I was fortunate enough to be selected again this year to participate in the Yahoo! “How Good Grows” program. The program is a combination of the concepts of “pay it forward”, microphilanthropy and social networking – Yahoo! selects a pool of people, gives them $100, and asks them to go do something nice. This could range from buying a group of strangers coffee to purchasing ARV drugs for folks in sub saharan Africa. The use of the funds is up to the donor and ideally the use is impactful and inspiring.
My choice this year (with the help of my wife and daughter) was to donate the money to my daughter’s classroom at her charter school in Sonoma. Her teacher Rachel was inspired by the program and decided to let the kids in on the action. The class decided to donate a portion of the funds to another first grade class at the school, and also to send some of the money to a charter school in the developing world. The kids are choosing the charter school in the developing world when they return from Christmas break.
Given the state of funding for education in California, the old adage of every little bit helps truly applies. My daughter’s teacher was truly appreciative of the funds, and she and the class were really inspired by the opportunity to “pay it forward” for another class at the school, as well as a school in the developing world.
To check out the other acts of kindness inspired through the How Good Grows, check out the site here:
http://kindness.yahoo.com/
A big thanks again to the folks at Yahoo! for the opportunity to participate, and for continuing to support this program.
Bill Johnston 