Further Adventures in Advertising

Rain. Constant rain.

As I mentioned before, Abby and I are doing our own fundraising for our trip, and the first idea that popped into my head was to do a garage sale, with donations of stuff provided by friends and family. The response was overwhelming. I underestimated how happy people are to have someone come to their home to pick up junk they have already had sitting in a corner of their home for months!

Abby and I prepared by advertising in three different online sources (Craigslist, Pennysaver, Recycler). I didn't feel comfortable listing the full address of the location we were having it at (which was generously provided by my in-laws, thank you again so much!), so I just listed the major cross streets and told prospective customers to look for our signs. We also had a dear friend design an amazing flier which we sent to friends and family, and spread across facebook as much as we possibly could. It's hard to tell if any of that worked, however. I really think most of our customers were just random people looking for garage sales that saw our signs. We did have one customer who came specifically for our event and simply donated $10 without buying anything, which was fantastic! But I didn't ask her how she found out about it, so I guess we'll never know what did it.

But there was Rain.

A few days before the event we noticed the weather forecast. Abby and I were vigilant about that forecast. We saw it slowly climb from 10%....to 30%....to 80% chance of rain. We were honestly so disheartened that all our hard work promoting, and picking up stuff from all over the place was going to be in vain.

Thankfully a friend came through at the last minute and let us borrow her tent, under which we stuffed as much stuff as we could. It wasn't the best organized, by far, but it worked. Although it did rain, and it was constant throughout the day, thankfully people still came and went and haggled (oh they haggled) and paid. We tried to combine it with a bake sale, which was successful to a lesser extent. I think the prime hours for the bake sale would probably be between 6-8am, and unfortunately we didn't get that going until after 8am. I think we'll try just hot chocolate and coffee this Saturday, starting right at 6am. In the end we made $685, which is more than enough for at least one flight to Haiti!

One thing we thought might work to our advantage was to show the work we'd be doing when we go back, so people know what their money is going towards. I did a picture timeline of a volunteer's day with All Hands, hopefully depicting everything accurately for our customers. Unfortunately, and it should've been expected, most people didn't really care, as long as they could save a buck. When people tried to haggle down prices, I told them the purpose of the garage sale in an effort to keep my original price, and all I got was a blank stare, haha. Oh well.

One of the things I kept observing throughout the day, other than the constant rain, was that as much as we sold, there was still SO. MUCH. STUFF. Honestly, anyone driving by around 2pm and seeing everything that was still strewn about would have thought we hadn't sold a single item. What I kept thinking: we have to move this stuff all over again. Sigh.

Fortunately we had a small army of friends and family that helped us pack and move everything. Abby and I are going to go through all the leftover stuff as well as the new donations this week to try to make the next garage sale a little more organized. Yep, there's enough for another one! Hopefully we'll make up the rest that's needed for the second flight.

In summary, I think if you're looking to raise money for something, and willing to put in the time and labor, a garage sale seems to be a good way to go. Advertise as much as you can, but I think the most important thing is to have visible signs at all major intersections, that's the only sure thing. I also reached out to not only friends and family, but also professional contacts, and was lucky enough to get a good response. Don't leave any stone unturned :) And make sure you have a small army of people to help you!

All in all, I think it was a very successful first fundraiser. Now we just have to come up with more ideas on how to make the rest of the money we need. Suggestions?

Adventures in Fundraising

In my pursuit of making myself more marketable to the non profits I someday hope to work for (and get paid to work for), I realized a few months ago that experience in fund raising and grant writing is always a plus. At first I wanted to take a course for each of these subjects, but the expenses involved with that just haven't been in the cards lately. So instead, I'm diving head first and trying to figure it out on my own, with the help of those willing to help.

Aside from our garage sales for our personal expenses to

Haiti (which I'll blog about later), my main adventure is trying to raise some serious money for All Hands, specifically their sanitation project. I've been working on a presentation since July, updating information and what not, and I think I'm almost where I want. I'm planning on presenting it to attorneys and law school professors in the area, so it needs to be legit. I'm trying to make it detailed without being overwhelming, informative, and even with citations!

At first I was thinking of contacting large law firms and trying to make presentations to them, but after talking to a more experienced attorney, we came to the conclusion that wouldn't be a very effective use of time. He helped me realize that the better r

oute to go is to just have a fundraising social event, where I can charge per person. My thought is: charge $40-50 per person, and after giving my presentation, ask people or their firms to pledge larger donations. The latter part scares me a little, since I'm afraid I'm going to put all this effort into this event, and no one will care enough to take it a step further, haha. Hopefully people will prove me wrong.

My two biggest concerns have been: 1) finding a place to have the event, with little or no charge, and 2) finding someone to cover the cost of the fundraiser. I've learned lately that both of these just require the right connections. For the first one, I met a dual attorney couple at a legal fundraising event, and was smart enough to keep in touch with them by sending them a thank you follow up email.

I asked the wife for some fundraising

tips and advice, and told her about my concerns regarding locations and cost. She gave me some tips on catering and what not, and a couple weeks later sent me a follow up email offering her house as a venue for the fundraiser. I can't tell you how excited I was when I read that email. So, just like that, concern number one evaporated!

I'm still working on securing funding, but the Thanksgiving holidays have set me behind a bit. I will be sending out some donation request letters in the next couple weeks. I was originally hoping to have this event in January, but I'm thinking it might have to be pushed back to February unless I can secure the funding ASAP (which with the holidays coming up, seems doubtful).

Everything after that, catering, decor, rentals, etc., just falls into place. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I'm going about this the right way, and that I can actually raise some good funds for this project. Not only will it help an amazing organization, it helps me feel like regardless of how far I am, physically, I'm still helping out in some way, not to mention the experience that it gives me.

Photo courtesy of Ben Waldman

Yes, Haiti has a Cholera problem.

Not sure if I've updated my dear readers since Haiti on my Mind, but it's been decided: Abby and I are returning to Haiti for two weeks in March, and we couldn't be more happy about this opportunity. We started raising money this past weekend by throwing a huge garage sale (separate post to come about that), and we were actually able to raise a good starting chunk of money.

One thing many friends and family have been addressing, out of concern for our safety, is the cholera epidemic that is ravaging the country. It's in some ways a very justifiable concern, so I wanted to write a little bit about it to set friends and family at ease.

How do you get cholera?

People get cholera by ingesting contaminated food or water. Cholera is not transmitted by being around people with cholera, but rather by ingesting contaminated food or water, that is caused by unsanitary conditions.

How do you prevent cholera?

The thing that really angers me and many others about this epidemic is how easily it can be prevented. The problem in Haiti and other countries that are affected by cholera is the lack of access to clean water, and therefore the inability to clean food before ingesting it. It's easy for us in developing countries to criticize people for using unclean water, but if you had a choice between dirty water and no water...well, it's not much of a choice, is it? Below is a flier that is being distributed to people in Haiti, showing them how they can prevent cholera (yes, it's in creole, but I think the pictures are self explanatory :) ).

Some people have asked if we can get a vaccine to prevent it. I didn't think there was, but apparently there is. However, the US Centers for Disease Control & Prevention actually does NOT recommend getting it.

Here is some information Abby found online:

All people (visitors or residents) in areas where cholera is occurring or has occurred should observe the following recommendations:

* Drink only bottled, boiled, or chemically treated water and bottled or canned carbonated beverages. When using bottled drinks, make sure that the seal has not been broken.
o To disinfect your own water: boil for 1 minute or filter the water and add 2 drops of household bleach or ½ an iodine tablet per liter of water.
o Avoid tap water, fountain drinks, and ice cubes.
* Wash your hands often with soap and clean water.
* If no water and soap are available, use an alcohol-based hand cleaner (with at least 60% alcohol).
o Clean your hands especially before you eat or prepare food and after using the bathroom.
* Use bottled, boiled, or chemically treated water to wash dishes, brush your teeth, wash and prepare food, or make ice.
* Eat foods that are packaged or that are freshly cooked and served hot.
o Do not eat raw and undercooked meats and seafood or unpeeled fruits and vegetables.
* Dispose of feces in a sanitary manner to prevent contamination of water and food sources

How do you treat cholera?

Again, something that is so simple-- it is extremely upsetting so many people have died from cholera. Cholera becomes deadly because your body becomes dehydrated, and it is extreme dehydration which may cause death. The solution as proposed by the World Health Organization: an oral rehydration solution which consists of sugar and electrolytes. Yep, sugar and electrolytes. So why are so many people in Haiti and around the world dying? Because they lack access to basic materials, such as clean water to prevent and treat cholera. Crazy, right?

With the right treatment, less than 1% of cases are deadly.

What is the situation like where Abby and I will be staying?

We are going with the same organization we went with last time, which is now named All Hands Volunteers, so we feel very comfortable with how they prepare their food and the standards of cleanliness on base. They also have nurses and trained medical staff, and have been working hard to spread prevention awareness around the community of Leogane. They have also been involved with the implementation of sanitation systems and bio sand filters way before the cholera epidemic hit the country.

You can click here to see what All Hands is doing on base, which includes elevated hygiene levels.

We want all our friends and family to know that we will be cautious with the food we eat and the water we drink, but our concerns should be focused on the thousands of people around the world who do not have the privileges that Abby and I will have when we are down there: access to clean water, and prompt access to treatment should it become necessary.

Want to learn more:

• WHO Cholera Information sheet
• WHO Information sheet: Cholera in Haiti
• News from Partners in Health: check out their entire website, tons of great information.

As always, thank you to everyone who has supported us and continues to support us. Your love and support are appreciated and needed :)

Charities of the Month: Holiday Edition!

Open, open, open. Do you guys remember that Mervyn's commercial? I feel like it's one of those commercials I'll never forget. What bring's me to this memory is that this Friday, hundreds of thousands of people across the U.S. will be waiting outside of stores well before midnight, in an effort to get the greatest shopping deals for their Christmas shopping.

So here's an idea: sleep in on Friday, get over your food comma, and do your shopping online while supporting some great causes. Below are a few of the amazing items you can purchase for friends and family, although you shouldn't limit yourself to these. If you have a son or daughter who is into environmental conservation, find an organization that focuses on that, and see what gift catalog they have to offer!

1) Support for International Change: I met a volunteer for SIC while working at the Arcade Fire show for Partners in Health. Looks like a cool organization, and I'm hoping I can work for them in the future. In the meantime, check out their cool handbags! I left the screen open to this one day in the hopes that Jeff would catch my drift...I guess it wasn't so subtle because he texted me and asked: "is this what you want for Christmas?" Yep :) They've got all sorts of styles, so be sure to check them out here.

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2) Common Hope: the Common Hope gift catalogue is not actually shopping for those you know, but it still gives you a cool opportunity to buy some awesome gifts for COMPLETE STRANGERS (possibly in the name of someone you think would enjoy the honor), and what could be more rewarding?! haha. Check it out here.

3) Invisible Children: Originally, the invisible children website catalogue was pretty limited, but in checking it out for this blog, it seems that they've expanded their offerings quite a bit, which is awesome news for all you shoppers! They have both a Christmas catalogue and a general catalogue. I recommend going straight to the "all" catalogue so you can see everything they offer. My favorites are the bracelets with the DVD stories, and, again, not necessarily something you give to someone (although you could donate it on their behalf), but how cool is it knowing you can send someone to school for $35?!

4) Partners in Health: I've talked about PIH before, they're the organization I volunteered for at the Arcade Fire Show. They're doing some amazing things, not only in Haiti, but in developing countries around the world. Your $30 donation in exchange for this calendar will go to fund projects in Haiti, Peru, Russia, Rwanda, Lesotho, Malawi, Mexico, Guatemala, Kazakhstan, and the US. My one complaint is that they don't show you a preview of the pictures in the calendar, but I'm gonna go out on a limb here and assume they are awesome pictures from the amazing projects PIH is working on in each of it's locations.

Do you know of an organization with a gift catalogue? I'm always interested in learning about new organizations to feature on this blog, so please feel free to bring them to my attention!

Please, I will beg if necessary, check out these organizations and give an honest consideration to the thought of giving some of these as gifts to your friends or family.

Happy shopping!

New Layout-ish.

Some of you may notice there are some [minor] changes to the blog. I'm still not sure how I feel about it. I like the new color template because it's a lot easier to read. And I love the old map background at the top. But I can't get my picture to be centered, and that's driving the OCD-part of me a little insane. Any thoughts or suggestions? Should I got back to the old format or try to figure out this new one? Change is usually difficult for me, so it feels weird to switch this up, but I'm thinking it's time.

What's your impact?

So Jeff and I watched an interesting movie tonight that actually made me want to make some changes to how we do things in our home. I will admit that I wasn't stoked on watching it--not because it looked bad, I just wasn't in the mood for a documentary, but I'm glad we ended up watching it. The movie is called "No Impact Man," and is basically the project of one man to have him and his family live for a year without making any net impact: no trash, no energy consumption, etc. Sounds crazy, right? I still don't know how his wife agreed! (I also wonder how this guy ended up being a "traditional" family man...I think you'll know what I mean if you watch the movie ;) ). But she did, and they did, and there's a movie to prove it.

Other than being entertaining to watch, it made me think about what small things we can each do in our lives to make less of a negative impact on our environment. I know I'm not going to give up electricity as a whole, or get rid of my TV, but I'm sure there are things I can do that in the aggregate might make a small difference. The main protagonist in the film says that if you are going to do just one thing, it should be to get involved with a conservation project in your community: he thinks getting back to our sense of community is crucial.

I think most of us know of the obvious things we can do to have less impact:

• don't use bottled water. Use a container that's washable and reusable. "30 billion plastic water bottles are thrown away every year. Plastic can take up to a thousand years to disintegrate."
  
• lay off the plastic bags: instead of just leaving your Ralph's bag in the car, remember to take it down and use it instead of using plastic bags (I suffer from this a lot)
• use energy efficient light bulbs and household appliances (it took me over a minute to come up with the word "appliances")

Here are some things that might not be as obvious:

• did you know you can reduce your junk mail in your physical (not cyber) mailbox by calling places and asking them not to mail you stuff? I definitely need to do that. "Junk mail produces 1 billion pounds of landfill each year."
  
• support local farmers. I need to go to the farmers market more often.
• recycle, reuse, reduce. I'm pretty sure this was standard elementary education, but we tend to forget. I don't see myself making my own compost, but I would like to be more active in recycling stuff--not just plastics, cans and aluminum, but general stuff around the house.
• be more vegan. this one I'm really not sure I can do. I love bacon. I love a good burger every now and then. But then again, "animal agriculture emits more global warming gases into the air than does transportation." huh.

These are all pretty mild and tame ways of helping out. I recommend watching the movie to see what challenges you think you might be able to handle.

I do want to point out an interesting scene: the protagonist is talking to his wife during a period of frustration with his project wondering, why is he really doing this? Is it really making any difference? Towards the end, he goes on to explain that if we each get one person to change something in their lifestyle, then we are all making a difference. I thought it was especially interesting given my recent soul searching for my career. I've yet to delve into this and make any serious analysis or conclusion of it, but thought it was oddly similar to what I've been wondering about my desire to pursue public interest.

What do you do to reduce your global impact? What are your ideas?

Losing the Shimmer

I met up with a solo-practitioner last week to discuss how she started her own firm (let's call her Lucy), but was able to keep it public-interest minded. Basically, if I can't find a job working for a non-profit, I gotta find a way to make this whole attorney-thing work for me; a possibility is to start my own practice, but be able to keep it focused on low-income clients, while still making a living for myself (sounds almost like an extended oxymoron, huh?).

It was an extremely productive lunch meeting (I tried some sort of Thai coconut soup for the first time...something I would have never ordered myself, but actually enjoyed), but it also brought me back to a concept I brought up when I first started this blog: at what point do we stop pursuing our goals to pursue something more realistic?

Lucy worked for a big non profit law firm in Los Angeles about a year after law school, and I could see the shimmer in her eye when she talked about those days: everyone she worked with was empowered to change the world, and believed they could do it. There was a contagious excitement about the work they were doing, about helping people, about making it happen. Lucky worked with this non profit for about twenty years, until congressional regulations started restricting the kind of work they could do: no more personal injuries, no more class actions (these take away large sums of money from attorneys that actually want to get paid), no more funding if you're helping illegal immigrants, etc. Lucy grew so frustrated because she felt she was no longer doing what she went to law school do to, so she decided to go out on her own.

Years later, sitting in a hole-in-the-wall Thai restaurant in Brea, she talks about how she just had to make the decision, and now she has to be a business person rather than a public-interest attorney: she's gotta make money to pay for her elderly mothers 24-hour caregiver. I can tell from the shift in her tone, and the lack of shimmer in here eye, that she's not overly excited about this: she has to network with attorneys (ick! ;] ), put her name out there to find new clients, and charge clients for her service. I know charging seems normal to most of you, but for a public interest attorney who is used to working in a firm that provides free services, it feels almost immoral to charge people. But it's what she has to do now. She also wonders: how much impact was I really having, helping one person at a time? I certainly was no closer to saving the world when I first started, then twenty years later. I could tell this was something she had pondered before...her look became a little more distant, and I could see she was thinking of all the cases she had worked on in those twenty years and asking herself: did they really change anything?

I'm only two weeks into my unemployment (today is actually my two week anniversary!), but I'm already thinking about my alternatives if I can't find a job soon with a non profit or public interest firm. I might have to go out on my own. I'm gonna have to charge my clients. I'm gonna have to find a way to compromise what my heart desires, and what our family needs. How can I do this without loosing my shimmer? It may sound pathetic, but I'm scared of losing my idealistic aspirations, I'm scared of realizing I can't save the world.

Guatemala Update

A subject I have frequently written about is the Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala. I read a great article about it in the Washington Post today.

It was great to see the Washington Post write a long and thorough article on something that isn't in the news much, and that no mainstream media has much of an interest for.

As usual with Guatemala, it's depressing to see opposition to something that can actually help with the level of crime and impunity that exist within it. The CICIG has been facing opposition from various sectors since the very beginning, and I'm sure it will continue to face opposition for the remainder of its days. It just makes me sad.

It makes me sad because I read posts from my friend Isabel, who lives in Guatemala, and she talks about her frustrations with the crime and violence in Guatemala. People shut themselves in their house by 8pm. Their crime rate, as mentioned in the article, is three times that of Mexico. Three times. The crime rate of Mexico. Let that sink in for a bit.

So here's an organization that is fighting corruption and crime, and trying to prosecute those before thought to be untouchable because of their political influence and/or wealth. But it has to fight to survive.

I hope the two year extension of the CICIG is granted, and I hope it continues to provide meaningful improvements to the government of Guatemala. I hope the people of Guatemala demand it, should anyone stand in the way.

Reminders and Memories

(Disclaimer: this blog is from my working days, certainly not recent!)

There was quite a bit of drama leading up to this moment, but to make a long story short: I was in the middle of driving an-hour-and-a-half from the office to a clients house to handle some stuff for work. At first I was furious that I was going to have to take the whole afternoon off from my busy office schedule to do this, but as I set my tunes and hit the freeway I realized how stupid I was for complaining: I was out of the office! It reminded me of how much I enjoyed being on the road when most people were stuck in an office, behind a desk. There's something liberating about driving down a street at 10am, or 2pm, when the norms of society are yelling at your body: you shouldn't be here!!!

This trip was also quite an experience for a few other reasons. For those who read this blog and don't live anywhere near me, nor have ever lived anywhere near me (bless your hearts for reading), I live in a county that is sorely lacking in diversity, and it shows. This trip reminded me of the bubble that I live in. It was almost like crossing a border into another country. The streets are smaller, more people walking, different colored faces, people everywhere just trying to survive. It was good to be reminded.

When I got the the clients house it was almost like going back in time: I found myself in my great-aunt's house, or my grandmother's neighbors house in Guatemala: the plastic cover over the furniture and dining room table, the religious icons all over the house, the "recuerditos" from baptisms, weddings, and quinceneras all over the house, the clutter on the walls. There's a certain "feeling" of hispanic homes that I had missed for a while, and I felt strangely comfortable in this strangers home.

Music Corner: Odessa by Caribou

The beginning of the video has me wondering a thing or two, but I do enjoy the song.

Our Rollercoaster Life

Can't say I didn't see it coming. The office manager was in a prolonged meeting with the boss man yesterday afternoon, and over the last couple of weeks I knew what that meant: more people being let go. Un/fortunately for Jeff and I, I was one of the people that got oh-so-gently let go yesterday.

Before continuing, let me make one thing clear: I was laid off, not fired. There's a subtle distinction there that I think is important to make :) The firm has come across some rough times and the boss man says he has to do what he has to do to keep the doors open. Be that as it may, it leaves me without a weekly check.

However, Jeff finally started working full time last Monday. Yep, last Monday. Which means we were both employed full time for a full week. Crazy timing, huh? I can confidently say that God has been testing us quite a bit lately, but He has never completely abandoned us. It seems that as soon as we get something right, like both of us finally working and looking forward to getting on our feet, something equally bad happens. And yet, it's not terrible. It would've been terrible if I had lost my job and Jeff wasn't working. THAT would've been shitty. At least He gives us a window so we can breath until we find the next unlocked door.

And yet, it's still a blessing in disguise. Most of our friends know I wasn't exactly thrilled with this job. I loved most of the people I worked with, but I wasn't practicing in an area that made me happy. I knew it was temporary. I just wanted to leave when I was ready, not when someone else forced me to go. And yet, who's to say I would ever take the time to look for the next step in my career if I wasn't forced to? I now have the extra time to do oh-so-many things that I've been looking forward to. In no particular order:

1. Find a job that makes me happy. Ideally in the public interest/non-profit sector. Maybe immigration, hopefully international development-related.
2. Start going to the gym again. I was doing so good leading up to the Giacobbe's wedding, and then I let life get in the way again.
3. Working on my side projects: raising money for a sanitation project in Haiti, as well as Abby's and my trip to Haiti.
4. Work on the first pro-bono case I've picked up for KIND (I'll be featuring them for this month's Charity of the Month, so stay tuned).
5. Work on our apartment, getting it clean and pretty.
6. Build up my resume by volunteering with various projects and organizations.
7. Catch up with friends and family that I haven't been able to spend quality time with.

So yeah, it sucks to be unemployed again, especially when Jeff and I had gotten so excited about finally being financially stable enough to afford getting something for our friends and family (and ourselves) for Christmas. But all the cliches apply here: things happen for a reason, it's for the best, there's something better around the corner. Right?