Tag: monthly giving program

Wishing You Happy Holidays

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Another year has come and gone and we are once again saying, “Happy Holidays”! We hope you spend this day with those who matter most and appreciate the love that you share. Here at Polished Pebbles and KellyFairtheMentor we know that we love and appreciate all of you!

As you get those last gifts wrapped, don’t forget your community mentoring program. Polished Pebbles Girls Mentoring Program strives to be a positive force in your community–with your support! To leave us a beautiful wrapped present (bow included), click here…

happy holidays

What’s Love Got To Do With It?

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What’s love got to do with it? Absolutely everything!

During the holiday season there is a lot of talk about holiday giving–donating time or money to support our communities. And we don’t want you to forget that Polished Pebbles Girls Mentoring Program is an integral part of your community! And if you love us, then it just increases all the good feels that comes with donating.

What are some of those things you love about us? Take a look!

OUR MISSION

The mission of the Polished Pebbles Girls Mentoring Program is to provide
girls (7-17 years old) with the opportunity of learning the vital life skill of african-american-girls-experience-the-same-violence-as-boyseffective communication. Our Polished Pebbles Girls Mentoring program instills confidence in girls to face the challenges of daily life by substituting aggressive forms of communicating and problem solving with new strategies that allow them to gain a solid reputation and respect without retaliating.

OUR PILLARS

Communication – Our focus is mentoring girls to become strong, effective communicators in all aspects, including interpersonal communication and communicating respectfully with adults and peers.

Career Exploration – Girls apply newly learned communication skills in a real work environment through on-site job shadowing and workforce development opportunities that link technical, social, and emotional learning skills to college and career opportunities.

Community – A primary goal of our program is to create a space and place for members of the schools’ communities and the city’s corporate residents to impact youth and bring about change in their local communities.

OUR IMPACT

Our girls in the Polished Pebbles program are developing into professional young women. They are setting their goals higher and higher as they learn just how awesome it is to be a woman! We want them to know that success is in reach and that they have a whole community of men and women (mentors) ready to support them on their path. All of this while having fun!

 

 

And we need your help to keep this going! Share some of the holiday cheer by donating to Polished Pebbles Girls Mentoring Program! We appreciate gifts of all shapes and sizes! Thank you in advance for your generosity!

Share the Love

What Is Informed Giving?

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For the month of April we want to talk about philanthropy. As we shared in last week’s post, giving to others leads to happiness! Now that you may be thinking about donating, we want you to be informed. You may think there isn’t much for you to know because you are an individual and not a corporation, but there really is! We want your $10, $20, $50, or $100 donation to benefit a positive, worthy organization. 

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Here are some tips to help you decide when to donate, and who to donate to:

  • Location. Where is this organization located? Is it in your community or state, is it in the US or is it abroad? Think about what is important to you. While you may love what an international organization is achieving half way across the world, you might feel more satisfaction being part of change you can see.
  • Scope. Similar to location, what is the breadth of this organization? Do they have a local focus or an international component. Is this important to you?
  • Population. Who is this organization serving? If there is a particular population that interests you, you should seek out organizations that are empowering those communities. Perhaps you love working with youth and want to donate money to a mentoring organization. Or an environmental organization that focuses on endangered animals. What drives your passion? Find that, and be part of that positive change!
  • Values. What are the values and mission of the organization? Do you agree with them? While you may love what an organization is doing in a community, you might not love their values. Think about what is important to you, and what you can and cannot support. Your values may differ religiously, politically, or ethically.
  • Time. Where are you in your life? If you are feeling pressure financially, wait! There is no rush to donate to an organization. You don’t want to regret that donation you made, it could lead to guilt! Some people find it best to donate after retirement or when they settle into a stable career. If its a small donation, maybe that $5 you found on the street can go towards the community program providing ESL courses. Decide what time is best for you.
  • Future. What are the long-term goals of this organization? And can you see them reaching these goals?You don’t want to donate to an organization only to find out they went under a few months laster. This doesn’t mean you only donate to long-standing organizations. Just choose ones that seem to be on the right path. Trust your gut, and your heart.

If you’re really feeling up to the challenge of being an informed giver, check out this list of investment strategies from Strategic Philanthropy.

Now that you have all of this knowledge in your head, go out and make a difference as an informed giver!

Money CAN Buy Happiness

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Recently on Polished Pebbles, we have been sharing with you our Monthly Giving Program. It is an opportunity to support our Girls Mentoring Program by providing resources for our girls–journals, sweaters, transportation, and job shadowing experiences. We advertise that through this Giving Program you can support our young women for less than a cup of coffee a day! Now, this isn’t done to guilt any one of you (that’s the last thing we want our supporters to feel). We just want you to know that it doesn’t take big contributions to support us or our girls. Every cent counts and every cent can affect your happiness!

People who spent money on other people got happier. People who spent money on themselves, nothing happened. It didn’t make them less happy, it just didn’t do much for them. And the other thing we saw is the amount of money doesn’t matter that much. So people thought that 20 dollars would be way better than five dollars. In fact, it doesn’t matter how much money you spent. What really matters is that you spent it on somebody else rather than on yourself. (Michael Norton)

Take a listen to Michael Norton to learn more about the link between money and happiness.

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