Charity work & volunteering have always been a part of my life. In middle school, I was the assistant activities director (volunteer position) at a retirement home for Alzheimer’s patients. In college, I ran several charity events for RAINN (I’m listed in their Corporate Partners at the bottom of the linked page) and later served multiple rolls in the Save Fry Street organization in Denton, TX. Giving has always been a part of my life, which is partly why I went into education.

My husband and I have given annually to a number of charities for almost twenty years, but this year, I wanted to do something a little different. We decided to donate to a different charity every month—even if it was only a small donation, it allowed us to give to more places that are near & dear to our hearts. Here are our twelve charities:

JANUARY—PBS
PBS was probably the first television channel I watched as a child. Media like this is important in a world of “reality TV” to keep us sane.

FEBRUARY—Worldbuilders aka Geeks Doing Good
We found this charity through author, Patrick Rothfuss. It works with Heifer International to help villages get the livestock, food, & water they need to survive.

MARCH—The Seattle Symphony Orchestra
It’s always important to support the arts, especially our local symphony.

APRIL—Kids Need to Read
We found this charity through actor, Nathan Fillion. As a reader, a writer, and a former English/reading teacher, I can’t help but support causes that encourage reading.

MAY—Planned Parenthood
No matter what your stance is on abortion, Planned Parenthood is about more than that one procedure. Planned Parenthood provides contraceptives, health care, & support to millions of women, especially those in impoverished areas.

JUNE—Something Indie
There is always something on Kickstarter or IndieGoGo to support. I try to pick something non-profit to support in June.

JULY—Equality Now
We found this charity through other Browncoats via Can’t Stop the Serenity, which fundraises for Equality Now in honor of Joss Whedon. Equality Now seeks to end violence against women in all countries, including our own.

AUGUST—RAINN (The Rape, Abuse, & Incest National Network)
We found RAINN through one of its founders, Tori Amos, way back in 1997. At the time, it was the nation’s only anonymous & national hotline for victims of rape, abuse, & incest. This charity has helped so many, including me.

SEPTEMBER—Tesla Science Center
We were part of the original IndieGoGo compaign to save the Tesla Science Center, which was run by Matthew Inman of The Oatmeal. The Center still needs money to keep it going. Tesla was awesome & so we donate to keep his museum going.

OCTOBER—The Red Cross
Because natural disasters happen & people need help.

NOVEMBER—NaNoWriMo
NaNoWriMo encourages people to write. They also have young writers’ programs for K-12 schools. Enough said.

DECEMBER—Child’s Play & Amazon Smile
We’ve donated to Child’s Play for many years. If you’re not familiar with this geeky charity, they work with children’s hospitals to create wish lists of games they need in their hospitals. Then you can go shopping. 🙂 Video games, board games, etc. are all shipped to the hospital of your choice so that children who are suffering from all sorts of illnesses, diseases, and cancers can be distracted from their pain for a time. And because it’s Christmas season and thus, we’re Christmas shopping, we use Amazon Smile so that a percentage of our purchases are also donated to the charity of our choice.