by kim on December 3, 2011Share this post:
T
he fourth annual Passports with Purpose travel blogger fundraiser launched this week and, man, what an amazing effort. In just a few days, more than $15,000 has been donated to this year’s cause: building libraries in Zambia through nonprofit Room to Read.
And the prizes…you’ll be completely blown away by what you can enter to win.
If you haven’t heard about Room to Read through the New York Times, Skoll Foundation or on Oprah, it was founded by a former Microsoft exec who, fried from his busy job, took a few weeks off and traveled to Nepal. He visited a school and saw firsthand the dearth of books for kids (he recalls that the school’s tiny library included a Danielle Steele novel and Lonely Planet guidebook). Fast-forward 10 years and through a longer, and inspiring, story that I’ll let you read for yourself. Let’s just say that in 2015, Room to Read plans–and says it’s on track–to reach 10 million kids.
In short: Room to Read helps boys and girls around the globe discover new worlds, surmount poverty and gain important life skills through literacy. If you love to read, love to travel, want to do something simple and easy toward, quite literally, changing the world AND enter to win some FABULOUS prizes…
1. Go the Passports with Purpose site and check out the catalog of prizes, seriously amazing prizes
2. Select the prizes you want a shot at, and the number of entries. Donate $10 for each entry
3. Click “donate” at the bottom and check out through PayPal
4. Feel good that all funds raised, less PayPal processing fees, go to Room to Read!
Do it before December 16th. Prize winners announced on December 23rd.
Good luck, and thank you!
by kim on November 18, 2010Share this post:
If you think about it, traveling has the tendency to be a pretty self-centered pursuit. Not always, but often enough: Where do I want to go? When can I get away? Who will cover for me at work and walk my dog? Where can I get the best deal? What will I see? How will I feel? How will it change me? Can I show you my pictures? And for those of us who blog in addition to traveling, What will I write about my experiences? Me, me, me and, huh…whaddaya’ know? Me.
Now, here’s a chance to make a small donation–just $10, although you can certainly give more–and have a big and positive impact on the lives of others. You can also win travel-related prizes in the process. Not a bad deal.
Here’s the story: Passports with Purpose (PwP), an annual travel bloggers’ (and travel-blog readers!) fundraiser, is trying to raise $50,000 to build 25 houses in the village of Karunganni, in rural India. Last year PwP raised almost $30,000 and built a school in Cambodia, including staffing it with a nurse and creating a kitchen garden that provides a daily meal for each child. Amazing accomplishment.
This year PwP is working in partnership with Friends of LAFTI, which helps support the humanitarian and rural development work of Land for Tillers’ Freedom (LAFTI) in India. LAFTI works in about 500 rural villages in Tamilnadu to empower families, especially women, by helping with land ownership, decent housing, education and training, improved sanitation and other basic needs. The PwP effort will assist a LAFTI housing program that is helping families replace their mud huts with weatherproof brick homes.
I donated today yesterday. It only takes a couple of minutes. For each $10 you donate–donations are tax-deductible and go directly to LAFTI–you can enter to win a prize of your choice. There are some fantastic prizes listed: travel gear, hotel stays, airline vouchers, vacation packages. You can also donate without entering to win a prize. Whichever you choose, the real reward is in thinking about others and helping someone far away live a safer, healthier life. How about it?
by kim on April 12, 2010Share this post:
I recently saw “Herb and Dorothy,” a documentary being shown at the University of Michigan Art Museum, in conjunction with the exhibit, An Economy of Means: The Dorothy and Herbert Vogel Collection. It got me thinking a lot about the lengths we go to pursue a passion.
By the way, the UMMA is a treasure of a museum that I’ll talk more about another time. It’s one of 50 museums that has received 50 items from the National Gallery of Art’s Vogel 50×50 collection. You can read more about the Vogels and the 4,782 pieces of contemporary art they amassed in many publications, including here and here but, in a nutshell, the story goes more or less like this: The couple decided early in their marriage to live on her salary (she worked as a librarian at the Brooklyn Public Library) and use his (he worked for the U.S. Postal Service) to buy art. They had two criteria: the piece had to be affordable, and it had to fit in their small, one-bedroom apartment. Works they could carry home themselves or by taxi were all the more appealing. It’s a wonderful story on many levels, and if you’re not familiar with it, treat yourself and follow some of the links above (or do your own Google search–they’ve been covered a lot since the movie came out).
That was a long buildup to say, learning about the Vogels’ life set me pondering what we do–or give up–to pursue our passions, be they art, music, writing, travel, what have you. I doubt the Vogels feel they missed out on much in the process. Active, engaged people, living in one of the most exciting cities in the world, they seemed perfectly content in their little apartment, with art displayed (or stored) on every available surface. In fact, when the National Gallery began paying the couple an annuity after they donated their collection (five moving trucks later), according to a curator in the documentary, they simply bought more art and refilled the apartment.
The protagonist in my novel, Grace, turned down a proposal from the man she loved so she could travel.
Real-world friends of mine sold their lovely home, gave away most of their possessions, said ‘adios’ to family and friends and set off on what has become a decade-long adventure sailing throughout the Mediterranean. (I’m going to meet them in Sevilla for the Feria de Abril in about a week.)
This couple put their stuff into storage and took to the road, too (although I have to say, it doesn’t sound like too much of a sacrifice!)
Flyover America blogger and widely published freelance writer Jenna Schnuer gave up her adorable NYC apartment in preparation for a summer roadtrip to Alaska. (Also check out Jenna’s window project–I visited Jenna once when I was back in New York, and the amazing view from her kitchen window always stuck with me!)
The Vogels’ story is as much about pursuing a passion (or battling addiction, some might argue) as it is about art. What are your passions? And how do you ensure they’re a big part of your life?
