Sunday Helper: March for Maddie and Generation Cures

Hi folks, welcome to another edition of Sunday helper, where I recommend good causes that help out others.

My first Sunday Helper is serious.  Moms who Twitter probably already know this, but on April 7th, 2009, little Maddie Spohr passed away suddenly.  Maddie was a preemie, a topic dear to my family since my cousin recently had a baby after 26 weeks of gestation.  I had started following Maddie’s mom, Heather, a few weeks ago on Twitter, and was so sad to hear the news.  You can help them out by walking for the March of Dimes in Maddie’s name. Check out March for Maddie.  If you can’t walk, you can donate to the March of Dimes or support the Spohr family as they struggle through this difficult time  (click the “For Maddie” link below).  They are in my prayers.

This week’s second Sunday Helper is a website recommendation:

Generation Cures (www.kids.generationcures.org) is a free, safe website from Children’s Hospital Boston that teaches kids about caring, compassion and giving through fun and games.

On April 20th, Generation Cures will launch the nation’s first ever “Game for Good” game-a-thon. This 8-week initiative is like a traditional walk-a-thon in that kids raise money by securing adult sponsors to reward their efforts for a good cause.  But this brings the walk-a-thon concept into the 21st century.  Instead of putting their feet on the street to earn sponsor donations, kids will put their brains to work online.  They can make a difference right from their own homes by doing something they already love to do — playing games.

Here’s how it works:  In the interactive fantasy-adventure game Caduceus, kids are young healers tracking the source of a mysterious plague.  Just like real doctors and scientists, they are challenged to track down the source of the disease, isolate its causes and mix and match ingredients to find a cure. As kids conquer each of the game levels, portions of their sponsors’ pledges are unlocked and donated to Children’s Hospital Boston.  So their virtual cures transform into real-world cures for other kids.

All sponsor money raised by the kids goes to fund research at Children’s Hospital Boston to find cures for the most serious and debilitating childhood diseases.  Children’s is one of the country’s top pediatric hospitals, so their research breakthroughs impact children across the U.S. and worldwide.

The Generation Cures website also offers original animated webisodes, kid- directed videos, and a Creation Station to encourage kids to let their artistic talents shine. You can check out all the content at www.kids.generationcures.org.

Sounds pretty cool.  I checked out the game and it’s REALLY neat.  Kids can also upload videos, and right now there is a contest.  I haven’t seen such a well-designed site for a worthy cause before.  So, go online as of tomorrow (Monday, April 20th), and help some kids make a difference.

I hope you are having a lovely Sunday, and I hope that you will help make a difference in someone’s life today.

If you have a worthy cause that you would like to share with a pretty large audience, please email me at the address below my picture and mention “Sunday Helper” in the subject.  Let’s all do our part to make this world a better place.