Social Networking

Posted by TeamCharlie on December 19, 2008 under Social Media | Be the First to Comment

Have you ever tried to drink from a fire hose?  That’s what I feel like when I started down the road of investigating just some of the social networking options out there.  I attend our Chamber of Commerce meetings whenever I can which in my mind is one of the best ways to do it – reason being is that it is personal.  I am the type of person who is that last one to “get it” when it comes to understanding the benefit of things.  For example, when Windows for Workgroups (any of you tech weenies remember that?)  came out I asked myself why anyone would want to connect to another computer?  ‘Nuff said.  So I am forcing my way through this even though I am constantly puzzled as I muddle around.  I was told about Ning.com, Twitter of course, and most recently Facebook.  Not to mention Stumbleupon, Digg and a few others.  My new theory is that even though I don’t get it yet, I will if I keep trying and when I finally have that magical epiphany I will be that much ahead of the game.

The main reasons I want to get out there are twofold.  First is to raise awareness for KidsAreHeroes.com and MaryMargaret’s Music for Life! project, and secondarily to help some of the other heroes from the KidsAreHeroes site.  There are SO many really heartwarming stories that kids are out there creating and I think it is extremely important to encourage them.  When Ryan Hreljac was just seven years old, he was told by his teacher about the unclean conditions in third world countries.  He learned about children and mothers having to walk six hours to get dirty water, sometimes twice daily.  This prevents the children from attending school and due to the resulting diseases also makes them orphans.  Well Ryan couldn’t understand why he could walk just a few steps to get clean water and someone else had to walk six hours just to get dirty water.  He persisted and worked for a year until he collected $2000.00 which was enough to buy his first well in Uganda.  Ryan is 17 now, and “Ryan’s Wells” has dug 461 wells in 16 countries and is serving 600,000 people to date.  This is just one example of the power that children have.  So this is why we want to encourage and help them.

So it is back to figuring out the best way to get their messages out to other people…