Home > Uncategorized > And that’s when I started crying.

And that’s when I started crying.

Background: Donors Choose is an educational charity which allows individual teachers to write proposals requesting things they need for their classroom. The proposals are checked out, then posted on the Donors Choose website. This lets you choose to fund projects in your particular geographical area, or area or interest, without worrying that your money is being eaten by a giant organization before it ever gets to the people who need it. Bonus points for knowing that your money is not going to a cause with which you may not agree. It’s going to purchase materials for a specific classroom, with a small amount going to overhead for Donors Choose, and you can even opt not to include the overhead in your donation.

Last year for Christmas, we had the usual problems deciding what to get for my husband’s parents, particularly his mom. They’ve got everything they need. But the one thing they love is their hometown, and his mom worked for the school system for years. Donors Choose is now working in our home state of North Carolina, so I looked to see if they had any requests that needed to be filled. Voila! They did! A teacher was requesting a small classroom library, and she was located in my in-laws school district. Great! So we funded that proposal, wrapped the confirmation letter, and gave that to them for Christmas. They were very pleased and thought it was an interesting idea, too.

Cut to today, when we got a package in the mail from Donors Choose.

Yeah, I got misty-eyed.

There are about 30 individual letters in there addressed to my mother-in-law, along with pictures and a card from the teachers. The kids all drew pictures, mostly of themselves reading, and wrote notes saying thank you and telling which books they liked the most. For the record, books on pilgrims, Egypt, and the Magic School Bus led the pack.

It’s one thing to know that you’re helping someone far away, it’s another to see the tangible results. What a wonderful feeling.

I’m considering running another Donors Choose yarn contest. There’s plenty of yarn in my stash as prizes. And I’m eyeing this proposal in particular. A special needs teacher in a special needs classroom who can’t reach the blackboard and wants her kids to be able to see what she’s writing? That’s a worthy cause.

Just wanted to share a great experience from a great organization.

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  1. March 24th, 2006 at 16:26 | #1

    Do you mind if I link this entry on my LJ? I’d like to pass this around.

  2. March 24th, 2006 at 16:26 | #2

    Do you mind if I link this entry on my LJ? I’d like to pass this around.

  3. March 24th, 2006 at 16:31 | #3

    That’s awesome.

  4. March 24th, 2006 at 16:31 | #4

    That’s awesome.

  5. March 24th, 2006 at 16:59 | #5

    Please, be my guest. They deserve all the exposure they can get. 🙂

  6. March 24th, 2006 at 16:59 | #6

    Please, be my guest. They deserve all the exposure they can get. 🙂

  7. March 25th, 2006 at 12:39 | #7

    What a terrific idea! I love charities where you know things you do are really appreciated, as opposed to the faceless wonders where you don’t even get a thank-you from the organization. Geez, wish they were in Virginia…

  8. March 25th, 2006 at 12:39 | #8

    What a terrific idea! I love charities where you know things you do are really appreciated, as opposed to the faceless wonders where you don’t even get a thank-you from the organization. Geez, wish they were in Virginia…

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