By Kelly Brooks, Founder of SHARECharlotte.com, a free, easy and local website that makes it easy to learn about and engage with our local nonprofits
“The best is yet to be!” – Robert Browning
Happy New Year…almost! We’re rounding the bend toward another year, another chance and another opportunity to do something great.
The word “great” is relative though, isn’t it? We’re all in different situations and we all have different circumstances in our lives. Whether it’s time, energy (mental or physical!) or money that’s holding you back, it’s time to change the story.
Great means doing something…anything…just get off go! We’d like to suggest that you start with a plain old conversation with your significant other, family, or a good friend to figure out who and what you truly care about. We think it’s easiest to start with the “who” – kids, families, adults, seniors, military, animals, the environment.
Then ask yourself if there is a specific cause or service that you’re most drawn to – arts, health, education, housing, youth development. What is your heart telling you?
There are certainly good, local non-profits that are doing the work that you can connect with. SHARECharlotte.com can connect you to them.
Here is one non-profit from each of the “Who” categories listed above that you may have never heard of. Why don’t you do something great and reach out to them?
Kids: Trips for Kids Charlotte introduces 10-15 yr old kids from Charlotte’s most fragile neighborhoods to the healthy, lifelong activity of mountain biking.
Families: Children & Family Services Center has created a “shared services” model to create efficiencies for family focused non-profits.
Adults: Pearls for Creative Healing uses art to help end domestic violence.
Seniors: Friendship Trays delivers daily balanced meals to people who are unable because of age or infirmity to prepare meals on their own.
Military: Eagle Rock Camp is a faith-based holistic sports camp that reconnects wounded warriors with their families.
Animals: Coalition to Unchain Dogs is an all-volunteer organization dedicated to making the chaining of dogs a thing of the past.
Environment: TreesCharlotte is dedicated to planting 15,000 trees annually in Charlotte.
Let us know how your conversations go. Happy New Year!
