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Archive for November, 2011

Celebrating David’s Return to Kenya

Posted in Update, tagged , , , , , , on November 21, 2011| 10 Comments »

-Blog post by Reed Sandridge of Washington, DC

13236 Lake Victoria 0 583x388 Lake Victoria

David's hometown is near Kenya's Lake Victoria

I woke up this morning with mixed emotions. On one side, I am so excited that David will soon be reunited with his family in Kenya. The series of events that have come together to make this happen is extraordinary. Having said that, I am not very good with “good-byes” and am sad to see him go.

My focus today though is on celebrating this pivotal moment in his life. We will gather tonight to laugh together and look forward to the future. We are far from my goal of raising the $1,000 to help cover the expenses of David’s travel – but perhaps some more online donations will still come in today. If you haven’t donated and feel that you could spare $10 to help someone else out I encourage you to click on the yellow Donate button.

If you live in D.C. please join us tonight between 5:30-8:00pm at One Lounge (1606 20th Street, NW) in DC. It’s right near the North entrance of the Dupont Circle Metro stop. Here’s a link to the invitation – don’t worry about the RSVP – just show up!

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Week 41 of Reed’s Year of Volunteering: Global Forest and Trade Network

Posted in Volunteering, tagged , , , , , , on November 20, 2011| Leave a Comment »

-Blog post by Reed Sandridge of Washington, D.C.

I am very fortunate to be able to work for a great organization and also do some private consulting on the side. Generally I spend three days a week at my main work-place. Tuesdays and Thursdays I try to keep open for my consulting projects. From time to time I also volunteer on those days if I have a light workload. Recently I had the opportunity to volunteer for my employer on one of my days off.

IMAG0102World Wildlife Fund (WWF) was hosting the Global Forest and Trade Network (GFTN) annual meeting for North America at our headquarters. They needed a note-taker for the session and I signed myself up!

GFTN’s mission is to eliminate illegal logging while creating a new market for environmentally responsible forest products. To do this WWF works with corporations and other nonprofits with similar interests. Some of the nearly 300 participating organizations are household names like Williams Sonoma and Proctor & Gamble while others are names we might not recognize but who have a tremendous impact on our world’s forests.

I sat in the corner of the room taking copious amounts of notes and hoping that I was recording something that would be of value to the group later when they reviewed them. The participants pushed through their agenda – stopping only for a very short break for lunch. After grabbing some food people filed back into the meeting room and continued the discussions.

I couldn’t help but leave the meeting wondering about where the wood and paper products that I buy come from. Are they being sourced properly? How much more would I pay for a product that I knew was manufactured in accordance to the guidelines created by GFTN?

What about you? Does it matter to you how companies behave – are you willing to reward those who act as responsible corporate citizens with your business even if it costs you a little more?

Don’t forget – if you live in the DC area come out tomorrow night to One Lounge to meet and support David – my $10 recipient from Day 258. I hope to see you there!

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David’s farewell party

Posted in Update, tagged , , , , , , on November 16, 2011| 2 Comments »

-Blog post by Reed Sandridge of Washington, DC

I wanted to update you on the latest news about David Ger – the charismatic young man from Kenya that has touched the hearts of so many followers of the Year of Giving.

You can read a more detailed chronological narrative of the sequence of events leading up to now, but basically David was my $10 recipient on Day 258. Through getting to know him I discovered that he wanted to try to find a cousin of his who was last known to be living in Poland. I Googled his name and posted it on the Year of Giving hoping that someone would know him, but no luck.

I snapped this photo of David on a recent visit we took to the Kenyan Embassy to make arrangements for his travel.

But then six months later I got a call from David’s cousin in Poland! I connected him with David and now they are closer to being reunited. After months of discussions and raising money to help pay for the costs, the day has finally come where he will be flying back to his home near Lake Victoria. It’s been nearly 15 years and along with the excitement must come a lot of anxiety too.

I will be sad to see my friend leave, but I think this is an amazing opportunity for him. I am throwing a little going away party for David this Monday night at One Lounge (1606 20th Street, NW) in DC. It’s right near the Dupont Circle Metro stop. Please stop by between 5:30 and 8pm to meet David if you haven’t already met him and wish him luck on his journey. Here’s a link to the invitation. We will also be accepting donations if you would like to help cover some of the costs. I’m hoping to raise $1,000.  If you can’t attend but still want to donate – just click here!

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Week 40 of Reed’s Year of Volunteering: Taste of D.C.

Posted in Volunteering, tagged , , , , , , , , , on November 8, 2011| Leave a Comment »

-Blog post by Reed Sandridge of Washington, D.C.

Columbus Day weekend delivered quintessential fall weather here in our nation’s capital. Bright sunny days that gave way to stark autumn evenings. And if you walked down Pennsylvania Avenue– just a few short blocks from the White House – you would have smelled the aromas of gourmet food and heard the sounds of live music echoing off the governmental walls that line the street. That’s right; it’s the Taste of D.C. festival.

And after a bowl of Ben’s famous chili or a mouth-watering plate from SÂUÇÁ you might need something cold and refreshing to wash it all down with. Look no further than the Craft Beer & Wine Pavilion. Dozens of craft breweries and wineries were set up to give visitors a taste, literally, of some of the most refined libations around.

I actually worked a shift for Stoudt’s (you might remember them from Day 77 of my Year of Giving) and helped the small craft brewer introduce their brews to the palates of Washington. The beer pavilion is run by a handful of staff from the breweries themselves with the help of a small army of volunteers. Unfortunately that small army was really small and the tent would go through periods where it was severely understaffed. So I decided to go back the next day and help them out. After all a portion of the proceeds went to DC Central Kitchen, Bread for the City, Luke’s Wings, and the American Red Cross – all really good organizations.

So there I was for another shift, pouring beers and answering questions about the subtleties of the different malt beverages. “Either I’ve had too many or I think I taste something like those little banana flavored Runts candies,” a bearded thirty-something guy told me as he smelled and resampled Stoudt’s Heifer-in-Wheat, a Bavarian style Hefeweizen. Well, he very might be more sober than you think. No, the beer doesn’t have Runts candies, but you get some of that fruit flavor from the German yeast that is used. It’s also got a sweetness about it thanks to a generous amount of malt that goes into the brew. Although not my favorite of their 15 or so beers that they make, on a warm autumn day it’s perfection.

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