Search Results for: blog helping others in a disaster

How Small Businesses Are Helping Relief Efforts In Japan

The ongoing tragedy in Japan has given the rest of the world many things to think about. From preparedness for natural disasters to planning and preparing for emergencies involving nuclear power plants, the list of questions that have come up over the past few weeks continues to grow. One question that many of us are probably asking as we learn about the devastation in Japan is “How can I help?” Large-scale tragedies like last year’s earthquake in Haiti and the current events unfolding in Japan often inspire massive relief efforts from governments and large corporations all over the world. While … Continue reading →

Helping the Children of Haiti

As happened after the 2008 earthquake in China, adoption agencies have had numerous phone calls from people offering to adopt earthquake orphans. As I mentioned in my earlier blogs, children orphaned in a natural disaster or war are usually not free for adoption for a period of anywhere from six months to a year. The infrastructure must be repaired enough to ensure that family members have had the opportunity to locate children. So what can be done to help the children? First of all, remember that there are many children, in our own country and abroad, who are eligible for … Continue reading →

“Sesame Street” Helping Parents Teach Kids About Terrorism

Subtitle: Elmo Meets Michael Chertoff or “The Muppets Take Manhattan… Post 9/11” I wish I were kidding. For decades parents have turned to those fun-loving furry friends on “Sesame Street” when they needed help teaching their kids how to spell, tie their shoes, and count to 10 in Spanish. But now Elmo, Grover, Big Bird, Zoe, Oscar the Grouch and crew are getting serious about a grown up topic most adults struggle to deal with—terrorism and other potential deadly catastrophes. So how exactly does a parent explain to a 3-year-old why it’s important to prepare for a terrorist attack? Don’t … Continue reading →

Helping Your Kids Deal With Life Changes: Writing A Life Book

Sometimes as parents we forget that childhood can be full of changes for our kids. These changes include developmental milestones like going from diapers to underwear. It can also include serious changes like divorce, death of a loved one or getting a new sibling after being an only child for many years. It can also include a life-altering experience like a hurricane that comes to town uninvited and uproots you from the only home you have ever known. Tyler has done remarkably well since Katrina but I know it bothers him that things have changed. I know he’s looking forward … Continue reading →

Let’s Talk Pregnancy Blog Top Ten: Your Must-Read Checklist

Pregnancy is typically the time that most women find a desire to read as many books as they can get their hands on, but why waste your time reading books that aren’t powerful and uplifting? Not that any one of these books actually trumps the others, but if you’re pressed for time and don’t want to waste any reading something useless, then this list is for you. Here is your top ten must-read booklist on pregnancy, childbirth and beyond: TEN: Pregnancy the Natural Way by Zita West. Just as the title suggests, this book can help you manage your pregnancy … Continue reading →

Update: Helping Kids Cope With Natural Disasters

In a previous blog, I talked about my impending return to New Orleans in June. This past Saturday, I met with the contractor who is going to do the work on my house, thus setting the wheels in motion for my return. I never realized there was so much involved (not to mention the cost) when renovating a home. When I bought my house seven years ago it was in move-in condition and before Katrina the only other thing I’ve had to do to it was convert one of the three bedrooms into a child’s room when Tyler came along. … Continue reading →

BP Tries to Stop Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill

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As you probably know, the Gulf of Mexico is a mess. An offshore drilling rig exploded on April 20th, killing eleven workers and spilling oil into the sea, to the tune of an estimated 5,000 barrels a day. Regardless that some say the oil leakage is actually more, there is still the issue of how to clean it up the over 4 million gallons of oil. BP, the majority owner of the rig, has reportedly been spending about $7 million a day to try to contain the oil spill. But, the company’s efforts have still been criticized by many, including … Continue reading →

What an Example!

We can learn so much from the Old Testament. Nehemiah sets a great example for Christians in how to behave. Nehemiah 5:1-5 The Jews complained that were being hard done by and suffering extortion, not from outsiders but from their own Jewish brethren, verse 1. Some were large families without property. Some had mortgaged their fields and houses to provide food for their families. The third group had borrowed money for the king’s taxes and as a result their children were forced into being slaves, and they saw no way out for them or their family. Their complaints were valid. … Continue reading →

No Vacation, but a Different View of Marriage and Life.

Not many people will give up their vacation time to help others. Helping needy people is not every couple’s idea of the ideal way to spend three weeks. But it was for Carmen and Glen Ryan couple who spent three weeks aboard Africa Mercy, the world’s largest hospital ship., Carmen has a nursing background while Glen is involved in with computers and information technology. Both of them wanted to use their skills to help others less fortunate, so they ended up on the Africa Mercy ship in Liberia. The Ryans say that working aboard such a ship providing medical aid … Continue reading →

Never Too Old!

Some people use age as an excuse to opt out of becoming involved and helping others. Our local paper recently ran a story about an 87 year old man, Cyril Brown. Unlike some today, his main focus has never been on earning a living and looking after his own best interests. Rather, his has been a life of helping and serving others. Currently he is a volunteer who delivers for Meals on Wheels. Ironically, he is older than some of the people he is delivering meals too. When not delivering meals, he spends his time doing other odd jobs to … Continue reading →