Thinking of Others

I'm having a hard time getting motivated to post. I'm way behind on my Silicon Valley Moms blog obligation, yet I can't seem to get in the right state of mind to write something. A light-hearted post seems wrong in the face of my funk, not to mention the tragedy in Haiti. Writing how I've been feeling would just be too pitiful for public eyes. So I'm going to push my personal issues aside and talk here about how to help others and how I want to help.

Last week I got an email from the KIT list, a "keep in touch" email list started to "help great people find great jobs." The founder of the list asked everyone this week to do something each day to help someone else find a job, a "pay it forward" movement. What a great idea. I could use my blog and facebook and twitter to do something, even something little, right? Wrong. I can use the excuse that I was making sure "I put my own oxygen mask on" before helping others, for why I mostly helped myself instead this week, but the reality is I was just feeling sorry for myself. I set up a future lunch with someone working at a place I applied at a while ago, followed up about a potential contract at my current company, and poured over craigslist postings looking for jobs for my husband. Except that last part, this is the kind of stuff I should have been doing for the past 6 months, and yet that overdraft notice was what finally put the fire under my but.

Then this earthquake hit, and it was awful. Really awful. We had a few earthquakes here, remember? What a world of difference. Haitians were suffering tremendously from poverty before this earthquake, and now the devastation was incomprehensible. I hadn't even gotten it together enough to help pay it forward for job searchers. Before I did anything I got another KIT List email, essentially tapping into the Pay it Forward effort to helping the victims of Haiti.

It's time to focus others. Many people around the internet have posted how to help the victims of the Haiti earthquake, so follow those links or here's what I got from Sue at KIT List.

News reports say the best way to help the Haitian effort is through
monetary donations. Here are some links to trusted charities:

Text Donation:

• SMS text “HAITI” to 90999 to donate $10 to Red Cross relief efforts
• SMS text “YELE” to 501501 to Donate $5 to Yele Haiti’s Earthquake Relief efforts
• You can also give via phone at (888) 4-HELP-BAY or online.
  

American Red Cross - Disaster Relief Fund

Catholic Relief Services

A list of charities from a local San Francisco TV station site:

Avoid scams by checking the legitimacy of an organization at CharityNavigator

Tonight I gave while watching Project Runway with the Clever Girls Collective, who managed to get it matched by Silicon Valley Community Foundation. They gave to half to the Red Cross and half to Wyclef Jean's Yéle Haiti. Don't forget to see if your company will match.

And for those still looking for a job, that will have to come in my next post.