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The person who has saved more lives than anyone else in recorded history was an agricultural scientist named Norman Borlaug who developed high-yielding crops and thereby prevented an estimated 245 million to 1 billion people from dying in developing countries due to famine. It is amazing to me that the advent of a new and better way of doing something essentially saved at least as many people as the populations of Canada, Australia, France and Great Britain combined. Often I get caught up in the movie drama illusion of feeling like the only way to help people is with larger than life actions. To help the world become a better place I must storm the African jungle and start my own militia to save gorillas like Dian Fossey or kick down doors with my SWAT team to save child sex workers like Aaron Cohen. Most days saving the world seems that it is a job for those who can throw caution to the wind and move mountains with their bare hands. That is why today I want to honor the Norman Borlaug’s of the world and hopefully I will drum up some inspiration for myself (or you) to find little things that can change the world in big ways.
The kiddo is about to hit the three month mark and has just begun to outgrow his first round of clothes and diapers. I will probably keep the best of the best clothing around for future offspring but in an effort to keep my tiny LA apartment clutter free I am thinking that I don't need to hold on to the several cases of newoborn diapers.
After talking to a friend who works with the Department of Child and Family Services she suggested that I donate the extras to St. Anne's, a local women's shelter for pregnant and parenting teens here in LA, which I will be doing later this week. They actually take all sorts of baby products including clothing, blankets, baby soaps and wipes, as well as feminine hygiene products... For me it was important to find a local Org that will actually distribute the baby goods to needy mothers and children as opposed to selling the items to raise money for another cause or just posting the stuff on a website like Freecycle.org or the free section of CraigsList. But no matter what, the most important thing is getting these items that would otherwise collect dust in my storage unit into the hands of moms and babies that really need them.
Corinne at Threadbanger.com helped start a charity in Haiti almost six years ago. In the wake of the Hati earthquake she has joined back up with her friend and founder of Planting Peace, Aaron Jackson to help. They've put out this call to crafters. Specifically, they are asking you to donate handmade blankets, washcloths, and plushies for kids. If you have other ideas for useful items, contact Corinne at tips@threadbanger.com.
"Unable to speak, the baby telepathically plead with the man not to put him back in the green-plastic-pod bassinet."
