A day to give Thanks

Friday marked the Dinner Project's Thanksgiving dinner. We asked our friends and family to come and eat a traditional Thanksgiving meal with us and show their support for the work that we are doing by donating directly to the Dinner Project. A non-profit organization is, sadly, not a cheap thing to start or continue, and while we don't have salaries or rent to pay, there are a few costs that are necessary.

Friday's event brought in roughly $300 which will be applied directly towards our costs in filing the necessary paperwork to classify our organization as non-profit and gain tax exempt status. Over the course of the last few months we have raised around $4500 that has been distributed to various charities with the generous donations of all the friends and family that have attended our different events. With the donations raised on Friday, we can continue our momentum and make the coming events even more successful.

Thanks to everyone that attended on Friday. If you didn't attend, you missed out on a raffle for some of Jessica's handmade jewelry, as well as a smorgasbord of traditional Thanksgiving fare. We held discussion on the future plans of the Dinner Project and our next event will be in January to benefit the Ronald McDonald House Charity. We will be asking for in-kind donations, as well as monetary, so if you get something for Christmas you don't want, save it and donate it to charity.

An update on the Kiva Charity Donations

Here is a quick update on our first Dinner Project Charity. The micro-loans given through Kiva to help two woman start businesses have had some repayment.

The first loan of $150.00 has so far had a 21.15% repayment. The loan was given to Nive of Samoa. Nive is 61 and married with six children. She owns a business venture selling lava lavas (bottom-half wrap-around prints worn by both men and women).

The second loan of $50.00 has had a 23.10% repayment. This loan was given to a woman named Marcia from Ecuador. Marcia is 36 years old and she lives in Fortín de Guayaquil (a semi-urban area, with dirty paths, and deteriorating hills). She sells natural products like medicines for body pains and other kinds of symptoms. In order to build a better house, and provide better service to her customers, she wants to buy cement, stones, and sand with the loan.

Once these funds have been repaid, they can be loaned again and we can continue the cycle of giving. This is The Dinner Project in action.

Over $4,500 raised with just 4 events! - The Dinner Project's November Event

It's hard to believe that in just 4 events we've raised and distributed over $4,500 for some amazing causes. We've supported small business owners in Samoa and Ecuador with small micro loans. We hosted a BeadforLife party and sold handmade jewelry made by Ugandan women to help support them with education, job training, better schools and health services. We raised cash and paper goods for Jonathan's Place, a crisis shelter for children, and we had an amazing night of pink raising money to help support breast cancer research and awareness. 100% of our proceeds from each event were given directly to the charities. We have a full board of directors now with regular board meetings happening each month and a calendar planned through the end of 2011.

For our November event we are asking for your help to continue the momentum and help The Dinner Project with administrative costs. It costs money to run a non-profit organization, even one that has 100% volunteer labor and no office space or overhead. We are asking for donations to help defray the costs for things like party supplies, event space rental, printing costs and to apply for our 501(c)3 tax exempt status. Just filing the paperwork is $400.

We've had amazing response to the organization and the work we are doing. We are seeing new faces each month and many repeat guests who are quickly becoming Dinner Project regulars! People in other parts of the U.S. want to host dinner parties for us in their home towns. All this in just 6 short months.

Help us keep the momentum going by joining us November 12 for a Thanksgiving meal. Share a meal with us, share The Dinner Project with a friend by bringing someone along with you and share your abundant resources with people who need a little extra to make their lives better. I hope to see you all there - it's a great cause and it's happening right here in our community! How exciting to be a part of all this!

Dana Neal

www.dinnerproject.org

A Blog about our Breast Cancer Event

I just had a little girl and as I look at her I wonder, "Could she develop breast cancer?". It seems that more and more we hear about women contracting this horrible disease and as a man, it has been outside my radar, even though men are also at risk. That is why this month's Dinner Project charity was so dear to my heart.

Friday marked the Dinner Project's Breast Cancer Awareness event to benefit breast cancer research and it was a great success. The Boobie-Q brought out a lot of delicious food as well as a group of amazing women who donated their time and energy to such a worthy cause. I find myself to be the sole man at most of these events and I was privileged to be in such esteemed company.

We heard from Sonya on her upcoming return to the Susan G. Komen 3 day walk for cancer and many of our group helped her get on her way to her goal. There was also a survivors story that was told which is always humbling and inspiring to hear.

Thanks again Sonya for hosting such an amazing night.

Sonya's thoughts on our October event for Breast Cancer Awareness

Breast Cancer! Did you know that 30 years ago you couldn't say the word "breast" or "boobie" or any word that described that body part without getting a bad look aimed at you. And you definitely couldn't put it in print. Well obviously times have changed and the word "breast" is posted everywhere and said everywhere. However, the good majority of the times it's with that dreaded word behind it "cancer".

A friend told me yesterday or her 40 year old sister-in-law that is struggling with breast cancer that has now spread to her lungs and brain. 40 years old!! That's my age, well sort of. She has three kids ranging from the age of 7 - 12. I also had a friend that told me about her mother that has breast cancer that has spread to her bones. And there are so many more stories and so many more people that can unfortunately share them. I'm sure you have your own stories to tell.

And so I ask if it's ever going to stop, or at least get better. Did you know that over 207,000 new cases of invasive breast cancer will occur among women in the United States in 2010. And an estimated 39,840 will die from breast cancer. Also, almost 2000 men will be diagnosed this year.

So as I prepare to host the Dinner Projects October Event to raise money for breast cancer awareness month, I'm blessed to say that none of my closest family and friends are struggling with breast cancer. But I know that will change, and I want to do my part in making sure they have the best options available to catch it early and to some day eliminate this disease forever. I pray that my efforts will make my daughters world, a better place. Hope you can make it on Friday the 15th at the Dinner Project.

Our host, Marla's thoughts on this Friday's Dinner Event

How often do we hear the morning headlines about another child that has fallen into the hands of abuse by someone they love and trust? I know personally when I hear these reports I may shed a tear or nod my head in disbelief, but unfortunately life takes over and you go about your busy day. This Friday we want to make up for those moments, and give these children a voice. This monthThe Dinner Project will be honoring Jonathan’s Place of Dallas. For 15 years Jonathan's place has been providing a 24 hour emergency shelter for abused, abandoned and neglected children, serving newborn to 17 years of age. They also provide a Foster and Adoptive Family Program, as well as a Residential Therapeutic care for young girls that require a higher level of attention.

To help provide the basic necessities for the children, Jonathan's Place accepts in-kind donations. They constantly have a need for personal hygiene and paper products such as paper towels, toilet paper, paper plates, paper cups, etc. So this Friday we are asking our guest to bring personal hygiene and/or paper products to the dinner. Since Jonathan’s Place provides amazing care and comfort to children, we thought comfort food, would be an appropriate choice for the evening.

Bring your best dish and in-kind donation and we will see you at The Dinner Project!

Forgive me Followers...

Forgive me Dinner Project followers as it has been 44 days since my last blog. That is what it feels like for me to sit down and blog...like going to confession and admitting all my mistakes. While it is painful for me to get in and get it done; once I am done it is cathartic and I am at peace with the world again.

So the BeadforLife event raised close to $3000. The food was great, the people I met were awesome and I am gearing up for another fantastic night this Friday.

Comfort Food...now you are speaking my language!! Mashed potatoes, mac & cheese, chocolate cake...Boo--yah! Not only are we eating my favorite foods, but helping a charity that is helping kids--Jonathan's Place. I like how we are changing it up...I mean cash is always good for charities and if that is what you decide to do--great! But, I like the idea of in-kind donations because it gives me a sense of well being; as I know exactly where my money is going and how it is helping. From the jpkids.org website, they state they are in constant need of paper and personal hygiene products--makes sense--"cleaning supplies" and kids--just like peanut butter and jelly!

Recently, I went to lunch with some co-workers. We started talking about our September charity. I am not exactly known for my sensitive and what I call my touchy-feelie side. Just a warning...if you are coming to me for sympathy then you have really scraped the bottom of the pickle barrel, my friend. However, we started discussing Jonathan's Place. A place that takes in and cares for abused, abandoned, and neglected children. I recalled stories I saw on the news, read in magazines, or even my own fears for my children if something were to happen to me or my husband. Tears welled up in my eyes and I got a little choked up which really stunned my friends (who by the way later mentioned it to my husband who couldn't believe what a "weepy mess I have become in my old age!") Watching the Jonathan's Place video on our website gets me choked up. Thanking our board member, Marla, for picking and hosting such a wonderful, local charity gets me choked up. Carting toilet paper, shampoo, and a dish of red beans and rice to share with some good friends on Friday night....well, that puts a smile back on my face!

9 is the Loneliest number?

Okay...computers, SO not my thing! Blogging... again, not my thing. Trying to be a team-player and wanting the Dinner Project to be successful--so my thing!! So here I sit, typing on the computer, blogging on a Saturday while the hubby and kids nap.

The only thing I know about blogging is from the movie Julie/Julia. Amy Adams' character is so charming while she blogs and is ecstatic when she finally gets a comment from a "follower" and it turns out to be her mom asking why is she still wasting time with this "thing". Well, I have 9 followers...NINE!! Okay, so if you subtract the 4 founders, my poor husband, and two of my friends that I beat at arm-wrestling to join the blog...I have TWO people following along and zero comments. (also, when I asked one of the 2 people what she thought about the last blog post she answered, "Oh, I haven't gotten around to reading it yet."--lovely!) So why am I still "wasting" my time with this?

Because, I care and the 9 people following these posts care. And, each of the 9, know at least 9 more people that care and so on. Making a difference is what warms our souls. That is why those silly, sappy insurance commercials where the man picks up the stuffed animal for the kid in the stroller; whose mom in turns holds the door for someone trying to catch the elevator, and each kind act begets another kind act until it comes full circle tugs at our hearts and makes us smile. We care because we live in Texas and always comment how very kind and nice people in our great state are compared to somewhere else we have lived or visited. Every small act counts and comes full circle. So get the word out about the Dinner Project, let that be your kind act today--I guarantee a smile ahead!

the Ripple Effect

Everyone knows what the Ripple Effect is...." the ever expanding ripples across water when an a object is dropped into it." That is why we created the Dinner Project. Life is full of meetings, emails or new tasks we assign ourselves. In the end we are left feeling overwhelmed, underfunded, and thinking, "Is this going to work? I am just one person...can a little bit really make a difference?"

During naptime this week (procrastinating on the household chores) I watched an HBO documentary "A Small Act." It is about a holacaust survivor who was displaced to Sweden as a child, became a preschool teacher and joined a charity program and donated $15 a month to sponsor a Kenyan child in his/her secondary studies. She never knew what happened to that child. "Her" child excelled in his secondary school studies, received top grades and received a scholarship to the University of Nairobi, then another scholarship to Harvard. Today Chris Mburu is a Human Rights lawyer for the United Nations and founded the Harriet Back Education Fund in 2003, which sponsors scholarships to primary school graduates who have no possible way of going on with their studies due to the cost (roughly $40 a month). A few years later he decided to find Harriet and share with her what her gift of hope had created. Talk about a Ripple Effect!

So when our group feels we are but a drop of water in an ocean of duties, ideas, and responsibilites; I will remember what Chris says in the film, "You have to do something. I know I cannot provide relief, support and help to all the suffering that is around me. But I want to do one thing; I want to do one action that will work towards relieving that situation." So we are hoping your one action will be to join us in the Dinner Project.

shish kabobs, roasted corn and plantains...oh my!

Our first Dinner Project event is August 27th and the menu theme is African. Hmmm...never have eaten an African dish--check! Never have made an African dish--check! Scared out of my mind to know what's in an African dish--check! Is it too late to change our menu plans? Wait...step out of the box, where is the adventurous side of you, there's more to life then steak and potatoes, right?

Okay, google "African recipes"....and find:

http://www.african-recipes-secrets.com/appetizer-recipes.html

Shish kabobs? Roasted corn? Fried plantains? Okay...must retract my earlier statements of never eating, making, or trying African food. As I scroll through the recipe options I see carrot cake, cornbread, and garlic chicken. I have been eating African cuisine all my life and just didn't know it! Granted there is something called cassava that you can boil, fry and make into a bread, a suspicious recipe called togbogee and rice which is made with bitterballs and a refreshing beverage called pawpaw juice. But as long as there is skewered peppered beef and sweet potato fries, I realize once again I am wrong. Universal dining is all about steak and potatoes!

Have you heard about the one...

Have you heard the one about the ex-teacher, the ex-banker, the ex-social worker, and the present day web designer who walk into a bar and say "let's make a difference." How can we make a difference when there are only four of us? The ex-teacher said let's meet/make more friends, the ex-social worker said let's feed everyone with food and information, the ex-banker said let's make some money and give it to worthy charities and the web designer said, "I think we can integrate all three!" And here I am today, blogging about The Dinner Project. Our chance to make and meet new friends, eat a great meal, learn about different projects helping our world, and contribute to make a difference.