Tag Archives: charity

Potter’s Glasses Honor Holocaust Victims

Just file it under: the most unique way to reuse eyeglasses. Daniel Radcliffe, the young actor who played the bespectacled schoolboy wizard in the “Harry Potter” films, may never look at his first eyeglasses in the same way again. The 18-year-old just donated the glasses he wore as a child to a one-of-a-kind exhibition marking the horrors of the Holocaust. Radcliffe donated the tiny oval, gray metal-framed pair of glasses he wore as a 6-year-old to the exhibit where it joins specs belonging to Yoko Ono, talk show host Jerry Springer, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and other celebrities. … Continue reading →

Pop Culture Potpourri—-Paris Pouts and Fraser’s Marriage Fizzles

When Paris Hilton was released from jail earlier this year she vowed to rededicate her life to help those in need. How charitable. But, now the 26-year-old socialite’s philanthropic posturing is really being put to the test—-courtesy of her grandfather. Hilton’s 80-year-old grandpa Barron Hilton (whose father was the original founder of the hotel chain that bears the family name) just announced he plans to donate 97 percent of his fortune to the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. The charity aids the homeless, helps provide safe water in developing countries, and assists other worthy causes around the world. So what does … Continue reading →

Christmas Angels Drive Comcast Trucks

Saturday was crazy at our house, as I’m sure it was at yours, too. We had a few last minute things to pick up and so we headed out to the store. Up against the north side of the building, the ice and snow had built up into a skating rink, and we decided to park on the east side instead. I ran in with two of our children, leaving the two youngest in the car with my husband, one of them being in time out. On the way out of the store, we passed the slick patch of ice, … Continue reading →

New York Goes Golden for the Holidays

If you plan to be in the New York City area during the holiday season I highly encourage you to head over to Rockefeller Center, not so you can snap a photo of the famous Christmas tree (though it is spectacular and worth taking a few pictures of), but to catch sight of an impressive exhibit that will leave you speechless. Part of Rockefeller Center is paved with gold–golden pennies that is. And not just a few jars worth, we’re talking 100 million pennies (plus a few nickels, dimes and quarters that slipped in by mistake) spread out along an … Continue reading →

Ask and Ye Shall Receive

Need something? Sure you can go out and spend money for it, but chances are that there is a way to get it for free, just by asking. Here is how. Need some hangers for your closet? Whenever you buy any clothing from a store, ask them if you can have the the hangers that go with the items. You can even ask for extra hangers. Most retailers are only too happy to give away all of their extra hangers, if you just ask. And this is a tip that is especially apt at this time of year, in the … Continue reading →

Finding the Christmas Spirit

I’ve been talking with a lot of friends about their feelings regarding the holidays. Many of them are suffering from a lot of stress right now and are having a hard time feeling the Christmas spirit. I know people who have lost their jobs just before Christmas, had injury or diseases befall their family, or had accidents. It seems that December is just a bad time, year after year. How do we manage to feel the Christmas spirit with all that turmoil? After thinking about it for a while, I’ve come up with a theory. I think December is the … Continue reading →

Helping Children Learn to Make Charitable Choices

Many of us have taught our children about tithing and making charitable donations to organizations and causes of OUR choosing–but as children get older, we also need to help them learn how to evaluate and make their own choices about charities. As kids take ownership in causes of their own choosing, they can more fully experience the joys and responsibilities that come with charitable giving. They may need some guidance and encouragement, however, in figuring out who and what to give to. My kids have been raised with volunteering and assisting me in making charitable donations–but I realized a couple … Continue reading →

Gospel Doctrine: Pure Religion

The lesson this week was taken from the book of James in the Bible and is focused on the topic of pure religion as defined in James 1:27: Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world. When we read the part about visiting the fatherless and the widows, this of course brings to mind the qualities of charity and compassion. This is pure religion indeed, to be the hands of the Lord on earth, to serve them as He would … Continue reading →

Giving and Taxes

Hopefully you have already been aware all year of the changes in donations and charitable contributions in regards to your taxes. This is a big year of transition; therefore if you haven’t been keeping adequate records, you may have lost an opportunity for a tax deduction. Still, there is one month left of 2007 and many individuals give the most during the holidays. Therefore, it is worth mentioning some of these changes as we head into this season of giving. The main change in regards to your taxes comes with the paperwork necessary to prove a valid donation. This is … Continue reading →

Celebrities Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving may be over, but Nancy Grace has something extra special to be grateful for today. According to her rep, the CNN Headline News anchor is finally getting to take home her nearly one-month-old baby daughter Lucy Elizabeth. Little Lucy will join her twin brother John David who was released from the hospital on Thanksgiving. As I reported in a previous blog the babies were born on November 4th, two months before their scheduled due date. Doctors were forced to perform an emergency C-section on Grace after she was diagnosed with pulmonary edema during her pregnancy and developed fluid in … Continue reading →