, young professionals, senior citizens. Anyone can participate.”

By choosing to prepare meals for the homeless, the Danoffs bring together a belief in community service with their love of cooking. “It’s gratifying to prepare food for other people,” says Gary. “We want our kids to understand the full range of living conditions in this world. We want them to know that many people don’t have the ability to go to the supermarket and pick the foods they want to eat and pay for them.”

Secret Santas

Sometimes, the joy of giving is that much sweeter when the gift is anonymous. That’s what Linda Forte-Spearing has learned.

On Christmas morning, she wakes up with her husband, Tony, and tries to imagine the wide-eyed surprise of children in another household as they unwrap the presents she carefully chose for them. Linda has never met the children or their parents, but that’s all part of the joy of giving, she says.

“It’s an incredible feeling to buy gifts on an anonymous basis,” says Linda, a freelance writer. “It brings a whole new meaning to the holidays.”

Linda and Tony are an American couple living in Toronto, and Linda got involved in charitable work as a member of the American Women’s Club of Oakville in Ontario. As the name suggests, members are U.S. citizens living in Oakville, who join together for fellowship and community service.

To find her “adopted” family, Linda goes to the local schools and requests a wish list for a family that’s struggling to make ends meet. Last year she and Tony helped a single mother with three children, ages 8, 10, and 12. The mother, a Jamaican immigrant, works as a cleaning lady in a nursing home.

“The list is always heartbreaking. They have an opportunity to ask for anything and do just the opposite, asking for basic clothing articles or simple toys like puzzles or crayons,” she says. “We always buy the kids a new winter coat, hats, gloves, and a scarf.” She also buys gifts for the parents, including a gift certificate for the grocery store.

Last year Linda asked the principal to go back to the mom and ask her for a second wish list — one that didn’t involve the basics. “Every child should have a Christmas that sticks with them for a lifetime.” She purchased iPods for the two older children and a Nintendo DS video game system for the youngest. “I have learned a very valuable lesson in all of this,” says Linda. “Pay attention to what’s going on in your own backyard — no matter where you live.”

Linette Laureano would second that emotion. For the past six years, this single mom of three has been working hard to make sure that poor kids in her Orlando, Florida, community don’t miss out on the joys of Christmas morning.

Last year her toy drives and a partnership with Toys for Tots brought Christmas morning magic to more than 400 children. To pull off such a large toy exchange, Linette sets up a temporary toy “store” within the Protestant church, where her mother is senior pastor. Linette and her family work late into the night, then curl into sleeping bags on the church floor in anticipation of the day ahead.

Parents arrive at a pre-arranged time to shop for three free gifts per child, plus stocking stuffers. “It’s humbling,” says Linette. “You learn to be grateful for what you have. So many people have so much stuff that they don’t even appreciate it, while others have lost all of their belongings or can’t afford nice things. Those are the people I want to help.”

At St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School in Cleveland, Ohio, you’ll find a similar “store,” but this time it’s the kids who get to do the shopping. And these are schoolchildren who know what it’s like to do without. At least 91 percent of the 225 students at this K-8 elementary school live below the poverty line. Many students come from single-parent homes.

Times are undeniably tough. But one day a year, students get to shop like millionaires let loose on Rodeo Drive. That’s when parishioners from Holy Angels, an affluent suburban Catholic church in nearby Bainbridge Township, set up a Christmas boutique within the school and sell upscale gifts to students at below bargain-basement prices. Nothing costs more than a quarter for the cash-strapped kids, not even Lenox crystal or a warm designer sweater.

But the children aren’t buying presents for themselves. They’re buying gifts for their parents, grandparents, siblings, and other family members. Selections are taken
to the gift-wrap station, where they’re wrapped and tagged by volunteer teen workers from Holy Angels, who also
help younger children carry overstuffed bags of presents back to the classroom.

“The day is just amazing,” says Principal Sister Michelle Kelly. “Parishioners at Holy Angels collect all year for this sale so that our children can buy nice gifts for their families.”

Ringing the Bell

Every holiday season, Christian Millman and 15-year-old son, Lucas, are a two-man Salvation Army band.
Photo by Richard Swearinger

For some, charitable giving is a private matter. But for many, volunteering is a family affair.

Five years ago, Christian Millman, a media manager in Des Moines, Iowa, and his wife, Michelle, started a family tradition of ringing the kettle bell for the Salvation Army. In split shifts, they bring one or more of their three children for an evening of bell-ringing, hot chocolate, and neighborly greetings in front of a local supermarket. Lucas, 15, brings his clarinet and plays Christmas carols to serenade passers-by.

“I’ve been impressed by how much they enjoy it and look forward to it each year,” says Christian. “It also gives me precious one-on-one time with my children during
a busy season.”

Many people stop and say “thanks,” adds Lucas. “They’re sometimes surprised to see a kid ringing the bell.”

Sometimes, people also share stories about how the Salvation Army helped them through rough patches in their lives. “It’s really moving for me and the boys,” Christian says. “All of the sudden, they’re not such disaffected young teens. They stop being tough and cool and realize that this really matters.”

Holiday giving made simple

Want to spread holiday cheer but don’t know how? Here are a few ideas:

Warm Up America! Volunteers create handmade afghan blankets, clothing, and accessories to help those in need. Call 704-824-7838 or visit warmupamerica.org.

Trees for Troops. From December 4-6, buy a tree at participating farms for the troops and their families. Call 636-449-5060 or contribute online at treesfortroops.org.

Soles4Souls. Donate new or gently used shoes to this charity that distributes footwear to the needy. Call 866-521-SHOE or visit soles4souls.org.

SALVATION ARMY. Ring the bell and collect donations in that trademark red kettle. Contact your local Salvation Army office or visit ringbells.org.

‘Tis the Season for Giving Back The Saturday Evening Post