Updates

• Robin's friends completed the Relay for Life and met their goal of raising money for cancer.  Robin was there to cheer them on Saturday morning.
• Robin’s son Ben is a candidate for Eagle Scout.  His service project is to build a small library for a battered women and children’s shelter in East LA called the House of Ruth.  If anyone can donate new or gently used children’s books for age 0-10 in English or Spanish, please let me know and I will come pick them up from you.

Things You Can Do

• Save your gently used books for Ben's project with the House of Ruth.
• Spread the word about Falling Whistles http://www.fallingwhistles.com/
• Buy gifts from Save the Children  www.savethechildren.org/gifts or Bead for Life http://www.beadforlife.org/

June Dinner Party 2010

On Wednesday 6/23, Valerie, Kathy, Mona and myself had a great evening at Mona’s house filled with good food, good conversation and good company.  We finalized the format going forward for the group.    

• Falling Whistles is having a fund-raising event on Friday 6/25 to raise money for their campaign for peace in the Congo that advocates for war-affected children. www.fallingwhistles.com  The event will be held in Santa Monica and featured a DJ and refreshments. Thank you for sharing this with us, Mona. 
• Save the Children’s extensive gift catalog where you can purchase “virtual” gifts on behalf of friends and family that provided real medicine, nutrition, animals and other materials for needy families all over the world.  A token of the “virtual” gifts is then to your receiver.  These make wonderful Christmas gifts, especially for those who “have everything”.  http://www.savethechildren.org/gifts/?WT.mc_id=1109_hp_gifts_index  Thank you for sharing this with us, Sandi.
• Beads for Life eradicates extreme poverty by creating bridges of understanding between impoverished Africans and concerned world citizens. Ugandan women turn colorful recycled paper into beautiful beads, and people who care open their hearts, homes and communities to buy and sell the beads.  Valerie saw some of these pieces of jewelry on her vacation and was very impressed with how beautiful they were.  www.beadforlife.org  Thank you for sharing this with us, Valerie.
• Natural Resources Defense Council is “the nation's most effective environmental action group”.  www.nrdc.org  Thank you for sharing this with us, Kathy. 
• Vital Voices Global Partnership is “the preeminent non-governmental organization (NGO) that identifies, trains, and empowers emerging women leaders and social entrepreneurs around the globe, enabling them to create a better world for us all”.  www.vitalvoices.org Thank you for sharing this with us, Kathy.