Charity Opportunity

Hey Leaguers.

I am now beginning to recall that last year's charitable efforts went largely unnoticed here at The League. I'm giving it 24 hours more and then we're pulling it down. This is just sort of sad.

If you want to participate, click on the links on the left.

Giving Opportunity #2: Heifer International

Here's attempt #2 to find a charitable organization which we can support in the season of giving.



Team Melbotis at Heifer International

Here's a blurb describing Heifer International's general approach to things:

Heifer has learned over the years that a holistic approach is necessary in order to build sustainable communities. So we’ve developed a set of global initiatives – areas of emphasis that must be addressed if we’re to meet our mission of ending world hunger and poverty and caring for the earth.

Here are some areas Heifer is working in:

Agroecology
Animal Well-Being
Gender Equity
HIV-AIDS
Microenterprise
Urban Agriculture
Young People's Initiative

Again, this isn't about the size of a donation. If you can afford $5, that's plenty. I want to see what we can do together. Last year we did quite well with the Red Kettle, and I think we can do even better this year.

-Give here and get your name shown.
-Give here sort of anonymously.

So let's put our money where our mouth is when it comes to this time of year. Let's see what we can do with our hard earned dollars to help out some folks elsewhere who are less fortunate.

Easy Holiday Donation! Red Kettle

really? Not one donation yet? I'm going to assume you've all been very, very busy.

It's RED KETTLE TIME, people! This isn't for me, this is The League trying to get you folks to show a little charity and generosity in this time of giving.

Its fast. Its easy. You don't have to give a lot, just a little. All together, we have the power to do something good!


This guy is helping The League drum up support for the Salvation Army


Click here to give!

And the sooner people start giving, the sooner I shut up about this thing.

TIME TO GIVE BACK: Salvation Army 2009

Hey, Leaguers!

The Holidays are upon us, and its time for me to virtually stand in front of your virtual shopping center ringing my virtual bell.

We know things are tough for many people across the world this year, but we feel fortunate to have a home, food, a job, and so much. But many, many people haven't had the year we've had, and so we're looking to raise funds for a great organization.

Click here to lend a hand.

We've got 77 Facebook Fans, 24 "followers" on Facebook, and we've set the bar fairly low. I expect we'll be pumping up our donation goals before too long.

If all you can give is $5, that's cool. But let's see what happens when we all pull together to see how much we can raise!

Volunteering at AFB

Okie dokie...

I went to the Austin Food Bank this morning, and aside from getting a little schwetty, the work was really very pleasant. We listened to music, chatted a bit, and it was pretty low pressure.

Our little crew first bagged 160 packages of food that had some specific destination, then we sorted huge, huge crates of canned fruit into smaller boxes for distribution. if you can count to 30, then you would do well at the Austin food Bank.

I am going to go ahead and put this out there:

If you would like to maybe volunteer with The League, e-mail me, and I will get us a group sign up. I can't promise you a specific date but it would probably be in two or three weeks, and probably in the morning from 9-12 down south near us.

So e-mail me if you're interested. If you would rather do the afternoon, let me know. We can be flexible.

The League Volunteer Challenge

Jason was trying to beat me to the punch on this, but... The League is going to steal his thunder.

Ladies and germs, I throw down the gauntlet.

At the urging of President and Mrs. Obama to get off our duffs and volunteer, this Saturday I'm headed down the Capital Area Foodbank to spend a few hours, reportedly polishing food cans or some such (apparently we need to clean all the cans because who knows where they've been).

Late Edit: Before you show up on Saturday morning, the Foodbank actually wants you to sign up first before showing up. They do this to manage numbers, I assume. I was also going to gauge interest before moving forward on signing people up for this activity. If its totally awful, then I'm not going to be suggest it as a volunteer opportunity.

Jason had some wheels spinning and began opining that he might try to have an Adventurers volunteer meet-up with the Foodbank. But I say thee nay. Steanso shall not upstage me.

Surely we can recruit Austin Area Leaguers (once I've checked this thing out and find out its not some scam where, once inside, they take your wallet).

Of Local Leaguers, who would be up for spending a morning or afternoon volunteering if Steanso and I put together a meet-up? Not this weekend, but in the near future?

Let's use our power for good, Leaguers.

round-up

UT wins Fiesta Bowl

So... UT won the Fiesta Bowl. Who'da thunk it?

I certainly thought UT had all the potential in the world to win and SHOULD win, but given how 2009 had been going so far, I sort of figured... eh, why get your hopes up? In fact, I predicted UT would lose by 14, just to make myself feel better.

Well, UT won this evening in Glendale versus the Buckeyes. Heck of a game once we were in the second half. Colt, Cosby and the rest managed to pull a rabbit out of their hat that I confess, I wasn't sure they had in them (if it had been VY, then I would have believed it, but...).

I am really happy for the UT Horns and am optimistic that next year can be just as great.

Now to look forward to Thursday's game, which I am guessing will be pretty crazy. I am unsure who I am rooting for yet, as both teams were impressive as heck all year (and I seriously question whether UT could beat either team at this moment).

Salvation Army Red Bucket

So I want to both report on how we did and thank some folks for the success of this year's first foray into the Virtual Red Bucket as the League of Melbotis had its first fundraiser.

Our projected goal was $300, and we managed to raise $360! Not bad, everybody!

We'll be back next year (or perhaps in June) with another go at it. I like the idea that maybe I can use LoM for good, occasionally.

So who can I thank?

My in-laws, Dick and Judy get a shout out. My own folks, KareBear and The Admiral. Jason, of course. The Doug gave, as did Heather Wagner. Matt M. and Erik Z. chipped in. My Arizona pal Maria Hanlin gave, too. JimD was more than happy to throw a few clams in the bucket.

PLUS, I had reports from Leaguers such as Carla and Nicole (and Justin?) that they'd found a real bucket out there and made sure to help out. And poor Simon tried to make a donation, but the website apparently was displeased with his Canadian money. So special salute to Simon for trying and trying.


Melbotis Tributes

Thanks so much to all for their support.

Randy makes mention of Mel at his site.

Lauren draws a lovely image of Mel and invites you to join in.

Jason says good-bye.

And so does Jamie. I know how hard writing this must have been for her, and I think its a lovely tribute to our guy. Also here.

$25 from Salvation Army Goal

Okay, you cheapskates.

We're having tremendous success here at The League of Melbotis in almost reaching our goal of $300. We're only $25 shy of my goal.

Give here.

What's interesting is that we've had the opposite effect I had assumed the Red Kettle was intended to have. Rather than a bunch of smaller donations, we've had a handful of generous contributions.

Why, the League's own JimD threw back the curtain yesterday morning after being visited by the miserable, un-giving spirit of Randy, called out to a street urchin as to what days it was, and gave himself over to the spirit of Christmas and giving which swelled in his heart. Yes, that Scroogiest of Scrooges, Jim D, made a generous contribution.

Other generous givers include:

The in-laws, Dick and Judy.
The KareBear
The Admiral
Jason (aka: Steanso)
Doug
Heather Wagner

Heather "I'm in grad school debt up to my eyeballs" Wagner gave. But you didn't...

Well. I think we all know who Santa will favor this year.

It's not too late to give. With a measley $25 deficit, obviously anything you can give will make a major difference. It's as easy as buying junk off Amazon, only rather than blowing $25 on an "hilarious" white elephant gift, why not toss a few bones to a worthy cause like The Salvation Army?

If you can swing it, The Salvation Army would greatly appreciate your contribution.

Ring Ring Ring

What better way to show your Thanksgiving Spirit than donating to the League of Melbotis Red Kettle?

All you have to do is click here to help out that most venerable of institutions, the Salvation Army.

We could really use your help to get the ball rolling.

RING THE (DIGITAL) BELL FOR SALVATION ARMY

CALLING ALL LEAGUERS!!!

Do you have a blog, website, etc...? Do you want to participate in a worthwhile cause?

League of Melbotis has started a Kettle Team for the Salvation Army! You can join our team, and/ or give to a worthwhile charity!

Now I'm basically like one of those dudes hanging out in front of the mall raising money for worthwhile Salvation Army charities. All without the actual loitering and bell ringing.



HERE'S THE LINK

Or: http://give.salvationarmyusa.org/goto/melbotis

The 21st Century is truly a grand place for those of us who are lazy, but have an internet connection and wish to make a difference.

This year is going to be tough on a lot of your brothers and sisters in the family of humanity, so if you can spare a little yourself, we'd really appreciate it.

Also, if you want to join the League of Melbotis Kettle Team, please click the appropriate box on the website to sign up. Then publicize the heck out of the kettle! We're trying for only $300, so hopefully we can raise that amount this year.

If you can, please give!

What to give to the Superman Geek on your list

Some charities are, perhaps, more worthy than others. I know this.

But... (deep breath)

The town of Metropolis, Illinois (home to the annual Superman Festival) is erecting a statue of Honorary First Lady of Metropolis, Noel Neill. Noel Neill, I should not have to tell you, has a lengthy history with the Superman franchise.

She played Lois Lane in both the Kirk Alyn serials AND the George Reeves starring "Adventures of Superman". In "Superman the Movie", she plays Lois's mother in a quick cameo during the Smallville sequence. She also appears in "Superman Returns" as Gertrude Vanderworth (in that opening deathbed sequence).

She's a roving ambassador for Superman and "The Adventures of Superman", partakes annually in the Superman Festival, and appears all over the country signing autographs for Superman nuts. She's in her 80's and still going strong, by all accounts.

It appears that one can pony up $75 for a brick with their name on it that will be at the base of the statue. The cost of the commemorative brick will fund the statue project.

See more here.

Leaguers will know I have a special fondness for "The Adventures of Superman" and Ms. Neill. So, while maybe this isn't feeding starving villages, I'm glad to see Ms. Neill and Lois get their due as part of America's entertainment and storytelling legacy.

Also, the statue looks as iconical (is that a word?) as I think you're going to get for both Lois Lane and Noel Neill.

tip of the hat to Superman Homepage for the story

Superman Auctions Raise Goal (the rest is gravy)

Look, it's been a lousy week, news-wise. I don't even feel like talking about it. But here's a ray of hope:

The Siegel house exterior renovations can begin. Already.

There are still several huge auctions left, and they've already raised the $50,000 wanted to fix the exterior of the house. The balance will go toward re-doing the inside. Read the article here.

If you're filthy rich and want to bid on stuff, go here.

If that's a little rich for your blood, you can still donate a sack of money here.

I want to remind readers that Meltzer's new charity isn't just for the Siegel and Shuster Society. It's to remind people that Ordinary People Change the World.

Texas will be digging itself out from under the destruction of Hurricane Ike for a long, long time.

If you can, please think about giving to:

The Red Cross

The Austin Capital Area Food Bank

or other charitable organizations helping out evacuees

Simon to run in Terry Fox thingamajig

Simon is in some sort of Canadian foot race where he'll be raising money to research cancer. Leaguers should support Simon as he participates in the Terry Fox Run 2008.

Whenever I hear the name of Terry Fox, I am reminded of the set of books called Value Tales my mom got me as a kid about famous people who represented various values and virtues a good little kid was supposed to internalize. Its how I learned about Jackie Robinson as a kid, Terry Fox, Ben Franklin, Harriet Tubman... we must have had three dozen of those books. They came mail order, and it was always a big day when we'd get them in the mail (shortly after we quit getting Sweet Pickles).

I looked it up, and... looks like you parents could be landing these books for your kids. go here. (Terry Fox has, ironically, been left out by the new publishers.)

Anyway, I'll always remember the Terry Fox book because... well, here's Wikipedia on Terry Fox.

So, anyway... you may be a lazy SOB, but Terry wasn't, and Simon isn't... so give a donation, Leaguers.