Ok I know. It can get obnoxious when people “Twitterize” a word. But I offer no apologies for this one. In the never ending quest to be funded, if you have seen any of our donor walls, we like to make it worthwhile for people to donate to us, besides simply knowing that the money is going to a good cause. We also like to keep things fresh. So, thanks to some recent connections we have made, we will soon be offering “Twauctions” on Twitter.
What is a Twauction? A twauction is a twitter silent auction. During a certain time each week, as long as we have items to auction, we will be auctioning off art pieces donated by artists from all over the world.
How Does It Work? The bidding will be open for a full week prior to the finish, but during the last hour we will host a Twitter chat with the artist him/herself. This date/time will be announced well in advance. At the end of the hour the bidding will be closed as long as the minimum has been met. People bid by going to a designated spot on our website, which of course will be given out all week via Twitter. As we approach 75,000 followers on Twitter, this chat will provide great exposure for the artist, and also put a story behind the piece for the buyer.
What Type of Art? We are looking for donations of art pieces that include multimedia as well as any type of painting or sculpture. The only restrictions we will place on the art is that we prefer to have no dark pieces. We would like the art to blend in nicely with what Kids Are Heroes® represents. The art should represent any or a combination of the following concepts: hopeful, whimsical, animals, international, kids, environment, leadership, compassion, people. Medium and color is totally up to the artist. Shipping charges will be the responsibility of the buyer. If you are an artist that would like to donate something, please contact me here.
When Does it Start? As soon as we get our first qualifying piece we will write a press release and announce our first auction. We already have an artist who is about to complete her piece for us. We have another who has started work on hers. Follow @KidsAreHeroes for the latest on this subject.
What Will the Money Be Used For? Each year we host an event for the kids of our site called “Kids Are Heroes Day“. Despite generous donations each year we have lost money hosting this event. This will be our most ambitious year so these auctions are designed to offset these costs. If the auctions are really successful we will offer “scholarships” to bring some of the heroes to the event who would not otherwise be able to afford it.
Every year since Kids Are Heroes® was founded, we anticipate the arrival of Kids Are Heroes Day. This event is hosted by our local mall and celebrates our heroes’ accomplishments. We invite all of our heroes from 15 countries to attend. They perform, give speeches, and chat with the mall patrons about their charities. They are also given the opportunity to network with each other. Sadly we are not in the position to subsidize those who cannot afford to come.
Each year, my biggest regret, (if you can call it that) is that more people are not able to witness what I am humbly privileged to be part of. So let this post serve as an open invitation for YOU to attend, no matter where you live.
So why should you come to Kids Are Heroes Day 2013? Here are the top ten reasons why heroes and their families spend the money to travel to our event and why you should too:
A Day of Empowerment
This day not only empowers the heroes in attendance but it also empowers the children who visit them. As your kids traverse from table to table they get a sense that the children they are visiting are really no different than they are, and that they too can make a difference. They get ideas from some of the children then shape them into something that they become passionate about. They learn that one year they can be on the other side of the table talking to kids about their charity.
Speaking Opportunities
As time allows we offer speaking opportunities for the heroes who choose to take part. Whether they have done it countless times or this is the first, it is great practice and helps them on their way to becoming a true leader.
Unforgettable Experience
We go to great efforts to make sure the kids whose families spend the money to be here have a memorable visit. This happens naturally through the fact that they are able to meet or reunite with each other. However the private pool party and reception that evening ensures that they are provided the best opportunity to bond and have a great time.
Atmosphere Like No Other
Having attended all five previous events, I can only say that there is a definite atmosphere, one like I have never experienced outside of this event. It is very hard to describe, but at risk of sounding schmaltzy I can only say that the feeling is awash with warmth. This is directly due to the positive energy that is so abundant. The only way to understand it is to experience it.
Exposure to Other Ideas
The children come from all over the US and Canada, and sometimes other parts of the world. They get to know each other and sometimes are influenced by each other’s passions. One year two sisters learned about the cause that Ethan from Richmond was so excited about. “Music to My Ears” is Ethan’s program that gives music lessons to children who cannot afford it. Raylee and Allie from Maryland liked this idea so much that they established a local chapter in their community.
Networking Opportunity
We fully expect these kids to be leaders in ten years or so. What better way to build a network than to do it early? By attending this event these heroes will be able to bond with other heroes from around the world. They keep up with each other through social media and will be able to rely on each other in the future for support.
A Sense of Belonging
When six-year-old Jackson from England was featured on our website for organizing a bike ride to help the people of Haiti, his mom told me that he felt part of “something much bigger than him”. Many children feel isolated in their thoughts when they want to help others and knowing that they are a part of a community of kids all around the world who are doing their part to make the world a better place to live in gives them a true sense of belonging.
A Day of Rejuvenation
Some of our heroes are actually bullied by their peers at home because of what they do. Kids who are lost at the time don’t know how to react so they feel that bullying others is their only ticket to empowerment. When the heroes visit others who also give back, they realize that they are not freaks for wanting to help others. Their feeling of “burn-out” washes away and they become rejuvenated. They return home with a new sense of purpose.
A Day of Inspiration
Every year my two sisters make an effort to come to Kids Are Heroes Day from Ontario, Canada and Florida respectively. Being the youngest in the family all I will say is that they are both older than I am. They come for the inspiration. It is not only the children who are affected by this day but the adults are as well. Many of these children have accomplished more than many adults have in their lifetimes, so being around them opens their eyes to new thoughts of volunteerism.
A Day of Hope
In this modern day of terrorism, reality television, and so much exposure to negative thoughts and events it is SO refreshing to attend something that is pure, innocent and hopeful. These children convince us that they are indeed the solution and the key to a better world. We invite you ALL out to the Francis Scott Key Mall in Frederick, Maryland on Saturday September 14th from 10:00AM to 4:00PM to be part of something special!
Every once in a while I’ll get a letter from one of our heroes that touches my heart. Yesterday I received such a letter. One of our more recent features is Abdul Muqeet from Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. He wrote me telling me of his wishes to come to Kids Are Heroes Day this year. Although he has never attended one, he knows the value of getting together with like minded children from around the world. This is a bittersweet feeling for me. I love to see the desire to be here yet I am disappointed we cannot do anything to bring him ourselves. We are still not big enough to be able to finance trips for our heroes.
Abdul gave me permission to reprint his letter. Just thought I would share.
Hi Mr. Gabe,
What you and your daughter is doing is a wonderful work for the kids. I wish all the best to you all. I just love to come [to Kids Are Heroes Day 2013] and give my speech and demo of my paper bags. But my parents are not in position to finance me . Let me discuss with some one, if some how I will be able to make it, after Sunday I will let u know. Pray for me that I can come and see all wonderful kids from many countries.
I met Karen at Celebrated Events here in Frederick a few months ago. She kindly has offered to help me plan Kids Are Heroes Day 2013 this year. This is great because it will be the first time we’ve added a new perspective with fresh ideas for the event.
Today we had an awesome meeting that included Karen’s daughter Jennifer who is an accomplished artist. One of the issues we have had in the past is that despite the backing of generous sponsors, our organization has always lost money putting on our biggest event of the year. In addition, we have never been able to subsidize even one family to be able to attend our event. This year we hope to change that. To that end we are going to host weekly auctions for donated items to help us defray the costs. So we are looking for donated items worth at least $100.00. We will be creating a web page that will present the item of course giving credit to the company or person who donated it. And Jennifer is going to help us out even further by offering one of her original drawings for our auction. I can’t wait to see what she comes up with.
So if you have something of value that you would like to donate that you think our social media colleagues would be interested in, pleasecontact me directly.
Each week we will send our 71K+ Twitter followers and 5K+ Facebook fans to check the item(s) out and possibly bid on them. On Friday we will announce the winner. Hopefully this will a fun and successful campaign for everyone.
Just like any other charity in this economy we struggle with getting donations. Maybe it’s the word “donation” that’s part of the problem. When you donate something, it typically gets used up rather quickly, and then you are asked to donate again. I am going to start thinking more in terms of “investment”. After all, in my mind that is what it really is, an investment in our children’s future.
Now that may come off as sounding a bit arrogant, but if I didn’t believe that Kids Are Heroes® could ultimately have a significant impact on the children both in America and across the globe I wouldn’t have put so much effort and time into it since its inception almost five years ago. The organization has accomplished many things in five years, but what we have done has only scratched the surface of what we plan to do once we get funding. Translating the site into multiple languages, developing resources for schools, creating local KAH clubs and hosting more events for heroes in different cities are just some of the plans we have as we grow.
Show Me The Impact
If you are not familiar with Kids Are Heroes, among other things, we showcase children who give back to their community. We have discovered by doing this that it creates an environment where volunteering is “normal” for kids. I liken this to a sky-diving experience I had when I was young. I’m no daredevil but I figured at the time it was a good way to impress a girl I had a crush on. Now jumping out of a plane is a daunting and scary task. However we trained for hours at the facility. As we trained we witnessed plane after plane go up and dump out a bunch of people, all who landed safely. It became “normal” which made it much easier.
Having 300+ children from 10 countries who all do amazing things for others creates a sense of normalcy for the children who visit our site. They are empowered to do something on their own and end up becoming part of the larger Kids Are Heroes community as they themselves are featured.
Why Kids Should Volunteer
Ok so we get kids to volunteer. So what? Well despite the fact that they are helping others, becoming more aware and compassionate, they are all developing critical skills that will benefit them throughout their entire lives. I have seen time after time how the opportunities that are given them help their confidence and self esteem. Once branded a “hero” many of them want to keep that moniker by continuing to do good for others. They are ALL developing leadership skills that will help shape them into better adults. Period. Volunteering with your children is also an excellent opportunity to spend meaningful time together.
Kids Are Heroes Day
We recently celebrated our fifth annual Kids Are Heroes Day here in Frederick, Maryland. Each year we invite all the children from our site to be together and to celebrate what they do. Since they will indeed be leaders in a few years we help them develop their networks early. Some are outcasts and bullied because they are doing something “different”. When these kids meet up with each other they are so gratified that there are indeed other kids like them and their batteries are recharged when they return. Past attendees have come from all over the US, Canada, and even South Africa and Kenya. Here is what one mom had to say about our most recent event:
“. . .we would drive hundreds and hundreds of miles (and through storms and states of emergencies) to be a part of your event again. It was INCREDIBLE and we are so impressed at how wonderful the event had turned out. My girls, Julia and Emma Mogus, have bonded with some incredible heroes in your country and ours, including your beautiful and heart warming daughter, MaryMargaret! The entire day and evening was very well organized and we feel privileged to have been a part of this incredible and historical event. We walked away better citizens and with a greater awareness of some of the issues facing our children and communities, both locally and internationally.”
-Janet Mogus
I have said many times that Kids Are Heroes started as a father-daughter project. Thanks to our kids it has developed into something well beyond just the two of us. And with the help of others it has the ability to become a beacon for kids all over the world to help them build a better life for themselves and others. Now to me, that sounds like something I want to invest in.
To invest in Kids Are Heroes (and get some great exposure for yourself or your business) please visit our Video Donor Wall. Or if you’d rather, simply click the PayPal Invest button below! Thank you so much!!
MaryMargaret and I presented Kids Are Heroes to a group of business people last week and after watching three videos and hearing the entire presentation, one man stood up and said, “I still don’t get what you do.”
I get that our mission is not as simple as feeding the hungry, or curing cancer, or drilling water wells in third world countries even though many of our kids are working to solve these issues. But many people do connect with what we do instantly in a visceral manner just by visiting our website and that’s because of the kids. By showcasing more than 300 children who give back to their communities in their own personal way we have created an atmosphere where volunteering at a very young age is normal, accepted, and that every one can do it. Besides having a great impact on others, these children are developing skills that they would never learn in schools and becoming compassionate leaders.
Another thing that many don’t understand is the significance of Kids Are Heroes Day. Tomorrow will mark our fifth event and the Francis Scott Key Mall in Frederick, Maryland. Even though we have kids coming from 11 states and even Canada, the regional media outlets have never paid any mind to it. But to be a witness on this day is nothing short of magical. All these children (50 are scheduled to be here this year) have giving hearts and do not want any recognition. All they want is to share their stories and get other kids involved. For six hours this gathering provides a warm and comfortable cocoon of hope and wonder to all who attend. This is the best way I can describe it because that’s exactly how it has felt to me the last four years. My only frustration is that I can’t share this feeling with everyone.
The Reception
The third event in our history was held in Gettysburg, PA in the summer of 2010. Since people were traveling from all over to be there, we held a private reception for the heroes and their families that evening. It was only scheduled to go between 6 and 8PM. There happened to be an indoor swimming pool next to the reception area which was all the kids needed. Even though the reception ended at 8, everyone stayed until the pool closed at 10. At that time the kids hatched a plan to go back to the rooms, change clothes, and meet in the lobby simply because they did not want the night to end. Most of these kids had never met each other before the day began. So this is why we hold our receptions at a nearby hotel with a pool near the reception area. I cannot tell you how much this means to the children. They energize each other for the next year to keep up their philanthropic efforts. Again, it is nothing short of magical.
At this time I would like to again publicly thank all of our sponsors and volunteers who are making this event better than ever. Our keynote speaker, Allisyn Ashley Arm, is flying in from California. Leify Green will be debuting his new Kids Are Heroes song around noon, and will also be entertaining us at the reception. Mary Kate McKenna, John Waire, David Spence and Bob Carney are all professional photographers taking turns at capturing both events. A Touch of Class Limousines has donated limo service to and from the airport for our keynote. And DJ Patrick will be spinning tunes and hosting karaoke at the latter half of our reception.
But let’s not forget our official sponsor, Kibooku, a company all the way from Arbroath, Scotland that donated $3000 to cover our expenses for the reception. This will be our biggest turnout ever and we certainly could not have done it without them. So I urge parents to check out their safer social media site for kids aged 6-13. A lot of research and passion went in to the design and creation of this site as the owner has twin daughters in that age range.
So if you are going to be in the area, we hope you come by. This is truly something you will never forget.
If you have been following our progress the last few months, you will know that we have been working feverishly to organize our 5th Annual Kids Are Heroes Day to be held at the Francis Scott Key Mall in Frederick, Maryland on October 27th. This is a celebration of the children from our website as we invite all of them to attend. Sadly we cannot afford to cover their travel expenses, so only the ones who can afford to attend make the trip. Since Disney star Allisyn Ashley Arm agreed to be our headliner we have attracted more heroes and more people who are interested in coming. Like any other non-profit, we must come up with a way to pay for all of this. Thankfully we have had some good support from our fans via our Donor Walls, but not enough to cover the event. This is the part where I must travel outside of my comfort zone; the part where I have to go out and approach local businesses. So I “took one for the team” and did solicit 15 local businesses over a period of time with marginal success. I did receive lots of encouragement from them however. Everyone loved what we were doing, but the economy has hit our local businesses as hard as it has hit everyone else and most of them respectfully declined.
“You are doing it the right way,” they said. “You must talk to people face to face. You can’t do this through social media.” Despite the fact that our tail was between our legs we didn’t give up. It became a challenge to us to prove the folks wrong who said it couldn’t be done through social media. We thought that surely some company would see the value in what we were doing and how we would promote them. So we wrote a blog post about what sponsors could expect. Despite the fact that our event is local, it attracts people from all over the world. After all, our heroes (49 at last count) are coming from 3 countries and 11 states in the US. We have a significant global following that we would respectfully share with our “Official Sponsor”. The challenge would be to send out the link enough times so people could see it but not too many times as to annoy our regular fans.
Then it happened. After sending a link to that blog post out via Twitter, we received a tweet from someone asking “Would you consider an overseas sponsor?” After confirming who it was I said “Why not?” and the talks were underway. We Skyped the next week and by that Friday we had the $3000.00, the price of being an “Official Sponsor”, in our account.
When I asked Jamie Tosh, owner of Kibooku.com, what he hoped to gain from this relationship he simply stated that “I wouldn’t say it’s all for gain. We think what you do is great and we are happy to be in the position to sponsor your event. If it gets us any recognition over there at all then that’s a plus for us. At the end of the day it benefits us to be attached to you.” He went on to say, “I think what you’re doing is fantastic. I think that your daughter to come up with the idea and how far you’ve got with it is absolutely amazing.”
Jamie with his twin daughters Kenah and Leah
Jamie is the founder of Kibooku, a safer social networking site for kids aged 6-13. The company is based out of Arbroath, Scotland, some 3500 miles away from Frederick, Maryland in the USA. They have only launched their site about three months ago and already have hundreds of subscribers. It is clear that their efforts fit perfectly with our demographic. But what I like about them even more is that I see similarities between Jamie’s journey and ours. Jamie has twin girls in the 7th grade. One of them, unbeknownst to him, was being cyber-bullied on a chat site by a classmate. After dealing with the school and the other child’s parents, Jamie decided to look for a safer environment for his kids to participate in while they are online. He searched for sites and didn’t find anything that satisfied him, so he decided to create one himself. Now what I think is very cool about this story is that Jamie is not a computer techie who can just do this at will. He is a former architect who now owns his own construction company. He admits he doesn’t even have his own Facebook account. But he had the passion to protect his twins and went about creating a safe environment for kids. He believes his is the only social networking site for kids (including those hosted in the US) that makes sure an adult is involved by forcing the adult to pay a minimal annual fee via credit card (for tracing purposes) and by shutting down the child’s account if the adult does not physically monitor the child’s activity on a regular basis.
So as it turns out I don’t think I could be happier about our relationship. A non-profit cannot necessarily afford to choose where the money comes from, so we are thrilled that it came from someone with similar experiences to us. And we honestly do hope that we can help raise visibility for his company in the US and around the world. Now if I could just understand him when we converse then that’ll be the icing on the cake. :-)
We are less than 2 months out from our 5th annual Kids Are Heroes Day, which will be celebrated at the Francis Scott Key Mall in Frederick, Maryland on October 27th, 2012. We are expecting 50 heroes from 3 countries to attend. They will join us in a day of celebration as we honor children who give back to their communities and get other families involved. If you are in the area on that day we encourage you to spend some time with these wonderful kids as past events have proven to be no less than magical.
These children, aged from 6-17, will share tables at the center court of the mall as they showcase their charities and give speeches about what they do.
From the hit Disney TV shows “So Random” and “Sonny with a Chance”, Allisyn Ashley Arm who played Zora on those shows will be our keynote speaker. She will also be available for a special “meet-n-greet” session where all the lucky kids in attendance will get a chance to take their pictures with Allisyn.
Disney Star Allisyn Ashley Arm (left) and MaryMargaret O’Neill, Founder of Kids Are Heroes
The above photo is a depiction of what the back drop of the photos may look like. Of course we are looking for a sponsor to claim that logo and become the “Official Sponsor” of Kids Are Heroes Day 2012. If you are a local business the great thing about it is most of the attendees will obviously be local. If you are more of a national company, we do have kids coming from Florida, Illinois, West Virginia, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia, Virginia, New York, Maryland, Canada and Trinidad & Tobago. Most of the children who get their pictures taken will be posting on their Facebook pages which will likely be shared by their friends, parents and grandparents thus pushing the campaign to a national audience. We hope to serve 500 kids at this meet-n-greet.
We expect the costs of this event to be $5000 which includes bringing the talent to the event and providing a reception for the heroes and their families that evening. We offer the reception so that the kids may bond with each other as they give each other renewed energy to continue their work. The cost for the “Official Sponsor” is $3000.00 which will also include your logo on the backdrop and also on the 8×10 signed photos of Allisyn Ashley Arm as long as you sign up by September 30th.
If the $3000.00 is out of your range and you still want to help, we offer our “Kids Are Heroes Day Donor Wall” where you can select any amount from $25 to $1000. Please give if you can. These children never ask for anything in return for what they do and this day is so important to them. Some are even bullied for what they do and meeting other kids who are just like them can be a catharsis for them.
Update 09/21/2012: Well the logo has been taken!! We are proud to announce that we do indeed now have an official sponsor. We have to give out our deepest thanks to the folks at Kibooku.com for sponsoring us!! Please check out their social networking site for kids. We will have a more in depth piece written about them soon, so stay tuned. . .
Here is a post from one of my Facebook friends about one of the heroes who is coming from Canada to attend Kids Are Heroes Day in October: Jaevin Spero.
Jaevin is one of the 30+ kids who are coming from 3 countries, and this serves as an example of how special they all are.
“Yesterday we were driving to st.catharines and there was a man on the side of the road with a sign “broke & starving”…and you know who was in the car, right? Jaevin. He insists on getting the man something. I say, do you want to get him a coffee or something? And he says no..groceries. So Zehrs is there and he has $10 and goes up and down the aisle with Summer picking things…crackers and peanut butter (a healthy snack that will last a long time) a big thing of water (cuz it’s so hot out) and even a precooked meal of ribs and taters (cuz it was supper time). He goes to pay and of course he’s short and has to put back the crackers. (I had NO money with me to help). He explains what the items are for to the cashier and guess what she does? She pulls out her own debit card and pays for the crackers! Amazing! Take him over to the gentleman and he brings the food and says “i just wanted to get this for you” and the man shakes his hand, very grateful. Then Jaevin says “It looked like you thought no one saw you, but i did.”….okay…now isn’t that perceptive??????”
My Aunt Mary was the “last one standing”, as it were. That is, she was the last representative of my parents, aunts and uncles — that whole generation of my family. She was actually the wife of my Uncle George, who was my Mom’s brother. She lived for more than a century, just passing away last year. She had been a school teacher in Bridgeport, Pennsylvania for 27 years. She and her husband George were never “well off” but lived happily in their modest home. In the end, Aunt Mary was extremely stubborn and did not want to go to a nursing home. Even when she finally complied she never sold her home; always with the hopes that she would return to it one day.
Well this day we received a check in the mail from Aunt Mary’s estate. It was for $1000.00 to be donated to Kids Are Heroes. Even in her passing she is still helping children. We will treasure this donation and intend to use it to help sponsor one of our hero’s travel and lodging expenses to Kids Are Heroes Day in October. Thanks so much, Aunt Mary and I expect to see you smiling down on us this October 27th.
Be the First to Comment 
Ok I know. It can get obnoxious when people “Twitterize” a word. But I offer no apologies for this one. In the never ending quest to be funded, if you have seen any of our donor walls, we like to make it worthwhile for people to donate to us, besides simply knowing that the money is going to a good cause. We also like to keep things fresh. So, thanks to some recent connections we have made, we will soon be offering “Twauctions” on Twitter.
