A Day That Marks A MIlestone

I officially have my own corporation. Today I received my approval from the Secretary of State for my very own corporation. createACTivity, Inc. Now, one last step. My 501 c 3 approval.

Through the last week I have recognized one main difficulty that I have had in moving from corporate world to starting my own business and/or working without a paycheck for charities that that I believe in. That difficulty is measuring productivity as well as rewarding accomplishments. As many people, I have always been motivated by either the appraisal of a boss, or the tangible act of receiving a paycheck at the end of a pay period. It was not necessarily the money, but the fact something tangible was received for doing work. Through the lack of both of these acts,  I have realized that it is very easy to set unrealistic expectations as well as feel unaccomplished no matter how hard you work.... (even if you are working the 11-16 hour days including weekends to see your dreams come into fruition).

With this, you can imagine the excitement of opening a tangible piece of paper with signatures stating that your company has been approved. The long days and email exchanges with lawyers (who seem to constantly block creativity with some law that restricts almost any idea that you have, or the mere statement of "I will have to look into that, it has never been done before") has finally paid off. When leads me to my lesson: KEEP GOING. Orchards do not grow overnight, they take a patients, a lot of nourishment, and continuous love to keep them going.

One must also to recognize that when something significant is accomplished, one should reward themselves for that accomplishment. And for me, today deserves reward.

I am so excited to update you about my plans for createACTivty, Inc. once closer to my 501 c 3 approval date. In short, createACTivity will be a sustainable way to generate funds for organizations that are forming ethical solutions for people living in harsh, undesirable, and uncomfortable living conditions caused by extreme poverty through creativity.

With a tangible sense of accomplishment, I am pleased to sign off to a day that marks a milestone.

Es-Bee

Global Team for Local Initiatives Meeting on Bainbridge Island

Previously in my blog, I wrote about a party that I had at my house to sell Shikinee bracelets in support of a foundation called Global Team for Local Initiatives who are working to create sustainable solutions for people living in poverty in order to give them a chance to live a healthy life. Well about a week ago, I spent the weekend on Bainbridge Island in Washington and met  the founder of that organization (Lori J. Pappas) and the rest of her team.  The meeting to say the least was very inspirational and I am so thankful for the opportunity to meet the people associated with this organization, as well as, be invited to be a part of it. Because I strongly believe in the ethical work of this group, I have joined their team and  will be working with them on a few different projects.

There are several reasons why I was drawn to Global Team for Local Initiatives. One, is Lori's story, and if at all possible I would love to ask for you to follow her story on her blog: http://gtlius.blogspot.com/ . Her first blog was just posted and I assure you the stories about her experience in the field will be worth reading. Two, I believe in the ethics of the company: where the funding is going, the research that is being done in order to minimize any western influence into the culture of the people they are working to help, as well as, the sustainable solutions that they are working to provide.

As far as my meeting in Bainbridge: I came with anticipation to meet the team and to learn. I have had several conversations with the team members of Global Team for Local Initiatives, and felt as if I had already known them. I left with even more of an appreciation for the organization than I expected, gained motivation, extremely influential insight, and new tasks that I very much look forward to accomplishing.

City of Lost Children

Last night I clicked a link on an email update from a non-profit organization that I follow which lead me to an article in the Daily Pilot by Kent Treptow. Trent wrote an article and made a photo exhibit sharing about the story of  groups of children that have made homes out of manholes in Ulaanbaatar Mongolia.

For those of you who are unaware, Ulaanbaatar is the capital of Mongolia and besides being a city that faces extreme poverty, it is also the coldest capital in the world. Throughout Kent's slideshow of photos and narrative, he shares the story of a group of children cast out onto the streets to survive  in these harsh conditions due to abandonment, abuse, or other unfavorable circumstances. The manholes exert heat from the hot water pipes, making the area a favorable place for the children to sleep. More often then not, burns will be seen on the children's clothing and body from accidently touching the hot water pipes. Some of the manholes that Kent observed contained pipes that allow access to clean drinking water for to the kids to drink. Unfortunately, the water did not come without a price. Where water is present, so are cockroaches, dogs, and rats.

Kent focuses the his last few pictures in the slideshow on the positive actions taken by the Christina Nobel Children's Foundation to help the kids get out of the manholes and in to a positive environment where they can learn, grow, and live more comfortable lives. The main solution for getting children out of the manholes and into more favorable living situations is Ger villages, which the foundation is working to provide through funding and donations. Kent also shares about a former street child who was rescued, now works for the organization to find and rescue other children, and is currently attending a university to become a camera man for television.

You can find more details on this story by  reading Kent Treptows article: "City of Lost Children," and viewing his photo slideshows at the following link:

http://www.dailypilot.com/articles/2009/06/15/special_reports/mongolia/video/doc48727368f302e317521671.txt

Or, visit the Christina Nobel Foundation site to find out more about her cause and the projects the foundation had been working on in Mongolia to help resolve this challenge:

http://www.cncf.org/en/mongolia/aboutmongolia.php

Again, these sites have great information on this topic. Kent's photography is really unique and the story gives you a personal look at what these kids go through. Due to the extreme poverty levels in this location, the majority of the kids have no other option but to live this way because this is all they know. The Christina Nobel Foundation has started a "Give a Ger Fund" which builds Gers through donation money. If touched by Kent's photographs and narrative, I encourage you to start a "Ger box" allowing co workers or friends to dump extra change in and help give these kids a chance to struggle a little less.

Till Next Post,

Es Bee

3784 Cycle Across the USA

Greg Evens is an ordinary 19 year old doing an extraordinary thing. Greg is currently on day 34 of his truck across the US via bicycle. He left from Yorktown on May 1st and plans to make it to San Francisco approximately two and a half months later. If he makes it all the way there, he will be the youngest cyclist to ever to cycle across the US alone. What is even more extraordinary about this trip is that Greg is doing his cycle in the name of the kids who have survived Noma. Before he started his ride he got people to sponsor him and is having all the money go to Facing Africa. If you would like to follow his journey through the US place follow Greg's blog at: http://gregstransamericacycle.blogspot.com/

Disease of Poverty

Many of you who will read this blog, know that I currently work in the skin care industry. This is a field full of individuals focused towards correcting facial imperfections to increase their clients perception of themselves. After all, the first thing people look at when they meet you is your face.

Outside of my day job, I enjoy researching about socially responsible companies wether it be for profit or non-profit to see what types of ideas and actions are currently in play towards improving the quality of life for all. I find it fascinating that the majority of us, regardless of nationality, religion, or income status come together to create or support causes that touch our hearts.

From the beginning of my research, I have found a particular concern and yearning to support many of the issues that confront various countries within Africa. One day while searching the internet, I stumbled on some graphic images of kids who have survived a disease called Noma. When I first saw these images I was, to say the least, taken back. I did not want to believe the images were real, but new I could not burry my head in the sand.

After viewing the pictures, it was very difficult to find information on the disease. It appears that many doctors have not heard of Noma. The one creditable website that I have found for Noma is a non-profit organization based out of the UK called Facing Africa, (www.facingafrica.org). Facing Africa is dedicated to funding trips to Nigeria and Ethiopia and providing voluntary surgeons and supplies to perform facial reconstructions on survivors of Noma and other facial disfigurements related to extreme poverty. I emailed the organization immediately trying to find ways to help with what little money I had. Chris Lawrence, the founder (and now very good friend) of Facing Africa was very helpful in giving me more information about the disease and what his organization is doing to help Noma survivors lead normal, more comfortable lives.

Noma is known as the "Disease of Poverty" and is most prevalent in children under six. It starts as a fever, and in malnourished children progresses and creates an ulcer in the mouth. If the ulcer goes untreated the infection begins to eat away the skin of the cheek, lips, and sometimes eats through the palate and eye. In infants the lips deteriorate which leaves them unable to breast feed and eventually they die.

Below is a video about Noma and the Facing Africa organization.

According to the World Health Organization approximately 140,000 new cases of Noma are found each year, this does not include the many cases that are not discovered due to the social taboo that is associated with the disease. An estimated 90% of the children who become infected with Noma die. Those who survive are left with severe facial disfigurements that cause discomfort in normal daily activities.

After learning about Noma and seeing the pictures of the children effected with Noma, I have gained several new perspectives. In the skin care industry,  already beautiful women and men receive facial treatments and procedures everyday to make them look even more beautiful. Learning about Noma really makes you take a second look at about how you judge what you see in the mirror everyday. I look at the kids in the video above, and wonder how I ever stressed over something so small as a pimple. The kids also exert such a fierce glow of inner beauty, they are so strong for waking up each day and living with the cards that they have been dealt. The contents within the video and the Facing Africa site truly touched my heart. If the information in the post did anything for you, I would like to encourage you to share it with others, and spread the word about Facing Africa and this completely preventable disease.

*The information an images in this blog come directly from the Facing Africa website or from conversations with Chris Lawrence the founder of Facing Africa.