Boardbreakathon!

Its an exciting day for everyone at HALO today as we prepare for our 5th Boardbreakathon.  HALO was started by a group of karate students (kids) who wanted to raise funds for orphans in need.  They raised $5,000 for an orphanage in Mexico.  The next one they did raised $40,000. 

Needless to say a light bulb went off.  Children helping children.  This is how HALO was born.  It is a unique concept that benefits everyone involved.
 
Youth in the US learn about what it is like to be an orphan on the other side of the world.  What language do they speak?  What do they eat?  Do they have an X-Box?  Learning these things made everyone aware and full of compassion with a desire to make a difference.  It is inspiring to say the least. 

This is a photo of one of our HALO supported children in India who made this sign for kids who raised funds at the Boardbreakathon.  Its a beautiful thing to connect the world and watch kids flourish, making a huge impact on youth just like them.

To read more about the event or watch a video, click here.

Victory

I firmly believe that any person's finest hour — his greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear — is that moment when he has worked his heart out in good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle — victorious.
~ Vince Lombardi

I read this quote today and it reminded me of the volunteers and staff of HALO.  So many people work their heart out for our cause.  I feel lucky to watch such a thing take place.  

I spent the past week with our Program Director, Lacy Voight.  She came to Denver to see our programs and new HALO Center for Youth.  I have spent thousands of hours with Lacy,  working until we can't see straight at times.  It is the truth that when we are done with a project, completely exhausted and we have reached our goal, we feel victorious.  

Every effort Lacy puts forth is geared toward giving hope to the children we currently support and improving the lives of more children in need.  She works her heart out in good cause and I firmly believe she holds these efforts and outcomes dear to her heart.  I have seen her exhausted on the field of battle after events, meetings and programs.  All of which are victories for HALO.  They all bring us one step closer to improving the lives of children in need.  Fulfillment.

Click here to join our mission.

HALO Heroes

Last night a friend of the HALO Family, Leib Doddell, hosted a cocktail party at his house to share one of our giving opportunities with his friends and family.  We are looking for HALO Heroes.  Since orphans do not have parents to meet their needs, a HALO Hero is someone who helps us provide food, water, shelter, clothing, education, art therapy and care takers.

We had 4 people sign up to become HALO Heroes last night.  Not only are they meeting basic needs, but as soon as they sign up, Woodland Charities makes a donation of $1,000 for a scholarship in their honor.  This funding goes toward giving a HALO supported child the chance to learn a vocation, giving them the ability to make a positive impact on their communities once they are out of the home.

This campaign gives HALO children the chance to dream.  They dream of learning a skill that will allow them to support themselves...  That is why we call it the HALO Heroes.  These people become heroes, dramatically shifting the future of children in need.

Click here to read more about how you can become a HALO Hero. 

My Favorite Birthday

I had a birthday this week.  Until I was 22 years old I didn't care much for birthdays.  22 was a great one which made my expectations way too high from that point on.  I was in Honduras and thought nobody knew or would remember which was no big deal.  That day my boss told me I wouldn't be able to go to the orphanages where I spent a lot of time volunteering.  She said I had some other task I had to do for work. Boo.

Finally around 5:00 I did a little sneaking and went to the orphanage anyway.  I was my birthday, right?  I walked in and heard some music playing which was different because they had no radio.  I turned the corner into the community room and there were all the kids with a huge sign they made for me that said "Feliz Cumpleanos Rebecca!" 

They were thrilled to have a borrowed radio we danced to for a good 2 hours before we busted the pinata to pieces.  I was so full of bliss that day.  I remember sweating outside with the kids, twirling them around, hearing their screams of excitement as candy fell to the grass.   I came home thinking I could never top that.  Although there have been many attempts, I have to admit that was my favorite. 

Many HALO supported kids have no records when they come to us.  Most of them have no idea when their birthday is.  It used to be one of the conversation starters for me - How old are you?  When is your birthday?  Now I just leave that one alone.  One time I asked one of our kids, Denis (bottom right) how old he was.  He said he was 11.  He had been living as an 11 year old for a long time.  When we got his records we realized - Denis was 9 years old.  When we told him about his new age, he laughed.  He didn't know his birthday.  He was actually excited... he was a bit small for his age before :)

I was with a celebrity today

Spencer Castle walked in like a pro.  Although his heart was pounding, no one would ever know he was nervous.  He stepped on to the elevator and rode up to the 19th floor, headed where not many kids have gone before.  Radio Disney.

This is where magic happens.  Disney.  Kids spend hours of their lives watching Mickey Mouse and Selena Gomez.  Spencer rang the bell of the big door and was greeted by Brenda, his bubbly new friend who was going to interview him. 

He sat in front of the microphone that was bigger than his head and when Brenda asked if he was ready he asked, "Do you have a pen?" He had some notes to make. He anwered every question like a pro.  I was in the room with a celebrity. 

How did he end up here?  When spencer was 7 years old he heard about the children of HALO.  He learned about them and decided he could do something.  Spencer had a hot chocolate stand.  He raised $600 standing in the cold offerring homemade hot chocolate and cookies on the weekends. 

Spencer then raised funds from his friends and family to participate in a martial arts fund raiser call a Boardbreakathon.  He has raised over $2,000 for kids of HALO.  To put it in perspective, that amount can feed an entire orphanage of 45 children more than 125 meals.

I received a phone call a month ago from Spencer's mom, Tanda.  She said Spencer made 7 blankets for the orphans supported by HALO and he wanted to give them to me to take to the kids.  7 blankets (pictured)When Brenda from Disney called and asked if we had any unique kids she could interview, Spencer was at the top of the list.

Spencer has a confidence about him I haven't witnessed in a long time.  He knows what is right and he does it without hesitation.  Being interviewed by Radio Disney for a kid is the equivelent of being on 60 minutes for an adult.  Spencer was calm, strong, clear and passionate.  It was like being in the room with a professional speaker or celebrity.

Kids who volunteer are twice as likely to do so as adults.  I am certian Spencer will conquer something when he grows up. 

"Knowing I am helping orphans makes me feel good." Spencer Castle

To read more about how you can give, click here.

Respond Ability

Who is responsible for the well being of a citizen?  Is it the corporation, the non-profit, is it the citizenry as a collective, the consumer, or the state? 
I believe it is a combination.  It takes individuals doing small acts of kindness, non-profits spreading the word while managing donors and volunteers, government programs (run efficiently) and corporations owning responsibility for their communities and footprints. 

We have recently been focused on the corporation.  There is a new buzzword in the business world:   Corporate Social Responsibility - self regulation combined with social awareness and action.

We have launched a new campain called HALO Alliance which brings businesses together to support children in need.  It takes 16 businesses giving $125 per month to fully meet the needs of 20 children in an orphanage. That's everything from rent to food to school. 

As part of the HALO Alliance, businesses receive a significant return on a small investment.  They improve the lives of children in need, learn about the children they are supporting, and share their efforts as an example to their community.  It increases the moral of the workplace and their reputation becomes one that is compassionate, conscience and willing to make a difference. 

Imagine if all businesses were part of an Alliance like this, joining non-profits and spreading awareness of the needs of the less-fortunate among their community.  Children like Kevin, pictured above, would no longer suffer.  People in need would feel the giving spirit of others.  It would shift the world.

To learn more about HALO Alliance or to sign your business up, email lacyvoight@haloworldwide.org