Run For A REASON!

Want to get in shape? Planning on running in the P.F Chang's Rock & Roll Marathon this weekend? Whether you run currently, or aspire to be a marathon athlete in the future.... consider racing for a cause!

Here is a great link to an article in the AZ Republic about people who are involved in Team in Training. This is an awesome outlet in which to take on the daunting task of finding a way to BEAT cancer. You can be a part of it!

Another great organization is Water For Our World. Water is at the heart to many of the world’s problems.  Clean drinking water gives life to the millions of people who are thirsty and dying around the world.  You and I have the power to affect this change one community and village at a time. When we solve the world’s water crisis – the pain of disease, hunger, and suffering diminish and hope is restored.
 

Achieve your running goals 

and change someone's life in the process!

New Year's Resolution for 2011

Statistics show that people's commitment to New Year's resolutions fade after January, and only 20% maintain the resolutions past Valentine's Day. 

New Year's resolutions often center around self improvement, such as: losing weight, getting better grades, increasing exercise, or kicking a bad habit. These resolutions seem to be hard to maintain in the long term for most. Maybe this is because nothing else changes, such as our busy schedules, organization of time, workload, etc, so reverting back to our old ways seems inevitable.

Maybe a new approach is necessary. Rather than looking in towards ourselves, it may be better to look outward and try to improve the lives of others. This will have the affect of changing your own life simultaneously!

Commit to volunteering - weekly.... or at least monthly!  

Find an important cause or charity to support - take time out of every day life to provide perspective on what is important. There are countless agencies looking for the gift of time and energy from people. Volunteering can even be done from the comfort of home with virtual volunteer opportunities.

• Walk dogs at a local animal shelter (this is a good way to incorporate an exercise goal as well.)
• Help coach a children's sports team
• Do office work for a non-profit
• Help with activities at long term care facilities

Bonus! Volunteering not only has a positive effect on the volunteer, but it can open doors for employment opportunities & is an excellent resume builder.

Be a Better Citizen on a Daily Basis

Find ways to make the community safer:

• Drive slower - even that extra 5 or 10mph - can be the difference between stopping in time and causing damage, or worse
• When out walking, take a bag and a pair of gloves and pick up garbage in a block of the neighborhood
• Regularly check in on an elderly neighbor - mow their lawn, collect their newspapers, offer to help with putting up or taking down Christmas decorations

Be a Better Citizen of the World Around You

One of the single best ways to make a difference in the world without too much time and effort is to reduce, reuse, and recycle. Recycle everything that can be recycled, think twice about buying items that may never be used, and donate as much good condition stuff to charity organizations. Easy ways to make a difference in the environment:

• Take a shorter shower (5 minutes)
• Turn off the water when brushing your teeth
• Get in the habit of turning off lights when rooms are empty
• Unplug gadgets when not in use - even leaving the phone charger plugged into the wall wastes electricity

It is Better to Give Than to Receive

Nobel Peace Prize recipient (1986) and holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel said, 'This is the duty of our generation as we enter the twenty-first century -- solidarity with the weak, the persecuted, the lonely, the sick, and those in despair. It is expressed by the desire to give a noble and humanizing meaning to a community in which all members will define themselves not by their own identity but by that of others.'

Making the world a better place starts at home and in the local community. Trying to lose the last 5 pounds as a New Year's resolution pales in comparison to what can be gained from volunteering time and energy to a cause close to one's heart.

Thank you to Suite 101 & Lorah Delaney

Don't forget to apply to be the 2011 Spotlight Prom winner!

 

Giving Tracker

So many people give their time and money to help serve others. This is a really cool tool to help see nationwide, how people are "Giving"! It is great way to see how many creative ways you can make a difference - get inspired! Type in your contribution so you can be counted. AZ is high up on the list in monetary and time donations - yeah!

Click here: Giving Tracker

Tis the Season for Giving

It's definitely shopping time of year again! With Black Friday gone, many people already have their Christmas gifts purchased and wrapped under the tree. Have you ever thought about giving some of your time or talents this holiday season? Sounds cliche, but doing this really is more lasting than giving something that can be unwrapped on Christmas day. There are many worthy causes that you can support here in the Valley.

• Pick up an Angel Tree Card at your local Walmart to help provide a needy child with the Christmas they would not otherwise have. You can also volunteer to help deliver these toys!
• http://www.angeltree.org/deliverlove
• Send a card or care package to someone who is currently spending the holidays overseas serving in our military
• Volunteer at your local food bank  - or at least donate some non-perishable food at the grocery store collection points
• Go enjoy a festive light display! The Arizona Celebration of Lights supports St. Mary's Food Bank, Angel Tree, and The Salvation Army. 
• http://www.arizonacelebrationoflights.com
• Build-A-Box for Operation Christmas Child 
• http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/OCC
• Help serve Christmas Dinner to those in need 
• http://phoenixsa.volunteerfirst.org/public/search_pro_featured.asp?ID=4
• Bake some cookies and make a visit to a nearby Assisted Living Facility. Take a small amount of your time to visit with someone a few generations your senior. Chances are... you will get more out of it than you give. Try it!
• Clean out your closet & donate your gently used clothes, jackets, and blankets
• http://charityguide.org/volunteer/fifteen/clothesshoes.htm
• Volunteer at Habitat for Humanity - help someone get a much needed roof over their head for the new year. 
• http://www.habitat.org/default.aspx

Many valley families have been hit hard by the economy. Is yours one of them? If you realize that receiving material gifts are not that important to you, maybe there is an alternative! Request that a tax deductible donation be made in your name to benefit a charity of your choice. Or suggest that your family volunteer together and spend the time really remembering the reason for the season. Whatever you do, have a blessed holiday season.....

Tell us what you do to benefit others during the holidays, and all year long. Apply to be this year's Spotlight Prom winner!

What Do You Win?

The 2011 Spotlight Prom Winner will receive a once in a lifetime, unique prom experience. This will include a custom-made dress by KT Jean Designs & a pre-prom photography session by The Amber Image. Complimentary hair & makeup will also be provided.

The winning applicant will receive a $1000 scholarship to further their education - end decision to be made by Spotlight Prom Board of Directors.

Because the most important part of this project is to encourage philanthropy, the winner will also designate a charity or organization of their choice to receive a monetary donation from Spotlight Prom.

How Can You Win?

Apply to be 2011's Spotlight Prom winner - Tell us what you are doing to make a difference in the world around you! Applications will be accepted 11/15/2010 until 1/15/2011.

Be creative! Applications are accepted in many multimedia forms:

• Essay  (Maximum 2 pages)
• Video (Maximum 3 minutes)
• Photography
• Artwork
• Physical Medium (ie, sewing project etc.)

Applicants must be Peoria Unified School District Juniors & Seniors
(If a Junior wins, they are not eligible to win next year)

Please send completed application to:
13954 W. Waddell Rd
Suite 193 #253
Surprise, AZ, 85379
United States
spotlightprom@gmail.com (If all text)

Please note that unless a specific circumstance is worked out with the Spotlight Prom Board, submissions will not be returned.

Why Spotlight Prom?

The mission of Spotlight Prom is to bring awareness to the selfless efforts of young people. We believe that there are amazing teenagers out there who are cultivating a generation full of volunteerism and charity. We would like to provide someone, who uses their lives to help others, with a small moment in the spotlight - by giving them a one of a kind prom experience  & a small scholarship to further their education. It is our hope that shedding a light on all of the fantastic efforts being made by these young people will inspire others to participate in their own way. We believe that generosity and humanitarianism are contagious, & everyone has something they can contribute.