Enlist

A big part of my life involves philanthropy/charity.  If I have the time, I'll volunteer and if I have the means, I'll donate.  In my older years, I should probably start tracking all the causes I've donated to for tax purposes, haha, but that's honestly not the point.  I could care less, but I'm sure when I have a family, I should have better accountability of that.

All of this started with my mother.  I remember my first conscious memory, involving this topic, was when I was six years old.  My mother, her boyfriend at the time, and I took a vacation to the Philippines for the Christmas/New Years Holidays.  They left me one day with "the help," and ventured off to some of the poorest slums of Manila.  I remember being frustrated that I couldn't meet the other kids who needed aide.  When "the help" told my mother and her boyfriend that I was crying and bothered that I didn't do my part, my mom first told me that it was unsafe and unhealthy for me to be going to those kinds of parts at my age.  Subsequently, she promised to include me on her philanthropic ventures once we got back to the States.

Tough Mudder: Tri-State 2011

During my childhood, I remember going with her to cheer up sick children, hand out water at races, feed the homeless, etc.  Two big organizations I hold dearly to my heart are the Susan G. Komen Foundation (despite all of their controversy) and the Wounded Warrior Project.  I support the former because my mother is a breast cancer survivor and we've been exposed to the topic since 1995.  It's unfortunate that people only get involved in causes because it's affected them, but I can vouch for my mother, and say she's always been a charitable woman.  That challenging period in her life just added to her philanthropic arsenal.  Moreover, I support the latter because I think it is necessary to honor those that have given their lives to this country and those that have been wounded serving it.  I've had a few friends pass away in the last decade or so and I thought a way I could pay tribute to them and all of the other service members was to raise awareness about WWP.  Between May 2011 to March 2012, I ran a blog, For Those Who Can't, that detailed my friends' and my workouts on our way to Tough Mudder, an organization that promotes the WWP.  Due to personal reasons in 2012, I've taken a step back from philanthropy/charity.  Nonetheless, I think I'm primed for 2013 and am able to get back into the saddle. If any of you have or hear of any good causes that need help (monetary donations, spreading awareness, etc.), I'd like to know about it so please share.