Ever wonder how the Red Cross got started? What about Doctors Without Borders? The American Cancer Society was once just a thought in a doctor's head. Yes, every single charity and nonprofit started as a thought in someone's head. An idea that may have seemed crazy at the time, but there was something about that moment that allowed incredible organizations to spring to life.
Head over to BuzzFeed and read their article on 10 Moments That Inspired Charities. It is easy to take organizations like the Goodwill and Red Cross for granted, but someone had to think up the plan and have the guts to take a risk on Doing Good.
In 1902 Boston-based Rev. Edgar J. Helms made it his personal mission to collect discarded and unwanted clothes from the wealthy areas of the city, then redistributed them to the poor and in-need, training and hiring them to mend, repair, and share the used goods as needed.
A seemingly simple and local charity, that while helpful in Boston, would be hard to imagine having much of a national impact. Of course, what Rev. Helms started was the Goodwill, and it has now accepted and redistributed donations from over 83 million donors!
With so many issues in the world, it can be overwhelming. Will raising $83 for cancer research really make a difference? With millions of people hungry worldwide, will donating to one food bank really make a dent in the problem? Of course it will make a difference! Once you start doing good, you have no idea where it will end up. Your good may grow, your good may encourage others, simply put, if everyone did just a little bit of good each day, every day would be better than yesterday.
Hop over to BuzzFeed, get inspired and have your moment of Good.
Dan Nessel
Author