Weekly Roundup: Unsung Heroes
I think the whole Digital Death thing has been playing on my mind more than I realized.
After all, this is the third post in three days to reference that wretched campaign. Aaargh!!
As I wrote yesterday’s post, and then read through the comments, I re-learned a lesson I thought I’d already learned:
that the community you are trying to build is great; but the community you have is even more important.
So I started going through my Reader, clicking through to more posts shared by my Facebook friends than I ordinarily do, and realized – much to my chagrin – that I don’t give nearly as many props to my community as I like to think I do.
I also found some wonderful gems that I was not familiar with before, and realized they are people I want to get to know.
Filed under Shonali Burke, Social Media, Weekly Roundup | Tags: building relationships, chuck hemann, jennifer wilbur, joe hackman, justin goldsborough, lindsay allen, speakerbox, steff metal | Comments (13)From Couch To 5K: Why Lindsay Allen Runs
I’ve known Lindsay Allen for the last two years or so, first meeting her on Twitter, and then taking that connection offline.
I’ve long admired her sense of humor, practicality and tenacity.
When I heard she was training for her first-ever 5K race and trying to raise funds for Special Olympics Michigan in the process, I asked her to tell me more.
Image: The Q via Flickr, CC 2.0
In Lindsay’s words:
I’ve never been a runner.
Filed under Interviews, Personal, Philanthropy, Shonali Burke | Tags: c25k, causes, couch to 5k, lindsay allen, Philanthropy, running, special olympics michigan | Comments (9)Go Social, Give Wisely
The way philanthropic organizations have been mobilizing social media in recent years to raise funds isn’t really “shiny new stuff” any more. Still, the recent waves of donations after the earthquake have been coming at lightning speed.
In light of that, I’ve been intrigued by The Smoking Gun’s scrutiny of Wyclef Jean’s charity, Yéle Haiti (also reported on in today’s Washington Post). Having run communications for the ASPCA during some critical events in the animal welfare arena, I know how generous people can be with their money when tragedy strikes, even when they don’t have a lot to give. I also know how important it is that that money reaches the right hands.
I honestly don’t know what the deal is with Mr. Jean’s charity and am not going to play a guessing game. If you’ve been following the story, you can view his video response on YouTube, which Mashable picked up pretty quickly (h/t Lindsay Allen for finding it for me). I do think he is to be commended for springing into action so quickly after the earthquake hit and being a very public face for the poorest nation in the Americas.
What I will say is that regardless of who you’re going to give your money to, you should do your research and give where you trust that your donation will be wisely used.
Charity Navigator is a good place to start, and usually my first stop when I’m researching a non-profit organization (you can read their take on Yéle Haiti and why they don’t currently rate it here).
Filed under Philanthropy, Shonali Burke, Social Media | Tags: 12for12k, charity, charity navigator, guidestar, lindsay allen, mashable, Philanthropy, red cross, Social Media, wendy harman, wyclef jean, yele haiti | Comments (7)
