These life-giving causes are ones that seek to change a story. Turning stories of heartbreak, hopelessness, injustice, and suffering into stories of healing, restoration, freedom, and joy.
Let’s join them.
For each pound lost during this challenge, please consider giving to one or more of these causes.
LOVE146.org
Slavery is a prison of injustice.
And it’s alive and well in our time.
These statistics are startling and heartbreaking:
- 27 million people enslaved around the world
- World’s 2nd largest criminal venture (32 BILLION dollars)
- Estimates say 2 children sold every minute into human trafficking and sex slavery.
The vision of LOVE146.org is the abolition of child sex slavery and exploitation. Nothing less.
That’s a fight worth fighting!
To work to that end, they provide aftercare for the children who have been trapped in this horrific industry as well as prevention programs to bring awareness to the issue.
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Blood:Water Mission
900 million people lack access to improved water supply worldwide with 328 million people who do not have access to clean water supply in Sub-Saharan Africa (42% of the population)!
Those numbers are people!!!
Lack of clean water has contributed to the spread of HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa (22 million) with nearly 2 million new infections each year.
Enter Blood:Water Mission.
This cause partners with groups and individuals to empower Africans to build healthier communities through sustainable clean blood and clean water solutions, while developing social responsibility in the U.S. through initiatives that provoke personal engagement and ownership.
Consider this —> $1 provides one year of clean water for an African!
We can make a difference!
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Soles4Souls
Imagine what it would be like to have no shoes.
We’re not talking about taking a few steps on cushy grass. We’re talking about cold feet getting frostbite. Blistering feet getting scorched on a hot ground. Workers not able to work to full capacity. Children not able to concentrate or play to their potential. It’s a simple thing but often the simple things in life are the most significant.
Soles4Souls has a mission to impact as many lives as possible with the gift of shoes and change the world one pair at a time.
As their website puts it: “Footwear is a basic need that most of us take for granted every day. While most of the world does not have one adequate pairs of shoes, Americans have an abundance of footwear sitting idle in our closets. A quality pair of shoes protects their foot from scrapes, cuts, and contaminants that lead to potentially serious healthcare issues.”
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Action Against Hunger
Global hunger affects more than a billion people worldwide.
19 million children worldwide face outright starvation—but only a tiny proportion of these severely malnourished children receive assistance.
As a result, as many as five million children die from hunger-related causes every year, despite the availability of revolutionary new products that could save millions if made sufficiently available.
Ponder these numbers.
I know this seems like too large a problem to tackle, like a single teardrop falling into the ocean.
BUT we can do something and something is better than nothing! Every life counts.
Action Against Hunger is among many wonderful organizations doing something. Their vision is of a world without hunger for nearly three decades, combating hunger in emergency situations of conflict, natural disaster, and chronic food insecurity.
DONATE
Local Shelter For Battered & Abused Women
In the U.S. alone, 1 out of 4 women are victims of domestic abuse at some point in their lives. (source) This includes your community.
As a child, I witnessed the horrors of this issue, and it’s frightening. The very place you’re to find safety, comfort, and love (home) can become the opposite.
Thankfully, in most major cities, there’s likely a shelter for battered and abused women and children- and they can often be found through your local United Way. I’m encouraging us to support these local safe havens.
In my hometown of Rapid City, SD, we can contribute to Working Against Violence, Inc. (WAVI) through our local United Way. I have toured the WAVI facility and it’s a wonderful space for those in need.
Sadly, so many cases of domestic abuse go unreported and this really is a silent issue in our culture. If you’re a victim of domestic abuse and want to know where to turn, please call 1.800.799.SAFE (7233).
DONATE
Doctors Without Borders
There are modern-day superheroes doing extraordinary things all over the world:
Doctors, Nurses, and First-Responders.
The humanitarian organization, Doctors Without Borders, delivers emergency medical assistance to people affected by armed conflict, epidemics, malnutrition, natural disasters, or exclusion from health care in nearly 60 countries.
They say on any one day, close to 27,000 doctors, nurses, logisticians, water-and-sanitation experts, administrators, and other qualified professionals can be found providing medical care in international teams made up of local aid workers and their colleagues from around the world.
Their work in caring for the sick all around the world is remarkable and their example in being self-less is inspiring.
