Posted by Gabe on September 3, 2010 under Kids Are Heroes Day, Kids are Heroes | 
Levar will be speaking at Kids Are Heroes Day
Well I am so happy and excited to announce that it’s official: Levar Fisher, who used to play the outside linebacker position for the Arizona Cardinals, and now is a motivational speaker, will be appearing at Kids Are Heroes Day at the Francis Scott Key Mall in Frederick, Maryland on Saturday, October 23rd. Levar is one of our partners who travels around the country speaking about Kids Are Heroes and encouraging kids not to let go of their dreams. I have met him in person and have witnessed his speaking firsthand. All I can say is if you can make it to this event you are in for a real treat. NFL players who are prima donnas sometimes make people feel that all players are like that. Well not Levar. Besides being an entertaining speaker, he is engaging and is very approachable. His charisma is what really works for him and wins over the kids. Before kids know him they want to hear from him just because he is an NFL player. It’s one of those “you had me at hello” kind of things. But his talent at keeping kids and parents interested is what is really important. Because it’s not all about an entertaining speech. It’s about helping to set off a spark inside of you and your children. Believe me, you and your family will be rewarded if you come to visit him and all the other kids on Kids Are Heroes Day.
And don’t forget, Diana Onyonyi will also be there. She is our first hero from Africa and is traveling all the way from Nairobi, Kenya!! Her speech is entitled “Peace is Possible”. So if you want to experience potentially life-changing inspiration, you’ll want to be a center court on Saturday October 23rd. As we get closer to the event I will post times of certain events that will be happening that day. We have much more than I just mentioned, including other heroes traveling from all over the country. So please, mark your calendars and stay tuned!!
Posted by Gabe on September 1, 2010 under Kids are Heroes |
A vote for MM is a vote for Kids Are Heroes
Social media is great but there is one piece of baggage that comes with it that is truly beginning to annoy me: Voting. The Pepsi company recently made a decision to replace TV advertising with social media. They have put together a very successful campaign where they give out many parcels of money to needy causes. The catch: people have to vote. This is great for the companies because every time someone votes they have to do it on the company’s web site. And people can’t just vote once either. They can vote every day for a month, usually. Although this is a successful ploy for companies it’s really starting to get on my nerves as I am being asked left and right to vote for this and that.
Well guess what? MaryMargaret, the founder of Kids Are Heroes, has entered a role model contest hosted by the Discovery Girls Magazine. This is a very wholesome tween girl magazine that MaryMargaret has subscribed to for years. She even found one of our heroes, Lexxi Saal through this publication. From thousands of finalists MaryMargaret was chosen to be in the top 30. That’s great but to win you have to be in the top 10. How do you get there? That’s right, by voting. Starting September 1, people can vote once a day for their favorites. The top ten winners will be flown to California for a photo shoot so that they will all be featured in an upcoming issue of the magazine.
So now I have the unenviable task of asking for your vote. How can I do that when I know how annoying this whole process has become? What does it matter to you if MaryMargaret is chosen as a role model for a magazine? The answer is that a vote for MaryMargaret is a vote for Kids Are Heroes. We have been trying to get press in an international publication and how perfect is this one? The more kids and parents that read about us the more we can have an impact. So I humbly ask that you vote, once daily, and also ask your contacts to vote as well. I promise I will never ask you again. :)
HERE’S HOW TO VOTE: Go to THIS LINK, find MaryMargaret’s picture (it’s the one posted here) and click ‘Vote for MaryMargaret’. You will need to register with them, but once you do that you should be able to vote each day without having to sign in. We would SO APPRECIATE if you would take the time out each day to vote for her. This could really help the KAH cause. THANK YOU!!!
And if you want a daily reminder sent to your email inbox, you can subscribe to a reminder list that will nudge you each morning only during the month of September. Sign up at http://marymargaret.kidsareheroes.org
Posted by Gabe on August 31, 2010 under Family |
I really never thought I would be writing this, unless it was a posthumous note about our dog Pablo. I have sent out many pictures of him, wrote a blog post about him until 3AM and all in all loved him very much. Despite the physical damage he has done to our home, the “accident” stains when he gets nervous, and the knowledge that at any time during the night it would be my turn to sleep with him in the storage room if an unexpected thunderstorm appeared, we were all resigned to the fact that we would keep him through thick and thin. That is, until two days ago. Sunday was a beautiful day and my wife Michelle was reading a magazine out on the deck with the three dogs. I was finishing up some work in my office. Sadly I couldn’t hear what was going on until I heard MaryMargaret scream. I rushed to see what happened and apparently Charlie and Pablo, the two males, got into a big fight on the deck. We normally sequester them, but this was just one of those things. There was a noise inside the house and all three dogs converged on the door which started the row. Michelle screamed at them to stop. This normally works but did not on this occasion. Without thinking she stepped in to try and break it up and Pablo bit her in the leg.
Now we know it wasn’t his fault but we also realized that we were putting our daughter in danger by having these animals coexist with each other. What made matters worse is that yesterday morning Pablo charged Michelle (playfully) and knocked her into the wall. (He gets excited when it’s time to eat.) This is the second time he has done this; the first time resulted in a fall halfway down the stairs.
We really felt we could deal with him but he is just too big and boisterous for us to handle, especially considering we have two other large dogs similar to (albeit better behaved than) him. I put a call into the breeder we rescued him from and she agreed she would take him back. This is devastating for us as we truly love that dog, but we know it is best for him, and for our family. It was heart wrenching for me to see MaryMargaret crying in her bedroom last night as she held a picture of Pablo in her hands. ”Why can’t you give him back five years from now?” she asked me.
Today I have the unenviable task of meeting his owner at a point halfway from both of our homes — three hours from here. I know how much she loves him too so I know he will be cared for. But that is little solace for us. Goodbye Pablo, we will never forget you.
UPDATE: 8/31/1- 3:00 PM. I just got back from dropping Pablo off. It was tough to leave him but his former (and new) owner is going to keep him and show him as a veteran. We might even get to cheer him on when he competes in Frederick in February. They are also about to purchase a farm, so I’m confident that Pablo will be comfortable and well taken care of. One of Pablo’s signature moves was to jump up on the couch then lean on you until he is almost laying on your lap. That was the first thing Charlie did to me when I got home and he’d never done that before in his life. Ok that’s a bit eerie but I think it’s a good kind of eerie.
Posted by Gabe on August 28, 2010 under Kids Are Heroes Day, Kids are Heroes |
Some of the girls from last year's celebration.
It’s not even September and already I am waking up in the middle of the night thinking about Kids Are Heroes Day. We are exactly eight weeks away from the big event. It has been my goal to make each event bigger and better than the last one. This starts to become a challenge after you’ve had ex-NFL players put on a show during one of them. But already I’m pretty confident we will live up to the task. More on why a bit later.
For the unaware this will be our third annual Kids Are Heroes Day to be held at the Francis Scott Key Mall in Frederick, Maryland. Christina Steinbrenner, marketing director of the mall, has been very generous to us since our inception. The fountain coins are donated to a different hero’s charity each month, and Christina makes every effort to ensure that Kids Are Heroes Day is something special.
So what makes this year stand above the rest? Well last year we had Cati Grant travel all the way from San Diego, California to be with us. Cati, whose platform is against bullying, held the record for traveling the furthest to be at one of our events. Well her record will be shattered this year by Diana Onyonyi who will be coming all the way from Nairobi, Kenya!! We are so excited to be able to meet and welcome her. Diana is a fifteen-year-old young woman who was instrumental in building a school dormitory and library for the Karura school in Nairobi. She is a Global Teen Leader through the Three Dot Dash organization. According to an email I just received from her she “was named as a contributor in the process of building the second republic” of Kenya as “His Excellency Mwai Kibaki promulgated Kenya’s new constitution.” Diana is scheduled to be here the entire week of the event, so we will be scheduling appearances for her all over the county at schools, public meetings and press interviews. The topic for her speech at Kids Are Heroes Day is “Peace is Possible.” This is something that should not be missed.
This year we will also welcome the support of our local government which plans to issue an official proclamation declaring October 23rd, 2010 as “Kids Are Heroes” Day. Ms.Jan Gardner, current County Commissioner President, has offered to send official county award certificates to all of our heroes, regardless of their location. As I mentioned before we still haven’t hit September yet. There are other things we are working on to make this event more special than ever. So please stay tuned. There’s lots more to come.
Posted by Gabe on August 19, 2010 under Kids are Heroes |
Have you seen that Cisco commercial where Ellen Page visits a classroom (assumed to be in the US) and she asks where the kids are going on their field trip today? The kids’ answer in unison: “China!!” then point to their video screen where another classroom of Asian children yell back to them. I’ve always thought that was kind of a neat commercial but also assumed it was actually implemented for a select few or even still a pipe dream. I stand corrected. This technology is widely available and being used in the US. How do I know this? Because one company that uses it extensively has invited Kids Are Heroes® to build a presentation for 15-20 schools across the country. This event is already scheduled and we are calling it the first “Virtual Kids Are Heroes Day”. On Wednesday, December 8, we will be taking a train to Philadelphia so MaryMargaret and I can host this presentation. There will be several other heroes involved, only they will not have to travel much as the technology already exists where they live. That was part of the reason they were chosen as the first group to participate in this wonderful event. Gail Poulin, kindergarten teacher from the Norris School in Southampton, Massachusetts, will also participate as she can explain to all the students and teachers how she embeds the Kids Are Heroes experience in her curriculum from the beginning to the end of the year. Each location has two 50″ plasma TV’s , one displaying the current featured presenter and the other showing the participating schools. It’s even interactive so that during the Q&A part a school in Kentucky can ask a question of one of our heroes in New Hampshire. Is that awesome or what??
This is the kind of thing we have been working towards for quite some time now. And this one was funny how it happened. It sprouted from an email from Heather Weisse, the Manager of Educational Services for MAGPI. From MAGPI’s web site: “MAGPI (the Mid-Atlantic Gigapop in Philadelphia for Internet2) is a regional high-speed network and aggregation point providing access to robust advanced network infrastructure and Next Generation networking services for institutions in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware.”
Another exciting thing about this is that once it is complete it will have been recorded and will be available for everyone to stream it over the Internet. Activities like these will take us to the next level. And if it goes well we may be able to do it on a regular basis. Isn’t technology great?
Posted by Gabe on August 11, 2010 under Featured Hero, Kids are Heroes |
Sometimes I do get frustrated when it comes to what I do. The reason is simply because I cannot share what I learn with everyone. Everyone should indeed know about what Neha Gupta is doing. She is our newest featured hero. And although I cannot reach everyone, the ones who read this blog post will know what I mean. It is truly amazing what our younger generation is capable of accomplishing. Neha is a young teenager who has created a non-profit called “Empower Orphans” which aims to better the lives of orphans in India.
At what age would you say you started getting involved in philanthropy and what started you down this road?
As my grandparents live in India, I often visit the country. In keeping with family tradition, we volunteer at an orphanage each time we visit my grandparent’s hometown, located in northern India. When I was nine years old, I realized that the 200 children who live at the orphanage did not have adequate money to gain a proper education; I felt very sad when I heard this because I know the importance of education. Moreover, it was heartbreaking for me to think that these children had no mother or father to guide them, protect them, or love them.
Instead of internalizing these feelings and merely showing empathy for the orphans and underprivileged children, I decided to take action by raising money. The money would help the children gain a better education, be able to stand on their own feet and ultimately become positive contributors to society.
How did you initially discover the orphanage you are helping?
My grandparents have a tradition to volunteer at the orphanage, Bal Kunj, in their hometown in India every year, so I have been going there since I was very little.
How did your non-profit, “Empower Orphans” get started?
To formalize my fundraising efforts, I created and registered a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization (Empower Orphans; www.empowerorphans.org). The mission of Empower Orphans is to address the problems associated with orphans/abandoned children and children born into homes living in poverty by motivating individuals to translate empathy into action.
The organization’s goal is to help create self sufficiency by supplying the children with the tools to gain a basic education and technical skills to enable a sustainable livelihood; helping them to become productive and positive contributors to society. In addition to education, Empower Orphans provides food, clothing, healthcare, and medical supplies to establish an effective learning environment.
What does the organization mean to you? Why is it so important to you that you help the orphans? What has been achieved so far?
I believe that every child should have the opportunity to gain a proper education, and since these orphans do not have the means to, I feel that it is extremely important for me to help them, and that is what Empower Orphans stands for- bettering the education of the children.
Significant strides have already been made to make a difference in the lives of more than a thousand orphaned, underprivileged and abused children.
Bal Kunj Orphanage – India
- In 2006, a library was started at the Bal Kunj orphanage. Over the years, I expanded upon the library and have continued to provide stationery to each of the 200 children who live there.
- Each child is provided with nutritious food, school bags, shoes warm clothes and blankets (to combat the severe winters experienced by northern India).
- In addition, I have provided technical books to 20 children aged between 14-16 years, enabling them to enter a trade and earn a living.
Shree Geeta Public School (for underprivileged children) – India
- During the summer of 2009, I expanded my efforts to provide education and improve wellness among 360 underprivileged children who attend the Shree Geeta Public School.
- A four day eye and dental clinic was held at the school, during which medical doctors evaluated the vision and oral care needs of the 360 children.
- 56 children received more advanced eye care, while 103 children received further dental treatment.
- The annual education of 10 underprivileged children was sponsored by Empower Orphans.
- Sewing machines were given to 10 older girls, who can now take on seamstress jobs and stand on their own feet.
- During 2010, the number of projects conducted increased substantially.
- A computer center with 4 computers and printers was established. Children in grades 3 to 7 can now start to gain an understanding of computer technology.
- Another library was opened for 360 children. Books represented 40% of the school fees and this directly reduced the burden on the parents.
- The education of 40 children sponsored.
- 20 more girls were provided with sewing machines.
Christ’s Home for Children – Warminster, PA
- Provided 175 CFL bulbs so that the orphanage can start reducing their electricity bills and utilize the money towards improved care for the children.
- In 2010, I plan to provide bicycles to children at the orphanage.
Mission Kids (for abused children) – Norristown, PA
- Distributed stuffed animals to children that visit the Mission Kids center in Norristown, PA
Street Children – India
- Provided 220 children with shoes.
I see you have a web store where people can help with needs for the orphans. What would you say would be their greatest need?
As I have mentioned, these orphans do not have the means to gain a proper education so the greatest need of the children would be school fees, uniforms and books.
I understand you are doing things in the US to help people too. Can you elaborate on that?
This year, I expanded my organization to include children in the US. I have already given 50 stuffed animals (given by Build-a-Bear and Kohls) to the children at Mission Kids in Philadelphia and 175 CFL light bulbs to Christ’s Home for Children in Warminster, PA. I am now working towards supplying the orphanage in Warminster with bicycles, food and books to Mission Kids, and am going to start helping the extremely under-privileged schools in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware.
How can other kids help out if they want to get involved in what you are doing?
Other kids can help out by going to www.EmpowerOrphans.org, to start their own fundraising teams/ branch in their area. Through that, they can raise funds in whichever way they feel comfortable. The funds can then be used for projects in US or India or other places globally.
How would you say this activity has affected your life?
Empower Orphans has affected my life considerably, as I have learned how important it is to give to others and also how just one person can truly make a difference in society.
What would you say to a child who really wants to do something great for other people but doesn’t know where to start?
At first, I did not know where to start either. But, I set goals, and started with small ideas which slowly led to bigger and better ideas. After five years, I raised $50,000! Therefore, what I would tell a child who wants to get involved in philanthropy, is to just stay determined and remember that you may not think that your impact will be vast at first but it actually will be.
How do you envision yourself once you reach adulthood?
When I reach adulthood, I envision expanding Empower Orphans into a truly global organization. In the future, I want to open a Technical School for the orphaned and underprivileged children. Once children living at the Bal Kunj orphanage turn 16, they have to leave the orphanage and fend for themselves. They are not trained for any vocation and find it difficult to make a living. Subsequently, the potential of their slipping into a life of crime or prostitution is high. This sequence results in more orphans. To break this cycle, the Technical School will focus on teaching technical skills (electrician, mechanic, lathe operators, tailors and seamstresses) to both the orphans as well as other underprivileged children (approx. 500 children a year).
On a personal level, I want to become a pediatrician (so that I can continue helping children).
Why not give Neha a shout-out on the Kids Are Heroes web site? To do so click here.
Posted by Gabe on August 2, 2010 under Kids are Heroes |
Photo by Michelle Lindsay
This is a follow-up post from my last one which was “Calling All Photogs“. That post wrote of a volunteer matching system to be built on our web site where we match volunteer photographers with our heroes, so that the heroes could post events where photographers were needed and in turn the photographers who have signed up could get some valuable pro bono work, and help a great cause at the same time.
Well I have been busy over the last week or two building this system. As a matter of fact I decided that as long as I was building it I would add some potential volunteer disciplines, namely videography and graphic artistry for starters. I decided to integrate it with Twitter for a number of reasons. That may be disappointing to some, but in the end I think it was the right move. Most of the volunteers will come from the people following me on Twitter and it will also encourage the heroes who are not yet on Twitter to take that step and join the fun.
So if you are a photographer, a graphic artist, or a videographer and you would like to volunteer your skills to help out some young heroes who are doing amazing things, please go over to http://volunteer.kidsareheroes.org and register yourself. In the beginning it will be a bit like the chicken and the egg, as we will need heroes to post their events as well, so after you have registered please check back from time to time to see if any opportunities have been registered. Since it is integrated with Twitter if you follow our heroes you will be able to see when opportunities are entered. Heroes will be able to browse the volunteer list as well and potentially follow the volunteers and/or contact them directly.
So please check it out and start posting events/volunteering. It is a brand new system so it may have a glitch or two. If you find any please feel free to let me know about them, and/or send me ideas on how to improve it in the comments section below. Thank you!!
Posted by Gabe on July 15, 2010 under Kids are Heroes |
Photo by Michelle Lindsay
Yes I would like to put out a call to all photographers across North America for help — at least I think I do. You see when I did that on Twitter I got quite a response from people so I must be careful what I start. But anyway, let me at least move on with the idea.
We have been blessed with four wonderful photographers who have done pro bono work for us. Mary Kate McKenna, Michelle Lindsay, my friend Amanda (@thenagainphoto) and Tracy Timmester. These are four incredible ladies and even better photographers. When they take pictures of the events we have, we bring the color and clarity back to our social media efforts and share with all of our friends. It really adds a lot of good weight to what we do. I had a discussion with Mary Kate the other night at our tweetup and she told me that photographers are lucky to come by opportunities like the ones we present. So my idea is this: To come up with a national network (even to include Canada too!) of photographers who are looking to do some pro bono work for great causes. If and when there is a hero from our web site who is hosting an event, that hero would check the “list” to see if there is a photographer in our network near the hero. If so, then that photographer is sent out to the event and presents the hero with a disk of unsigned images for use in marketing and press releases.
Now that I’ve said that I think I may have bitten off more than I can chew. My question is how do I know who I am sending out to photograph a hero’s event? So I am going to send this blog post out to the photographers who have responded to me on Twitter. I sure hope you have some ideas for me. These kids are so deserving and their charities would benefit so much from your work. Thanks guys!!
If you are a photographer and are interested in helping, please leave a comment including your geographical area, web site and other pertinent information. Thanks!!
Posted by Gabe on July 14, 2010 under Family |
It’s 12:35AM. I am currently in one of the most difficult and awkward situations I have been in for quite some time, both physically and emotionally. You see I am in my basement. Not just any part of my basement. Not the finished part. Not the part we spent so much time, effort and money on. No, I’m in a storage area with half the room filled with junk. The only light I have is the light shining from my Droid’s screen. I’m sitting on an old outdoor lounge chair mat covered with a blanket. And I plan to be here all night, awake. Now you must be thinking I am making this up or exaggerating for effect. I wish I were. I haven’t even gotten to the good part yet. I’m not alone. Not only am I saddled with the fact that I am writing a blog post fat-fingering my Droid keyboard, but I also have a leash in my left hand. It’s attached to Pablo, the 110 pound Bernese Mountain Dog we rescued about 8 months ago. He is panting frantically and has been for the last hour. You see we recently discovered that he is scared to death of thunderstorms. Normally they pass through quickly but I checked Intellicast and it looks like we are in for an all-nighter. So how did we end up here? Well I was awakened by him trying to crash through my bedroom door. I was unaware that my wife was already up and had cleaned one round of pee that he left on the landing. This we have learned is a nervous reaction he suffers from when he gets scared. It was clear that one of us had to stay up with him. The flashes of lightning bouncing off the walls were causing him to pace nervously through the house and crash through doors by using his head as a battering ram. It was clear to us that upstairs was not the solution. We have also learned that sequestering him in a room doesn’t work as he has torn up the carpet and underpadding of our bedroom while trying to break free. Outside was definitely not an option because of the impending weather. The garage was a consideration but due to the fact that there were things he could get into that would harm him it was ruled out as well. So that left the storage room. We felt he had to be supervised so here we are.
It’s now 1:17AM. Since we are in a remote corner of the house away from windows I can say that Pablo is calming down a bit. If I move about he’ll start panting nervously again. I am doing my best to ignore him as I have been told by several sources this is the correct response to be administered so the dog won’t feel that I too am scared. But it actually appears that if we are spared loud claps of thunder, I may have a shot at getting some sleep at some point. That’s if I can sleep. I not only have Pablo to deal with but I have my conscience as well. You see, we really don’t know what to do with him. We have been through this several times and the bottom line is that we are ill-equipped to handle him. We have two other Berners and he fights with our other male Charlie so they must be separated at night and when we are not home. But we simply don’t have an answer to this problem. We have given him drugs which knocked him out for a while but then he would have trouble getting up. We gave him Melatonin (recommended by our vet) earlier which had little if any effect. Bach Flower remedies haven’t worked. We have been down this road several times and it always leads to a dead end. I see no other solution than to give him back to his original owner. Now when we “rescued” him he didn’t come from a bad place. He came from a breeder who simply wanted to rehome him after a life in the show ring. He is actually quite accomplished having been in the top five of his breed at Westminster. He is actually a wonderful dog. He captures the hearts of all who meet him. I have told anecdote over anecdote about the crazy things he has done. But as I write this I wonder if our time with him will soon come to an end.
It’s 1:43AM and the battery on the Droid is doing quite well. Pablo is now fast asleep. When we were all discussing this upstairs I felt we had no choice but to give him back. Now as I sit here typing this journal into my phone I’m wondering if we can’t somehow make this into a room where he can go when the weather gets bad. We already know he can break out of his crate. He’ll need something much sturdier. Maybe if I can just sleep on that thought…
The Droid struggles to light up the area which somehow seems appropriate.
2:53AM. Still haven’t been able to sleep. There are short bursts of relative quiet followed by longer periods of panting. I am at a loss. I really don’t know what to do with him. What kind of message does this send my 11-year-old daughter if we give him back? That’s it’s OK to discard your animals if they become inconvenient? I’ve always felt disdain for people who get their animals from the shelter only to return them some time later. I have neighbors who did it twice until they finally settled on the third dog and I remember the resentment I felt towards them. Now maybe I will have a little more tolerance especially since I did not experience what they did. And I think about Pablo — poor guy. I’m sure he’s not happy about this either. Will he be better off back at the breeder’s with seven other dogs staying in his kennel in the garage all day? Am I off-loading our problem on someone else? This is very difficult. The time that we locked him in our bedroom and left the house for a number of hours was the worst. Although the weather was beautiful when we left, a thunderstorm moved through the area at some point. He tried and tried to get out of the room by tearing up the carpet and under-padding next to the door. There was blood all over the area as he must have also had to deal with the carpet staples somehow. So this isn’t just about protecting the house. We also have to keep him safe.
10:30AM. Sometime after 3AM we both did finally get to sleep. When I awoke I had no sense of what time it was because the room was still dark. It was 7:15. The storm was over. I fed the dogs and went up to the glorious comfort of my own bed.
Creating a Safe Room
Bad things are always at their worst when they are happening. Now it’s the next day. Pablo is asleep and I am at the computer in my office. All is right in the world again. When I came out of the bedroom I noticed that my wife was crying and she had canceled her plans for the day. She believed that the only solution we had left was to give him back. I’m glad I slept with him down there. It wasn’t so bad. All we need to do is clean out the junk and put in some kind of kennel which will protect him. And yes because we are wimps we will have an air mattress next to it to make sure he doesn’t harm himself during nights like the one we just had. So that’s the project for today. It looks like at least for now Pablo’s visa has been extended for a while.
So why did I write this? I did it as it happened because 1) What else was there to do? and 2) It may have been the catharsis I needed to help me get over what we were dealing with. If you or someone you know has had a similar experience we’d like to know about it. Any other solutions we haven’t thought of would be welcomed also!!
UPDATE 7/15/10: Thanks so much for everyone who has supported us during this difficult situation. Since this post can be a potential resource for others I would like to share Rida’s experience with the “Thundershirt”. We are going to try it as well. Here is her post. And just FYI last night was blissful – a whole night in my bed with no interruptions! How we all take things like that for granted…
Posted by Gabe on July 12, 2010 under Just for Fun, Twitter |
As many of you know I have just published my ebook about Twitter and continue to add to it daily. I talk a lot about connections and giving value. So I came up with an idea this morning to try and offer both to my Twitter colleagues. I posted a tweet that read: “What type of person are you looking to connect with on Twitter?” The idea is that for the people who responded I could try and hook them up through our other followers. So @TwinkieMommie responded with “Other Moms/Dad’s of twins.” I sent out her request which got a response from @Sundi_MOZ: “Me! B/B 8 yrs old!” Connection made. To help demonstrate how valuable Twitter can be and to try and promote people connecting with each other, I have decided to make this “Connection Week” on Twitter. So, from Monday, July12th through Friday, July 16th if you tell me on Twitter (@KidsAreHeroes) what type of person you are trying to connect with, I will try and tweet about it. Use the #connectionweek hash tag, and please give us a follow if you have a mind to. (I like to connect too ya know.) If I get too many requests or if any are of a spammy nature I may not be able to get to them all, but feel free to leave a comment here as to what type of person you are trying to connect with for the other readers of this blog.
Also, if through the #connectionweek process you do get connected, please tweet the persons’ id(s) you connected with using the same hashtag. (i.e. @KIdsAreHeroes I connected with @JohnHaydon and @DCPhotog #connectionweek) I’ll tweet that too.
Start connecting!!
