Free Hugs Project

"Fear and hatred cease to exist when love is in abundance" - Ken E. Nwadike Jr. (Free Hugs Project)

This months post is different. This month isn't going to a charity but going to support a good cause. This is about inspiring change, something that every single person is capable of doing. 

Over the past few weeks, and maybe even months, I find myself struggling with the world we live in. 

Being 23, I am so sad to say that acts of terrorism no longer surprise me as much as they should, because they are now happening so regularly. But I am devastated to say that shootings are now a regular part of the news and don't surprise me anymore. 

It feels like everyday I turn on the tv, or look at social media I am hearing about some sort of shooting, whether its a police officer being shot, a police officer shooting someone, a completely accidental shooting, or a gunman opening fire in a public place. Never would I have thought that I would be growing up in a world where gun violence, gun abuse, and shootings would become such a  normalized part of society. 

I stumbled upon The Free Hugs Project, and immediately fell in love with the work that they are doing. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xOzyzbnsYEE

The Free Hugs Project was established by Ken E. Nwadike Jr. to spread love, inspire change, and most importantly, bring awareness to social issues. The Free Hugs Project was born in 2014 at the Boston Marathon (one year after the bombing), with a free hugs sign, a camera, and a tripod.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvn-rgk1bPo

Nwadike said "While viewing the devastation of the 2013 bombing of the Boston Marathon, I was determined to be a participant in the next race. I failed to qualify by just 23 seconds, so I decided to attend the event in a different way. I provided free hugs to runners as encouragement along the route. This simple act made national news headlines and lifted runners spirits. Hugs produced smiles and gave runners an extra boost as they ran." Now over 30 videos have been created raising awareness on social issues, but inspiring change to happen and spreading love through something as simple as a hug.

A hug between my mother and I. 

I have decided to donate to the Free Hugs Project. Donating to the Free Hugs Project makes the videos possible. It covers the travel expenses for the crisis response team of huggers, film crew, security, and to promote the videos. 

You can help the Free Hugs Project by visiting http://freehugsproject.com/donate/

Sources: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvn-rgk1bPo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xOzyzbnsYEE

http://freehugsproject.com

Alcohol Abuse Awareness

Picture from my personal Instagram.

This month's blog post is about Alcohol Abuse Awareness. 

In the United States 1 in every 12 adults suffers from alcohol abuse or dependence. That comes out to 17.6 million adults in the United States is suffering from alcohol abuse or depending on alcohol on a regular basis. 88,000 people die each year due to excessive alcohol abuse.

I have personally been affected by alcohol abuse or dependency, and I have seen how it has affected people I love. 

At 8:30 in the morning, on the 101 freeway at Tampa Ave, on August 10, 2011, my dad was traveling to work when he was side swiped into the center divider by a drunk driver. When people hear this story they are shocked by two things, one that it happened at 8:30 in the morning, and second that the man who side swiped him was on his way to check himself into rehab (as he told the police). Getting the call that my dad was in a car accident and was being taken to the hospital, was the scariest call I have ever received. 

I remember growing up hearing stories of my grandmother (my father's mother). From what I understand she was a great mother, who always wanted the best for her children and pushed them to reach their fullest potential. But then I was always told about how she was an alcoholic. When I think of her the first thing I usually think about is how she was an alcoholic. 

Pura Vida Alcohol Abuse Awareness Bracelet.

I purchased two bracelets from Pura Vida for this months post. The bracelets are $5 each, and $1 from each bracelet is donated to the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (NCADD). 

I chose Pura Vida for two reasons. One because it was started by two college graduates who took a graduation trip to Costa Rica. They fell in love with Costa Rica. While there they crossed paths with two bracelet peddlers, and had them make 400 bracelets to take back home with them, they sold them at a local boutique; within days the bracelets were sold out! Thats when the developed the idea of Pura Vida (Pure Life in Spanish). Now the two bracelet peddlers and 100 of their friends have full time jobs making bracelets for Pura Vida. Second because the money is donated to NCADD. Each donation is used to help provide support services for individuals and families suffering from alcohol abuse and dependency.

Results of my Am I Alcoholic Self Test on NCADD Website. 

The NCADD website has a self test that you can take and see if you are an alcoholic, at risk, or not at all. Based on my family history and how I answered the questions I am considered to be at risk. With this information I know that I am at risk and will work to make myself aware of situations to try and prevent myself from becoming an alcoholic or dependent on alcohol. You can take the self test at https://www.ncadd.org/get-help/take-the-test/am-i-alcoholic-self-test 

You can help by purchasing a Pura Vida bracelet at http://www.puravidabracelets.com/products/alcohol-abuse-awareness, or by making a donation directly to https://www.ncadd.org/get-involved/make-a-donation

Sources:

https://www.ncadd.org

http://www.puravidabracelets.com/products/alcohol-abuse-awareness

Save the Elephants

Photo from treehugger.com 

Elephants have always been my favorite animal. They can typically live for up to 70 years, weighing between 5,000 to 14,000 pounds. 

There is something about elephants that I find so majestic. They are one of the most beautiful creatures in this world. They are so smart, and capable of displaying and having strong emotions. 

Dr. Jane Goodall said “I have spent hours and hours watching elephants, and come to understand what emotional creatures they are…it’s not just a species facing extinction, it’s massive individual suffering.”

Between 1979 and 1989 half of Africa’s elephants were lost due to the ivory trade. It is estimated that the worlds forest elephant population has declined by 62%. Between 2010 and 2012 it is estimated that 100,000 elephants were killed for their ivory. Ivory has reached a per kilo dollar price of 2,100. 

Keychain purchased from Ashely Jewels. 

This months blog post is dedicated to Saving the Elephants. I decided to purchase the keychains seen above in support of the elephants. A portion of the proceeds go to help save the elephants. 

You can help the elephants by purchasing keychains at http://www.ashleyjewels.com/collections/keychain/products/magnetic-elephant-love-keychain, or making a direct donation to http://savetheelephants.org/get-involved/donate/.

  

Keychains on my keys. 

** This post is late because I was waiting on the arrival of the keychains, if you order the keychains please be aware that they are shipped from China and take a little bit longer to arrive.**

Sources:

http://www.soselephants.org/fun_facts.html

http://worldelephantday.org/about/elephants

http://media.treehugger.com/assets/images/2011/10/20110629-african-elephant.jpg

Love is Louder

It's hard not to care about what people think of us, or take what they say about us personally. Today we live in a world where what people say about us almost always gets to us.

Especially when you're younger, its hard not to let what people say about you get to you. When I was 15 years old, I let what others said about me online and at school control my life. Their words had so much control over my life, but also over what my other friends thought of me. 

They had so much control, that I would try and find reasons not to go to school. I even went to look at a new school. My dad told me that I could move schools if I wanted but I would just be running from the situation. 

People will never stop talking about other people. Its hard not to let their words get to us, but its up to us how we react.

Recently in my small tight knit community a story came out of a member of this community having differing views from the majority on Israel. This was brought to light because this individual got a job on a well known presidential campaign. 

A parent in this community posted a link to an open letter to this individual on her Facebook page from a peer. Other parents s in the community began posting comments on the Facebook post. They have created hashtags about this individual, saying “We are all disappointed and ashamed of her”, saying that they are sad for this individuals parents and family, wondering what went wrong.  Young adults not far from her age were saying “She makes me want to vomit”. 

Posts about this individual continued to pop up on Facebook from members of this community. There have been a few members to stand up for this individual and say “Dear friends, I respect whatever you believe about this situation. Blasting … here is not productive”. 

Seeing these things made me think about 15 year old me, and how it made me feel. I began to do some research on bullying and cyberbullying. I found that the UK had a lot of charities set in place for this issue. I then began researching for charities in the US, I found that a lot of them were set up after people passed away due to bullying or cyberbullying. After hours of research I came across the Love is Louder movement. 

The Love is Louder movement is a project that was set up under The Jed Foundation, with Brittany Snow. The purpose of Love is Louder is to support anyone who feels misunderstood, alone, or mistreated.

Love is Louder is not just about bullying, its about lowliness, negative self-image, discrimination, and depression.

I supported Love is Louder by purchasing a shirt, as well as making a small donation. 

Photo of shirt purchased from Love is Louder

You can support Love is Louder by visiting http://www.loveislouder.com

Or share a photo, art, video, or music on Facebook or Twitter using the #loveislouder

Sources: http://www.loveislouder.com

Art Pals

Abstract Expressionism Lesson, 3rd Grade

This months blog post supports The National Council of Jewish Women Los Angeles(NCJW/LA). But I specifically chose to support their Art Pals program. 

Art has always been a part of my life. My Aunt Beverly was always painting, and would often let me paint with her when I went to her apartment. My family and I often visit museums and discuss our favorite pieces. Maybe 13 years ago we went to LACMA and saw the Andy Warhol collection they had on display there. I instantly fell in love with his work and we bought a print of his self portrait and two prints from his shoe collection. In January my family and I took a trip to the Broad Museum, where we were able to see some of Warhol's pieces, including his self portrait series. I remember sitting there so fascinated with the self portraits like it was the first time I was seeing them. I was able to see and appreciate Warhol's work in a whole new way 13 years later. 

On February 20, 2016, I went to the NCJW/LA volunteer brunch, where my mother was receiving an "Unsung Hero" award, for all her hard work and dedication to the council. When I walked into the auditorium I saw pictures on construction paper to my left, and to my right I saw paintings done by various children in different grades. As I walked along the wall on my right looking at the paintings I kept stopping at this one particular painting (photographed above). This painting just spoke to me in a way that none of the other paintings did.

I decided that I needed to have this painting. The painting was $25 and the proceeds went directly back into the Art Pals program, to help fund the program for the school year.

Art Pals was established 25 years ago by volunteers at NCJW/LA. Art Pals is a thirteen week class in the contemporary arts. The curriculum was designed by the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, and is delivered to 500 third graders in elementary schools, where visual arts education has been either  reduced or completely eliminated. The program is run by volunteer art educators. Not only do the children participate in hands on activities, they are given art history lessons, and taken on field trips to see museums and galleries. 

Art Pals in one of the many programs NCJW/LA offers to children and young adults. Their programs include Light Up a Library, a program designed to help operate underfunded libraries in public schools; After School Homework Clubs, where children can receive assistance on their homework from volunteers; Shelter-Based Enrichment and Tutoring where tutors assist children and teenagers living in shelters with homework and creative activities; Art Bridges Culture, in which volunteer art educators use various art forms to teach third-graders about the diverse cultures in Los Angeles; Pregnant and Parenting Teens Tutoring and Enrichment, a program designed to help teens earn their high school diploma through one-on-one tutoring, as well as helping them with life skills, interview techniques, and resume writing; Back to School Store, provides children in need with school supplies, and with new clothing and shoes. 

NCJW/LA does a lot to help the community. You can support Art Pals by purchasing Art Cards at http://ncjwla.org/who-we-are/about/shop/art-cards/. Or you can help NCJW/LA in any way you choose at http://ncjwla.org/donate/. 

Sources: 
http://ncjwla.org/what-we-do/youth-educational-programs-and-services/