Ways to Make a difference for kids on giving Tuesday

I founded Well Traveled Kids with a desire to inspire through great stories and tips for family travel around traveling well with kids while donating 50% of profits to charities that bring Play, Adventure, and Travel to less fortunate children.  This site is less than 2 months old and hasn’t made any profits yet, but I do have my eyes on some fantastic charities that I want to share with you if you are looking to make a difference today on Giving Tuesday many have matching grants so your donation will count twice!

KaBOOM!  Children are missing out on the childhood they deserve. Play is disappearing at home, at school and in communities, particularly for the 16 million children living in poverty.  Many children have no safe playgrounds in their neighborhoods or schools.  Our family has personally volunteered with KaBOOM! to build playgrounds in these neighborhoods and I’ve seen the spark in the children’s eyes when they see their empty lots transformed into an amazing playground in just one day!  That is why my family has started the tradition of donating our birthdays to play.  My son Harry has had 3 KaBOOM birthdays and my husband is celebrating his KaBOOM! birthday this month.  Click here to learn more about donating your birthday to play because play matters to all kids.

Give Kids the World Village:  A 70 acre not-for-profit resort located in Orlando, Florida where children with life threatening illnesses and their families are treated to week-long, cost-free fantasy vacations.  Founded in 1989 by hotelier Henri Landwirth who enlisted the support of colleagues in the hospitality industry, including our world-famous theme parks, to assist him in bringing these special families to Central Florida within 24 hours if need be. He called the project “Give Kids The World,” because that is just what he intended to do – provide memorable, magical, cost-free experiences to children with life-threatening illnesses and their families. Today the Village is a 70-acre resort complete with over 144 Villa accommodations, entertainment attractions, whimsical venues, and fun specifically designed for children with special needs. With the help of many generous individuals, corporations and partnering wish-granting organizations, Give Kids The World has welcomed more than 132,000 families from all 50 states and over 75 countries. Today for giving Tuesday they are matching donations up to $20,000!  Click here to donate now to Give Kids the World Village  and have your donation count twice!

The Fresh Air Fund: The Fresh Air Fund is an independent, not-for-profit agency founded in 1877 that has provided free summer vacations to more than 1.7 million New York City children from low-income communities.  It enrolls volunteer host families in more than 300 suburban, small-town and rural communities across 13 states, from Virginia to Maine, as well as Canada and operates five Fresh Air camps on a 2,300-acre site in Fishkill, New York.  The fund offers a year-round camping program that enlists the help of more than 100 volunteer tutors and mentors.  The Fresh Air Fund changes the lives of nearly 10,000 New York City children each year and you can donate today by clicking here.

Right Angle – Summer of a Lifetime Program: The Right Angle Summer of a Lifetime Program is part of the Nobel Network of Charter Schools in impoverished neighborhoods of Chicago and allows High School students to spend their summers at colleges around the nation.  In 2013, Summer of a Lifetime students attended programs at 67 different institutions across the country. Programs range from two to eight weeks in length and are held at institutions from Chicago to California and 19 states and the District of Columbia in between. Some programs are subject focused, like Junior Statesman of America at Georgetown, Stanford and Princeton, Colgate University’s Science and Sports Program, Illinois Institute of Technology STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) Program, and University of Iowa’s Journalism Program. In these cases, students are given the opportunities to intensively explore subject areas they are passionate about and delve deeper into their interests not just intellectually in the classroom but also out in the real world through career days, professional speakers and job shadowing. Many programs are more typical of a college academic experience offering students a wide array of course options like University of Arizona’s Summer of Excellence and University of Pennsylvania Pre-College Program. Some programs offer students’ college or high school credit, ACT test preparation, study skills and college application assistance. All courses are rigorous and in most cases taught by university professors. Not only do programs provide high quality academic enrichment, but students are also exposed to life changing extracurricular experiences ranging from visiting other cities, universities, museums, monuments, arts performances and national parks. Click here to donate today to The Right Angle Summer of a Lifetime Program.

Make -A-Wish Foundation– Make-A-Wish® grants the wish of a child diagnosed with a life-threatening medical condition in the United States and its territories, on average, every 38 minutes. We believe that a wish experience can be a game-changer. This one belief guides us. It inspires us to grant wishes that change the lives of the kids we serve. Click here to donate to Make-A-Wish®

 

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Sarah Hirsch
Sarah Hirsch

Sarah is a Chicago-based luxury travel influencer, Virtuoso luxury travel advisor, luxury family travel writer, an Oprah Daily Ambassador, and the founder of WellTraveledKids.com. Sarah’s best travel companion is her sweet 12-year-old son, Harry. Her favorite getaways include a luxe hotel stay, quality family playtime, champagne & chocolate-covered strawberries.

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