Anyone Can Take this Role. Can You?

We can talk for forever about wanting to help kids have a brighter future. However, if we don't make operating resources consistently available to the organizations working in different neighborhoods to help kids through school and into jobs, our words have little impact.

The next six weeks are the biggest charitable giving period of every year. Thus, I've added this graphic to my blogs and will put it on my other web sites. It has a link to a list of Chicago area youth serving organizations, which I organize by sections of the city and suburbs.

My goal is that others put this graphic, or something like it, on their own web sites, in their social media, and in church bulletins and holiday greeting cards, with an encouragement that people browse through the list of web sites and pick programs they want to help. Then send a non-restricted donation. You could even send it without adding your name. Do it however you want. Just do it.

If enough people take this role, the flow of operating and innovation dollars into programs in different neighborhoods will grow, and we all will be taking real steps toward helping kids connect with resources and mentors who can give them a better chance for a future beyond the threat of daily shootings, poverty and poor schools.

Once you start to look at the list of web sites you'll quickly come to a conclusion that some programs communicate what they do better than others, and some really are better than others. If you want to go beyond sending money, inventory your own skills and those of your friends, and offer to help programs operating in different neighborhoods have web sites that communicate what they do more effectively, or help them build services that make them the best in the world, not just in Chicago, at what they do.

I created this "Shoppers Guide" to suggest things that programs might show on their web site to communicate their history, strategy, successes, etc. A team of volunteers from a company, faith group, college, or even high school, could adopt a program, or all of the programs in a neighborhood, and help them do work they can't do on their own.,

Every year on New Years Eve people make resolutions telling what they plan to do in the coming year. I want you to make your resolution to help tutor/mentor programs in Chicago now, and on New Year's Eve, post a blog article or Twitter message, or Facebook story, telling what you did to help one or more tutor/mentor programs during this holiday season.

If you're not in Chicago, look for leaders who will create a similar list of youth serving organizations, then take the same role of helping these organizations get the on-going resources each needs to constantly improve and become the best in the world at what they do.

The kids deserve it.