the friday philanthropist

you might have noticed i've been on a service kick since i got out of americorps. and that gets old REAL fast - we all have full-time lives, most of us already serve lots in our communities, and the last thing I want to hear is how i need to do more for another cause before i can sleep well at night.

a little story about yours truly -

when i moved to la, i felt that volunteer opportunities were like scholarships: statistically present, practically absent. during my americorps service, i was startled to learn that there are an estimated 1.5 million registered nonprofit organizations in the u.s., and that even the smallest communities have a need for volunteers. for this reason, i get totally geeked when i read about an innovative organization and i want to share it with EVERYBODY (extreme extrovert, perhaps?).

so let's make a deal. it's called, "the friday philanthropist". once a week i'll profile my latest nonprofit fancy - no more, no less. deal? i hope so, cuz here goes the first installment:

urban farming, inc., headquartered in detroit, was recently featured on the bbc news for its efforts to eradicate hunger by feeding the poor with harvests from urban vegetable gardens planted on formerly derelict land. founding director, taja sevelle, says urban farming, inc. draws inspiration and structure from the wwii victory garden model. interested in volunteering?

if you live in one of the following cities, you're in luck:

detroit
new york
newark, nj
los angeles
montego bay, jamaica
minneapolis/st. paul
st. louis
raleigh, nc

coming soon to:

atlanta
new orleans
west palm beach, fl