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Giving is so much at the heart of See Beautiful, and it truly depends on you. So, we’re excited to share more Giving in Action with you guys. Once a Giving Initiative is funded, good stuff happens, and we want you to be a part of the celebration! Forever We encourages generosity through purposeful play. By providing dolls to children with cancer, Forever We gives those children and their families a way to communicate about what they are going through. The dolls inspire compassion, story sharing, and a spirit of playfulness that is so important for these kids. Here’s a word from Chantel and the team at Forever We about the funded See Beautiful Giving Initiative: Thank you, See Beautiful, for sending so much love our way! We were able to send 50 Forever We huggable companions to kids with cancer at Cincinnati Children's Hospital. There's nothing we love more than connecting kids with cancer and families who care through purposeful play. Our dolls and books represent their experience and engage the community at large in a conversation about kindness and friendship. Despite cancer stories of devastation and loss, we also hear touching stories of beauty in the midst of all that pain. Working with See Beautiful to see more beautiful in the children we serve is the hallmark of our work this year. Thank you for your investment. Forever We See Beautiful.   This act of joy and kindness during what can be such a dark time for families is what See Beautiful is all about. Want to hear from more of our Giving Initiative partners? Check out these amazing testimonials. AuthorJannan Poppen, Giving Coordinator
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Plant flowers in others’ gardens and your life becomes a bouquet! — Unknown Plant the seed of giving and watch it grow. As spring emerges (well, at least here in the south), this quote reminds us to stop and ask, what are we doing to plant flowers in others’ gardens?  Photo used with permission courtesy of Unsplash We often think that giving has to be grand gesture rather than a kind word, or a giant check rather than a collaboration. When we define giving only as money, we forget that often a helping hand might really be what’s needed. Even a simple act like smiling at a stranger might be what you can give that day. And smiles are beautiful! Practice Random Acts of Kindness A kind note left on a teacher’s desk. Picking up trash in the park. A home cooked meal for your family or a neighbor. The opportunities to share a bit of kindness with those around you are endless. If you need a little inspiration on how to practice kindness in your daily life, we at See Beautiful love the book Kindness Boomerang by our friend Orly Wahba. Kindness Boomerang lays out one simple act a day to make a big difference in the lives of others, as well as our own lives. Because kindness, after all, like a boomerang, always comes back around. Ask How You Can Help Sometimes it’s pretty clear what kind of help is needed for an individual, family, or organization. For example, an organization may have a list on their website of donations needed. Simple enough. But other times, you may know of an individual, family, or organization in need, but you are not sure what would be most helpful. In this case, don’t be afraid to ask. Offer what you can to help.  Photo used with permission courtesy of Unsplash Volunteer This one almost goes without saying, but often, time and attention are the greatest gifts you can deliver. It’s great if you can consistently volunteer, but even helping at a large event every once in awhile counts. Volunteering is also an opportunity to find and share your unique gifts. Check out volunteermatch.org or idealist.org to find the perfect organization or event to offer your time to. Be an Example of Giving to Others This doesn’t mean you need to shout from the rooftop, “Look at me! I give!” But, rather, this means exemplifying a spirit of generosity and helpfulness to others. When others catch wind of your giving spirit, it may inspire those around you to do the same. Children especially are influenced by your actions. One of the best ways to encourage giving in children is do it yourself. Nourish Yourself Sometimes we need to stop and plant flowers in our own garden before tending to other’s gardens. Sometimes we are in such a season of giving, that our soil is depleted. We might begin to feel tired, uninspired, or even resentful. When this happens, you must give to yourself before you can give to others. Don’t forget to regularly check in with yourself and take time to recharge. Do what energizes you. Whether it’s taking a walk in nature, finding time to catch up on your sleep, or finally checking out that yoga class, self care will go along way in getting you back on the path of giving. This list only scratches the surface. How else do you give? Please share your brilliance in the comments below. AuthorJannan Poppen, Giving Coordinator  We have a lot of caregivers, educational stakeholders, and families in our See Beautiful Community. We also have an amazing opportunity for you to get kids involved in an art project that leads to more beautiful for an extraordinary non-profit: Helping Mamas! Short story: Your kid(s) creates a piece of art depicting "A Vision of Unity" and it will be on display at Helping Mama's Art Show!  More details: Helping Mamas is an amazing Atlanta non-profit doing incredible work to empower families and organizations in need. They're hosting an Art Exhibit called: A Vision of Unity. All of the art displayed will be student art work and YOUR kid(s) can create it! The art will be matted by Helping Mama's and on display at their event on Saturday, May 13th at The Hudgens Center for the Arts. Please let us, or Helping Mama's, know if you'd like to participate and we can get you additional details! Visit Helping Mama's invitation HERE. Know a non-profit we should partner with? Tell us about them on our nomination/application page. Inspired by this post and want to spread the word? Share away.... Author: Lydia Criss MaysFounder & Owner, See Beautiful Have you heard of the app Charity Miles? Well, now you have. Charity Miles makes giving to charity about as easy as it possibly can be, especially for you runners, bikers, walkers, and hikers. For every mile you walk or run, 25 cents is donated to a favorite charity. If you bike, it's 10 cents a mile. Yup. It’s really that easy.  Image courtesy of Unsplash You can choose from a list of well-known, hugely impactful charities that are leaders in their respective areas and of course, doing some serious good across a wide range of issues. You can choose an organization that is near and dear to your heart, or pick a different organization every month. Charity Miles also works great if you’re participating in a race or charity walk. You can double your impact and encourage your team to download as well. You can even create a team within the app. So, if you haven’t downloaded Charity Miles, do it. Go ahead. We’ll wait why you download it. Enjoy this cute picture while you download Charity Miles.  Image courtesy of Unsplash Ok, are we good? It’s downloaded? Ok, then. Now, get moving and giving! Have you used Charity Miles? What are some other super easy ways to give that you'd love to share? Let us know in the comments. AuthorJannan Poppen, Giving Coordinator See Beautiful is honored have the opportunity to cross the paths of our amazing partners through our Humanitarian Giving Initiatives. When you purchase through See Beautiful, not only do you get your ethically-sourced, high quality, and great looking product, but you can also rest assured knowing that $5 of that purchase goes directly to organizations or families that are creating more beautiful in the world. And, you get to pick which organization or family that donation goes to. So, what happens once the Giving Initiative is funded? Well, the work certainly doesn’t end there. Our partners are out there living their missions. Every. Single. Day. From supporting the education of schoolchildren, to protecting animals, to caring for a family member, to bringing a smile to the faces of the elderly (and way, way more), the See Beautiful Giving Initiative recipients truly make a difference in the lives of those they touch. The See Beautiful team gets to celebrate the impact of your generosity, but you don’t always see the end result. So, we’ll be sharing more of this Giving in Action with you, so that you can celebrate along with us. To get us started, you might remember Jacob from Love for the Elderly. At age 14, Jacob started Love for the Elderly to bring generations together, and to show our elderly friends and family that folks out there care for them. The See Beautiful Giving Initiative helped launch the Sunshine Box program, and each purchase you made to support Love for the Elderly’s Giving Initiative funded a Sunshine Box for an elderly person. Well, here it is, guys! Watch the joy as Jacob distributes a box. Don’t you love her reaction? Her future's so bright, she’s gotta wear shades, right? Thanks, Jacob and Love for the Elderly, for spreading beautiful and sunshine, and for becoming a part of the See Beautiful family. Here’s what Jacob had to say about the experience of working with See Beautiful through the Giving Initiative: See Beautiful was absolutely amazing in every way! We worked with See Beautiful to raise funds for our Sunshine Box program, which distributes little boxes filled with fun, cute goodies for seniors who deserve a bit of extra sunshine in their day. We're so thrilled that we now have $1500 to use to help build and expand this program. It wouldn't have been possible without the incredible support from the See Beautiful team, who always helped if we had any questions or concerns. Want to hear from more of our Giving Initiative partners? Check out these amazing testimonials. AuthorJannan Poppen, Giving Coordinator The first follower is what transforms a lone nut into a leader. -Derek Sivers Love Grows. And so does giving.  Don’t you adore this reclaimed wood wall hanging? It serves as a daily reminder that the more we love, the more love exists in the world. Love isn’t a finite resource. There is truly no limit. Giving works the same way. It takes that first courageous soul to be willing to give. Whether it’s time, energy, money, or even giving your simple belief in an idea worth believing in, your action can start a movement of giving that snowballs into something immense. With no edges or confines. Watch a movement grow in this great 3-minute Ted Talk by Derek Sivers. And if you don’t start a movement, you’re still giving. And that’s beautiful, too. Do you know an organization or family that could benefit from a See Beautiful Giving Initiative? Follow along, nominate one now, and grow the love. AuthorJannan Poppen, Giving Coordinator Friendship is a sheltering tree. - Samuel Taylor Coleridge The image of the sheltering tree does so perfectly reflect the love and support of a dear friend. It towers over us when we need it. A tree can be a refuge, a protector, and a haven. It provides cover in rain and shade in heat and reminds us of the importance of strong roots. Or, when our roots are wavering, the tree stands firm, holding us up.  Image Courtesy of Unsplash Just as a tree can be all of this, so can a friend. With giving at its core, the See Beautiful community truly exemplifies this definition of friendship. The word support seems to come up over and over when explaining how our Giving Initiatives work. See Beautiful aims to support. To lift up. To reinforce. We try to be a tree to our Giving Initiative recipients. But, also, you are our tree. Today, and everyday, we are grateful for the relationships that See Beautiful has helped to encourage and grow. From the lifelong friendships sparked at a See Beautiful Club meeting, to the partnerships we’ve built through our Humanitarian Giving Initiatives, to the enthusiastic community that supports these initiatives, purchases See Beautiful products, follows us on social media, or is a living example of seeing beautiful, thank you.  Image Courtesy of Jannan Poppen At the risk of sounding too Golden Girls-y, thank you for being a friend. Thank you for supporting the incredible organizations and families with whom See Beautiful has had the honor of partnering. Thank you for being our sheltering tree. AuthorJannan Poppen, Giving Coordinator |
See beautiful in yourself.
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