The Official Modest Needs Blog

It's Now Easier Than Ever to Prevent Poverty Before It Starts

Exciting news on the Modest Needs front! It is now easier than ever to help keep people independent and prevent poverty before it begins--the mission that we tackle each and every day.

If you "like" Modest Needs on Facebook, and you should!, you can now donate directly to Modest Needs right from our Facebook page. Not only that, but you can now easily "share" our Facebook donation page on your own Facebook wall. More, better, simpler ways to help people just like you and me who are facing a financial hardship--it's win-win!

And maybe the coolest part of all, you can create a "birthday wish" on Facebook asking that, in leiu of gifts (or in addition to well wishes), people give to Modest Needs on your behalf.

Neat, right?

So, check out our fresh new Donate page on Facebook, like us if you haven't yet already, and see the wonderful world of social media for social change at work.

Exciting? Exciting! Big Changes on the Way

Modest Needs has some big changes on the horizon, and we are super excited to give you a sneak peek! It's a change that has been a long time coming for this foundation, one that is going to mean more lives changed, directly, every single day.

Wanna see the big surprise on the horizon? Check out our newsletter for a look. You'll like what you see.

Holland, Michigan, Have We Got a Deal for You

Attention Holland, Michigan!

I have a special Modest Needs event to announce in your fair city coming up on Monday, August 9th. 

The lovely and charming Fawn Volkert, the Director of Operations for Modest Needs Foundation, will be hosting a fundraising "Dinner for a Cause," wherein you enjoy a delicious meal with other philanthropy-minded individuals in your community. A portion of proceeds from the "Dinner for a Cause" will go directly to help Modest Needs applicants--hardworking people with one-time financial emergencies.

Considering the spread, the $35 cost for the meal is a steal. There are chicken, beef and vegetarian options alongside fresh farmer's market vegetables. Um, yum!

If you'd like to attend this special event where you'll get to mingle as well as meet the fantastic Fawn, all while raising money for Modest Needs. It's win-win. Please contact Fawn at [email protected] if you are interested in attending. And we hope you are.

More details below (click to enlarge):

 

Look Ma, We're On TV

Today I want to direct your attention to a page at the ModestNeeds.org website that is a chronicle of the Modest Needs history, of sorts.

The Today Show, People Magazine and CNN have all featured stories on Modest Needs--high profile media, to be sure. But local TV news stations have also covered the mission of Modest Needs, as well, sometimes focusing on a single applicant in that area. Many of these stories are an excellent way to see how even very small donations to Modest Needs have phenomenal impact on the lives of hard-working people.

Take, for instance, this story about an Orange County resident who'd asked for Modest Needs' help to afford bed for her young son upon his return from the hospital.

And there are many more stories just like this one.

Check out our Media Page online to go back 2002, the year Modest Needs began, to see more short clips or to read magazine stories that illustrate just how far your generous donations can go.

The Start of Something Great

Things at Modest Needs are heating up, people! Exciting new developments are underway, including a rebirth, of sorts, of The Official Modest Needs Blog.

You may have noticed that the last time the Modest Needs blog was updated was last year. That's because the good people at Modest Needs have been hard at work growing the foundation and helping more people than ever before. But the team at Modest Needs knows how important it is to build and maintain a community of people--both online and off--that will continue to allow Modest Needs to give a hand, lend support and change lives with its mission.

That is where I come in.

My name is Brittney Gilbert, and I have joined Modest Needs as the person in charge of outreach. This means that I will be updating this blog regularly with timely information, touching stories, interviews, videos and much, much more. We want the Modest Needs blog to become a daily destination for you--a feel-good place where you can learn and engage and build relationships with like-minded individuals.

I'm also taking over the Modest Needs Twitter account (follow us or subscribe to the feed!) which will become a much more active stream of updates. Our Facebook page is another way to get plugged in to the happy happenings at Modest Needs, and we hope you'll add yourself as a "fan" (though we prefer to call you 'friends') so you can stay up to date on all the good work, talk with others who share your interest in giving, enjoy photos of recipients of donations and maybe even some behind-the-scenes tidbits about life at the Modest Needs office.

In short, we want to involve you in what we're doing at Modest Needs because Modest Needs is all about people. People like you.

Let's get personal. Let's share our stories. Let's make each other laugh. Let's touch others. Let's get together and make something special. With your involvement we can create a community that will inspire people in new and awesome ways.

Please join us in all the fun.

That said, let's hear from you now in the comments section below.

What would you like to see featured on the Modest Needs blog? Video? Stories? Reporting? The sky is the limit, and with your feedback we can turn this place into a daily stop for you that can forever change the lives of others.

I really look forward to hearing from you soon.  The sooner, the better!

Looking forward,

Brittney

[Photo by joeltelling]

Modest Needs Bouquet

Next time you're in need of flowers, I hope you'll consider some blooms that carry a little extra helping of joy.

We've established an exciting new fundraising program in conjunction with Organic Bouquet, a floral company known for sustainably grown flowers offered at reasonable prices. On Organic Bouquet's website you can now purchase our very own "Modest Needs Bouquet," a beautiful collection of 12 pink-trimmed Crown Majesty roses for $49.95, with 5% of the proceeds going directly to our applicants.

Not only will your special someone appreciate the gesture -- so will the hardworking family who receives your donation as a result.

Less Than 1 Week Left!

With less than a week to go in June, we're more than halfway to the $100,000 we need to claim a $200,000 matching grant. Will you help put us over the top?

There has never been a better time to give at Modest Need.

**Update**

We did it!!  Thanks to all of you for your support.

Modest Needs on msnbc

I actually caught this Modest Needs news story while sitting in a New York City cab! What a wonderful way to round out an afternoon...

For those of you who didn't see it air, here's a lovely news piece by NBC New York that interviews Lisa Bova, a single mom in Brooklyn whose mortgage was paid by Modest Needs donors when she found herself, for the first time, unable to make ends meet.

In her own words...

"I truly can't even begin to tell you what it meant to this family and for me because I want to do it on my own," she said. "I'm trying so hard, and without this help I wouldn't be able to do it. And I look forward to helping someone else as I've been helped."

A 2009 Approach to Online Giving

We're in the news again! In this fascinating Computerworld article, writer Paul Lamb explores how the web continues to evolve as a force for good.

Using the Internet to accept donations was a first step for nonprofits, but certain organizations -- like Modest Needs, as he mentions -- are going a step (or two) further. Not only do we appreciate the Internet for its transactional efficiency, but we capitalize on its ability to remove the middleman. You, as the donor, have the power to tell us exactly who you'd like your donation to help.

P.S. Don't miss all the great web-friendly do-gooder opportunities in here that you can use to support Modest Needs -- from eBay GivingWorks to Goodsearch. 

Double the Power of Your Giving, for Free

It's official!

In 2009, thanks to our continuing matching grant initiative, we will DOUBLE the value of any recurring donation you make to Modest Needs via a weekly, biweekly, or monthly pledge.

Let's say you pledge $20 a month. An anonymous foundation will match your $20 and increase the value of your monthly contribution to $40. And that doesn't happen once; it happens EVERY SINGLE MONTH that you pledge for 2009, until we reach our grant maximum.

So if you decide to contribute to Modest Needs, please consider a monthly pledge!

There's no easier way to make the most your contribution.