A young man with a big heart

He is just a young boy, but he is looking out for those around him.

He is not old enough to get a job, but he is willing to give up his allowance to feed a homeless man on the side of the road.

Ayden Hobbs of Whitehouse has a heart of gold.

As Kelly Hobbs talked with her son Ayden about his upcoming birthday party, she asked him about an idea that he was quick to say yes to. The idea was to ask his friends and family to bring items for the food pantry in Troup when they came to his party rather than gifts for him.

When asked why it is important to help people in need, Ayden responded, “Because Jesus tells us to.”

Ayden is very familiar with how the food pantry in Troup works. He has spent many hours there himself, along with his dad Blake, helping his “Gigi,” LaDelle Tuley, and the other faithful volunteers stacking cans, emptying boxes and cleaning.

His mother Kelly says it is like a passion for him to help the hungry.

One day as they came to an intersection in Tyler, Ayden spotted a man standing at the corner with a sign. He asked his mother about it. What did that sign say and why was he just standing there? She explained that his sign was that he was homeless and wanted to work for food. Ayden insisted that they get the man some lunch and take it to him. They did.

KLTV will air a segment about Ayden naming him an Everyday Hero.

Read Full Story - Whitehouse youth named Everyday Hero

Group RCI Gifts $100,000 to Christel House

Over 900 employees and families of Group RCI, a world leader in leisure real estate and one of the Wyndham Worldwide family of brands (NYSE: WYN), gathered recently for the emotional reunion of RCI co-founder Christel DeHaan and many of her former RCI employees. The scene was a carnival-style block party at the Carmel-area campus of the world’s largest timeshare exchange company to raise funds for Christel House International, Group RCI’s global charity of choice. At the close of the event, DeHaan was presented with the unexpectedly sizeable donation of $100,000.

The 5-hour block party marked the celebratory conclusion of the ‘Summer of Christel House’, a six-week-long fundraising campaign created by RCI employees to raise both consciousness and cash for Christel House International which operates learning centers for impoverished children in Mexico, Venezuela, South Africa, India, and Indianapolis. Founded by DeHaan in 1998, the charitable organization seeks to break the cycle of poverty for children around the world and help them become contributing members of society.

“The passion demonstrated by the associates of RCI to help provide the 2,700 children of Christel House a better quality of life is both amazing and unprecedented,” marveled Geoff Ballotti, president and CEO of Group RCI. “Christel DeHaan created an incredibly caring culture at RCI many years ago based on honesty, integrity, sincerity and community service. It’s a culture which is alive and well nearly 35 years later. And it’s a culture I’m both honored and humbled to be associated with.”

Attendees of the celebration were treated to a musical performance by visiting Christel House South Africa students Angelique Blaauw, Nontando Bonga, and Kyle Daniels, led by Luis-Miguel Delgado, a business development account executive with Group RCI. Blaauw 16, talked about teamwork, shared goals, and the power of “we” — a message fitting the occasion.

Congratulating the crowd on their creativity and caring, DeHaan was preparing to accept the donation of monies raised by local RCI employees when it was revealed that those had been combined not only with contributions from global colleagues as well as block party proceeds but also a match from the company’s corporate office, a sum totaling $100,000.00. “There are not enough words to describe how I’m feeling,” choked an emotional DeHaan in response to the unexpected generosity. “From day one, RCI has distinguished itself through its people. This is a gift of love for which I am humbled and grateful.”

The Reader’s Digest Foundation to Donate $100,000 to CancerCare

The Reader’s Digest Foundation will donate $100,000 to CancerCare, a national nonprofit organization that offers free, professional support services to anyone whose life is touched by cancer: people with cancer, caregivers, children, loved ones and the bereaved. Its programs include counseling, education and financial assistance. The Foundation’s grant will go towards CancerCare’s financial assistance program, which helps cancer patients and their families pay their bills.

This grant, the sixth in the Foundation’s $1 million Make it Matter program, was inspired by the heartwarming story of Michelle Morey, a Minnesota mom who was diagnosed with breast cancer at 37. Fortunately, she had her own business, a comfortable income and a supportive family and, as a result, was able to focus all her attention on getting better, rather than worrying about paying her bills. She discovered that many of her fellow patients didn’t have the resources she had and, because of the colossal medical expenses they faced, were having trouble heating their homes and buying food.

Michelle and her husband began making monthly donations of $500 to patients in financial need at the clinic where Michelle was treated. She soon created the Pay It Forward Fund, which now serves patients at three Minneapolis-area hospitals. The fund provides up to $1,500 a year to dozens of women, identified by the nursing staffs, with breast, uterine, cervical or ovarian cancer who need financial help. The grants are made with one request: that recipients find a way to pay the fund’s generosity forward through acts of kindness toward others fighting cancer. In just two years, the fund has raised more than $250,000 and has assisted nearly 150 women.

“Fighting cancer is hard enough without also having to fight to keep your lights on and make your mortgage payments,” said Susan Fraysse Russ, executive director, Reader’s Digest Foundation. “We’re very gratified that CancerCare recognizes this and assists people with cancer who need financial support, and we’re very glad to help them in this critical work.”

“We are so grateful to the Reader’s Digest Foundation for helping us assist people as they face the biggest crisis of their lives,” said Diane Blum, Executive Director of CancerCare. “This support will make a profound difference in the daily lives of people facing the emotional and financial challenges of a cancer diagnosis.”

Reader’s Digest magazine is lending its support to the Foundation’s program by highlighting the stories of selected individuals in its monthly “Make it Matter”column. Many of the submissions, including those that do not lead to a grant, will be featured on http://www.readersdigest.com.

Submissions for Make it Matter will be accepted by the Foundation on a rolling basis throughout 2008.

Source: CSR Wire

AT&T donates $1M to National Urban League’s Project Ready College Access Program

AT&T Inc. announced a $1 million contribution over two years in support of the National Urban League’s (NUL) Project Ready College Access Program. Targeting 11th and 12th graders, it is an initiative that seeks to provide enhanced academic support to students in high school and prepare them for post-secondary education.

The project works with families to accomplish the following: increase college awareness; improve navigational and life skills; raise confidence and self-awareness around decision making; gain greater understanding and appreciation for one’s own cultural identity and cultural diversity; and understand the correlation between higher education and income.

“We strongly support the great work of the National Urban League’s Project Ready Program. This program is particularly effective in encouraging students to set goals and understand the correlation between higher education and future life success,” said Marie Long, vice president of Constituency Relations at AT&T.

NUL has also partnered with the Academy for Educational Development to measure the success of the program’s curriculum. As a result of this evaluation, it will develop and teach a certificate-bearing course to educate program staff.

“We are very proud of the great work that Project Ready has already accomplished to educate at-risk 9th and 10th grade students. We are thankful for all the support we have received and are excited to work with AT&T to rollout the project to include 11th and 12th graders,” said National Urban League President and CEO Marc Morial.

AT&T is committed to advancing education, strengthening communities and improving lives, which is why in April 2008, AT&T launched Aspire, a $100 million high school success and workforce readiness initiative. AT&T Aspire is the company’s largest philanthropic commitment ever — and one of the largest — ever corporate commitments to address high school success and workforce readiness.

Source: (CSRwire)

Cisco to Provide $45M for China Earthquake Relief

 

Contribution Focused on Helping to Rebuild Education and Healthcare Through 21st Century Technology Infrastructure and Public-Private Partnerships
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Filed Under: Business
Tagged: Business Impact, China, Cisco, Donation, Earthquake, relief