It’s nice to see colorfully packaged gifts in different shapes and sizes underneath the Christmas tree.  And what kid can contain his or her eagerness to dive into the presents?  But each year, I do struggle with creating an exciting and fun atmosphere where we beam at our daughter as she rips off gift wrapping while at the same time, find a way to reinforce gratitude and appreciation for what she has. 

One tradition we have in our house is to place under the tree a letter from a Christmas elf that contains money.  The note explains that the money is for our daughter to donate to a worthy organization or cause that she feels is important.  When she was younger, we helped her think through her choices and identify a reputable group.  Her selections have included ”adopting” an endangered harbor seal through the World Wildlife Fund to supporting a dog rehabilitation and rescue facility called Best Friends Animal Society.  Now that she is a bit older, she knows that the letter is really written by mom and not an elf, but nonetheless, she looks for the letter every year.  Christmas in our home wouldn’t be Christmas without it.  How do you help your kids balance giving and getting?

 © YesKidzCan!, 2010

With the New Year just days away, as Co-Founder of YesKidzCan!, I’ve been taking stock of what we’ve accomplished over the past year, and I realized that my two young boys (among many other kids!) have played a sizeable role in helping to shape our company.

My kids have tested many YesKidzCan! community service activities including making giving jars, baking dog biscuits for animal shelters, making pillow cases for wounded soldiers, painting murals for local hospitals, acting in an educational video, and posing in countless photos.   Through these giving experiences, they’ve developed a strong sense that community service is rewarding and fun.   In fact, they constantly ask me when they can do another YKC community service project.

To say the least, I’m thrilled with their enthusiasm for community service.  However, I’ve also realized that because they’ve been so busy participating in the activities that I’ve selected, they haven’t yet developed a true sense of their personal philanthropic interests.  While I don’t think this is a terrible thing – we all have to begin somewhere in teaching our kids charitable giving – I do think that part of building our community leaders of today and tomorrow involves helping these young givers gain a sense of what topics interest them.   So often, we sign up our kids for this club activity or that school fundraiser without considering their charitable interests.

To give my kids even more of a voice in their charitable giving efforts, I decided to make a few of my own giving resolutions for 2011:

1)   Talk more frequently with my kids about their philanthropic interests and help them to discover the causes they want to support.

2)   Talk with my kids about what they enjoy doing (sports, reading, cooking, arts and crafts, etc.) and how these activities can tie into charitable areas they like.

3)   Together with my kids, research how to support their charitable interests.

4)   Undertake at least one service activity to support a cause of their choosing.

We’ve witnessed countless examples on the evening news, in the newspapers, or around our communities of an inspired child who passionately championed a particular cause and achieved great things.  Anything is possible.  That next child could be yours!

Fellow Co-Founder of YesKidzCan! Lisa and I send our best wishes for 2011, and hope the New Year is full of many wonderful giving experiences for you and your kids.

Kids of all ages have the ability to recognize a problem in the world and develop an idea to help fix the problem.  They have the ability to turn their imagination, dedication, and enthusiasm into a business idea that can change the world one person, one neighborhood, or one community at a time.

At YesKidzCan!, we want to help kids recognize that they have what it takes to be change makers. When parents, educators, or community leaders encourage kids to take initiative at young ages, kids are more likely to lead and create positive change throughout their lives.  We are building a new initiative dedicated for elementary aged kids that helps unleash in them the power of social entrepreneurism, and we will begin sharing organizations with our readers that offer wonderful educational/informational resources.

Today, we want to profile a leader in the social entrepreneurial field since 1987 called Echoing Green.  They define a social entrepreneur as “those exceptional individuals who dream up and take responsibility for an innovative and untested idea for positive social change, and usher that idea from dream to reality.” Their website offers a portfolio of social entrepreneurs who have addressed countless social problems through an entrepreneurial activity.  They have invested nearly $30 million in seed funding to almost 500 social entrepreneurs and their innovative organizations.

While Echoing Green’s grants program is directed to adults (18 years of age or older), we want you — the parent, educator, community leader — to have access to the countless profiles of entrepreneurs with fascinating stories so that you can share them with young kids.  Who knows, maybe this will spark a new business idea for how you can help lead transformative social change!

Kids learn differently about charitable giving.  While some may gravitate toward community service projects, others may prefer reading a book.  This holiday season, we want to highlight a book that celebrates a miracle between a man and a very special dog — Nubs, The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine & a Miracle.

Nubs is a special little dog of the Iraqi war who meets up with Marine Major Brian Dennis and his team at the border of Iraq and Syria.  When the team relocates miles away, Nubs is determined to find his new friend, and he treks across the treacherous desert for 70 miles.  When it was time for Dennis to return to San Diego, friends and family were so moved by the story, they raised several thousand dollars to rescue Nubs so that he could begin a new chapter of his life with Dennis in the United States.   By Brian Dennis, Kirby Larson, and Mary Nethery, this unbelievably true story is an amazing testament to the loyalty and love between animals and humans.

YesKidzCan! is delighted to announce that we have made our first grant in the amount of $5,000 to our 2010 beneficiary, Birthday Wishes.  This grant was made possible by the generosity of Music and Arts, a division of the Guitar Center Stores and the nation’s largest school music retailer. 

Birthday Wishes is a nonprofit organization that brings birthday parties to children in homeless shelters.  Recognizing that all children deserve to celebrate their birthdays joyfully, Birthday Wishes was founded on the belief that the gift of a birthday party has the power to make homeless children feel both special and like “regular” kids despite their otherwise unsettled lives. Birthday Wishes’ grassroots philosophy fosters the spirit of volunteerism and community service in the hundreds of adults, children, and families who bake cakes, donate toys, organize the parties, and contribute funds. 

As a social entrepreneurial company, YesKidzCan! is dedicated to bettering the world and donates 100% of our net profits to children’s causes.  We are proud to know that our commitment to social change has reulted in this grant that will allow more than 700 kids in homeless shelters to experience the joy of birthday parties that they otherwise would not have experienced.

December is a time to celebrate the holidays with family and friends…and it’s also time to let your kids’ votes be counted.  Right now and until the end of the year, your kids can vote for one of the 100+ potential new arts, sports, education and environmental projects for youth around the globe to receive grants.  Votes can be cast by going to the Kids to Kids website.

When kids, tweens and teens go the website to vote, they can also learn about the communities that Kids to Kids supports, evaluate the impact of potential projects and raise their voices in support of other kids and teens around the world by selecting the next Kids to Kids projects!  Adults can spread the word! 

World Connect’s youth-led Kids to Kids Program empowers local leaders in underserved communities to solve local challenges affecting youth. Founded by four middle school girls in Massachusetts, Kids to Kids encourages grassroots fundraising by kids in the US to support youth arts, sports, education and environmental projects in ten countries. The connections built by Kids to Kids create a new generation of leaders and global citizens. To date, Kids to Kids has impacted more than 40,000 kids by providing microgrants at the community level in Belize, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mali, Morocco, Peru, Philippines and Rwanda. Learn more about the Kids to Kids Program and how it is creating opportunities for kids everywhere.

“Tis the season of shopping.  So, why not shop and give to charity at the same time.  NonprofitShoppingMall (NPSM)  makes it easy to do just this.  NPSM is a unique web-based tool that uses online shopping to drive revenue to nonprofit organizations.  NPSM lets you shop online for the items you normally buy, the brands you regularly choose at the prices you normally pay.  Then, a donation is made to charity you select from a list of participating nonprofits. The retailers who participate on NPSM pay a commission for the sales and a significant portion of those payments go to the nonprofit you have selected.  Stores include GAP, Northface, Staples, Target, Macy’s, iTunes, eBay, Athleta, and more! It’s do-good multi-tasking:  holiday shopping and charitable giving! 

© YesKidzCan!, 2010

Last week, we shared Social Change Technology:  Part One.    The field is evolving constantly, so we thought we would let you know about a few more easy ways to give.      

Donation Connect:  Here’s another super easy way to give to charity this busy holiday season.  Donation Connect brings all your charities to your phone.  When you download the app, and hit “Find Charity” you get a list of categories where you can select which charity to support.  The amount you choose to give will be charged to your wireless bill. 

GoodSearch:   If you’re like me and use search engines to try to quickly find that perfect gift this holiday, why not use a search engine which donates 50 percent of its sponsored search revenue to causes and schools selected by its users.  You use GoodSearch the way you would use any other search engine.  It’s powered by Yahoo!, so you get effective search results.  The funds GoodSearch donates to organizations come from its advertisers – consumers and beneficiaries do not spend a penny.  A similar kind of search engine to check out is Every Click  which is UK-based.

As we learn about technological advances that make your giving experiences faster, easier, or just plain cooler, we will pass them along.  And, let us know about those you come across. We’ll share them with our readers! 

 © YesKidzCan!, 2010

Kids love to give their pets gifts, and we have an easy and fun gift and giving experience this holiday season for you and your kids that is just a click away.   Thanks to The Best Friends Animal Store, you and your child can shop for a special holiday gift for your dog or cat.  Through your purchase, you’ll be helping animals across the country. The Store offers many accessories and adorable toys for playing, chewing and cuddling, healthy treats for a job well done… or just because.

Proceeds from the Store support The Best Friends Animal Society, the largest animal sanctuary in the U.S. and home to about 2,000 abused or neglected animals from around the country.  Through an extensive network, the organization helps communities to set up spay/neuter programs, shelters, and foster and adoption programs.