One out of every 500-700 babies (about one every three minutes) are born with a cleft lip or cleft palate, an opening in the lip, the roof of the mouth or the soft tissue in the back of the mouth. In a society that stresses physical attractiveness as much as our does, it admittedly takes a lot of getting used to looking at pictures of these children, and it can certainly be traumatic for parents. But these are kids. They laugh, they cry, they play, they learn, they feel joy, and they feel pain. They didn’t ask for their faces to turn out this way, it just happened. And yet left untreated, it can cause problems from ear disease to dental problems to problems eating to problems with speech. And of course, there’s the social awkwardness .

Happily, cleft lips and palates can be repaired. Most surgeons agree that cleft lips should be repaired when an infant is 3 months old, and cleft palates can be repaired between 12 and 18 months. The surgery can take as little as 45 minutes, and can completely eradicate the facial deformity and give the child a smile that will last forever.

Operation Smile operates in over 60 countries, including countries where even basic healthcare itself is hard to come by. They offer free surgeries to those who need it.

This past holiday season, Operation Smile set up a Holiday Catalog where you can “order” various things that are necessary for surgeries, including  things to help prepare kids for surgery, medicine and supplies, operating room supplies, and surgery itself. It’s a great way to solicit donations but also educate the public on what the surgery entails. Oprah even named the catalog one of her “Favorite Things” this year.

The catalog is still up and still accepting donations at http://www.operationsmile.org/gift-catalog/home.html. When your donation totals $50 or $240 respectively, you’ll also receive a tote bag or an authentic silk scarf from Indian artisans.

Who doesn’t love driving around and viewing great Christmas lights? Something neat that a lot of families who set up elaborate Christmas lights displays is set up collections for charity. Lately, a lot of them have been posting videos and collecting donations online for those who can’t drive to their part of the world to take a look. Here are some highlights from this year.

This video has been making the viral rounds lately. It’s a house in Tallahassee that’s one of the glitziest Christmas light displays out there. While not all of us can drive down and see it for ourselves, what’s cool is that they’ve filmed it in HD for everyone to enjoy, and they put a call-out to the Semper Fi Fund Web site. This is a charitable organization set up to provide immediate financial support to injured and critical military personnel and their families. They’re an exceptionally well-run charity, where most of the funds goes to their mission and not overhead costs.

This video comes courtesy of the Boucher Family in Hanover, PA. They have a lot of videos which synchronize their lights to a variety of Christmas music. They encourage donations to the Ronald McDonald House of Central PA to help seriously ill children and their families.

The Delaney Family of Hillsboro, Tennessee have also set up a rather energetic display. They’re collecting for two local charities, the Hillsboro Community Backpack Program, as well as help cancer victims and their families through the Multi-County Cancer Support Network

The displays are elaborate, loud, festive, and uniquely American. What’s also uniquely American is how they’re using their hobby to help raise money and awareness for others in need. Kudos to these families for celebrating but also reminding us of the true spirit of the holidays.

Have you seen a cool Christmas light display this year? Post a comment if you have

Back around Christmas, Lauren from Grafik Media contacted me and asked if I would write a little something about Global Angels, a UK-based charity which helps children around the world. I’m a little late, but I did want to take some time to highlight it.

One very notable thing about the charity is that 100% of anything you donate is given directly to the project in need, none of it goes to overhead (overhead is entirely paid for by corporate sponsors).

Remember that scene in It’s a Wonderful Life after Clarence and George get booted out of Nick’s bar where Nick is giving out wings by opening and closing his cash register? Happily, you can do the same thing!

If you visit http://www.legosantayoda.com, you can be one of 1,000,000 people who can get a toy to Toys for Tots just by sending an e-greeting!

Another way to help is by going to Lexus’ Facebook page and sharing a “big red ribbon”. For the first 20,000 people to do this, Lexus will donate $5 to Toys for Tots.

Yet another way to give a “free” donation to Toys for Tots is to enter a UPC code from a specially marked package of International Delight, Silk, Land O Lakes, or Horizon Organic milk or cream at http://www.shareyourdelight.com/.

Of course, the truth is any of these “free” ways of donating is just as much a PR stunt for the company. Not that that’s a bad thing–anything that brings money and attention to great causes like Toys for Tots is a good thing. But remember that the most important thing is for you to donate directly to the cause. In the case of Toys for Tots, that means donating a brand new unwrapped toy at a toy drop-off, or donating directly to them. That way, you’ll be sure that this Christmas, children who live in poverty who otherwise would have nothing under their tree can be thrilled with a brand new toy.

Occasionally I’ll be contacted by a publisher who’ll ask me to read a book where proceeds go to a charity. It has been a while, though, since I’ve read a book that’s hit me as personally as Never Give Up by Ruthe Rosen.

Ruthe’s daughter Karla was what most would describe as a typical teenage girl growing up in Southern California. She had blond hair, blue eyes, a gaggle of great friends, was a straight-A student, played on her school’s soccer team, and participated in her school’s competitive dance team. Then one day out of the blue Karla started having terrible headaches. The diagnosis: Karla had brainstem glioma, a tumor located at the base of the skull.

It’s the kind of diagnosis that is devastating for a patient and a family to hear. And yet, what follows is the story of how Karla faces it with faith and strength beyond her years. And how her strength and courage impacted her mom, her family, her friends, and her community.

What I found amazing about Rosen’s writing is how completely honest it is, as only a Mom who went through what she did could write. She goes into every detail of the ups and downs over the next year. She talks straightforwardly about her family and what it was like having both Karla’s biological father and stepfather in the picture. She talks candidly about the typical mother-teenager stuff she and Karla faced at times. She talks about the highs and the lows of the various medical episodes, of how Karla’s friends dealt with her illness, and what I found most inspirational, of how those times that her little girl ended up making her stronger as opposed to the other way around.

As you read the book, you can’t help but be drawn into the events and the emotions that Karla and her mom went through each step of the way. It’s a painful journey, but somehow at the end you’re not filled with sadness or despair. Strangely, you’re filled with appreciation and joy for what Karla was able to do in her short life and how she was able to touch so many lives (including through this book). Throughout the book, Karla and her family are praying for a miracle. By the end of the book, you realize that a miracle did happen, but just not in the way that you originally thought it would.

One of the things that struck me was one part of the book where Ruthe talks about a brief period of time where things “went back to normal”, and how she cherished those times. Never Give Up is a poignant reminder that every moment and every breath that we have on this earth, especially with our loved ones, is a gift from God to be cherished and held on to. It’s an amazing reminder that no matter what troubles we face in this work-a-day world, that it’s not what’s outside of us that matters but what’s inside.

If you’re someone who is tempted to take life for granted or let life get you down, I can’t think of a better book for you to read. You can order it at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or your local bookstore. A portion of proceeds will go directly to the Let It Be Foundation, the organization founded by Rosen that helps the families of children stricken by life-threatening diseases.

If you need some great Christmas presents for children or parents of young children, Kohl’s has the answer once again. This year they have exclusive hardcover editions of four Nancy Tillman books for just $5 each. You can also get a coordinated stuffed animal featuring the main character of the book for another $5. And amazingly, 100 percent of the net profit is donated to children’s health and education initiatives nationwide.

The books are filled with beautiful illustrations and carry Tillman’s signature message to children – “You are loved!”. Here are the details of each book and stuffed animal.
 

“Wherever You Are” tells of a parent’s deep and endless love for their child. It comes paired with a plush dolphin.

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“It’s Time to Sleep, My Love” is an enchanting sleepytime lullaby. The story follows a child’s dreams of sleeping throughout the seasons and around the world and is paired with a plush panda bear.

“The Spirit of Christmas” is a sweet retelling of the excitement and magical moments during the holidays. This story by Nancy Tillman shows that the most touching part of the Christmas season is spending time with those we love and is paired with a lion plush.

“On the Night You Were Born” recounts what happened on the day your child was born. It tells how geese flew home, polar bears danced and the whole world came together to celebrate his or her unique wonder on that day and is paired with a plush polar bear.

Ever wonder why software costs so danged much? Well, it’s because not only is there the cost of paying developers to code the software, you also need to pay lawyers, and finance departments, and marketing departments, and packaging departments, and logistics departments, and operations departments, and a gazillion of other departments.  Oh yes, and the cost to develop new and horrifically complex copy protection schemes, because everyone knows you’re not to be trusted with not copying software. All that, and still show a profit for shareholders.

This is why I really admire indie software companies. These are individual software developers who produce software that huge software companies would love to sell, but they decide to bypass the overhead and pass the savings to you.

Each year, something called the “Humble Indie Bundle” is released. It’s a collection of games for Mac and Windows that are truly fun.

The game “Crayon Physics Deluxe” is my personal favorite. You have to see it to believe it.

Other games include Cogs (a beautiful puzzle game), VVVVVV (a puzzle game), Hammerfight (a fighting game), And Yet it Moves (another cool physics game).

There are a couple great things about the Humble Indie Package. First, you NAME YOUR OWN PRICE. If you want to pay $0.01 you can (be prepared for some tongue-in-cheek ribbing, though). If you want to pay $300 you can as well. The games at retail would cost upwards of $50.00, and they are worth it.

I definitely encourage you to give more, as you can designate part of your payment to go to some great charities. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is a not-for-profit organization defending free speech on the Internet, particularly against deep-pocketed lawyers in big corporations and the government who would sooner shut down a blogger than hear something bad said about them. For something less “controversial” that everyone can agree on, there’s also Child’s Play, a great charity that has provided over 7 million dollars in donations of toys, games, books and cash for sick kids in children’s hospitals across North America and the world have been collected since our inception.

Hurry, there are only a few days left before this bundle is gone forever! I’m still kicking myself for missing out on “World of Goo” three years ago during the first bundle!

You never quite know when you might run into a lip gloss emergency. With Trish McEvoy ‘Be Prepared’ Beauty Emergency Card for Lips, you get provides a season’s worth of eight favorite gloss colors that will leave your lips hydrated and radiant.

You can apply each shade by itself, mix it with another shade, or enhance lip treatment you already have.

Colors include Tropical Nude, Baby Doll, Pink, Sexy Peach and Rosette, and Beauty Booster. You’ll also get sun-protecting SPF 15 lip glosses in Brightening Pink, Very Sexy and Sexy Petal.

Trish McEvoy will donate proceeds from the sale of this product to Girl Scouts of the USA.

If you’re a cook in need of good quality basic kitchen supplies, check out the HIC Brands that Cook Essentials line of cookware and kitchen accessories.

These are highly rated kitchen supplies that meet the specifications of professionals. They’re safer than the cheap supplies you buy in discount stores (for example, their silicone bakeware is 100% silicone and meets European and FDA standards for safety), and yet are much more affordable than high-end bakeware.

A portion of the proceeds for every Essentials item sold goes to C-CAP, Careers through Culinary Arts Program (http://www.ccapinc.org/). This is a great national nonprofit which is the largest independent high school culinary scholarship program in the United States. It manages prepares underserved high school students for college and for careers in both the restaurant and hospitality industries.

If you haven’t heard of PopCap games, you’ve no doubt heard of some of its creations. Back in 2000, they released their first game, a little game called Bejeweled. I have a feeling that if you take all the hours that mankind has spent trying to align those little jewels, it’d add up to a couple millenia.

In the 21st century, PopCap is back at it. On a recent transcontinental airplane flight I was thrilled that my Continental flight had TV–until I found out that they have the audacity to charge for it! (This is why I switched to JetBlue years ago). Out of principle, I refused to pay. But what to do for those five hours? My girlfriend Lisa knew exactly what to do. She pulled out her ASUS Transformer and started to play the Android version of Plants vs. Zombies. The five hours flew by like nothing–and yes, Lisa saved the world’s brains several times from those pesky Zombies (she’s since finished all the levels). The whole ride I watched, mesmerized at her dexterity–and super jealous that I had never purchased it for my iPhone.

Anyway, after years and years of dispossessing the world of all its productive time, PopCap is giving something back to the world in a big way. From now until July 12, PopCap is running auctions that will benefit the Starlight Foundation, a terrific charity that provides entertainment, education and family activities for seriously ill children in the United States and their families, and Special Effect, a similar charity based in the UK.

If you’re a fan of PopCap games, you will LOVE these auctions. There are sketches by PopCap artists of artwork used in designing the games (who wouldn’t want an original sketch of a moustached zombie gracing their living room). There are all sorts of drawings, prints, and other artwork up for grabs from PopCap’s most popular games, including the Plants vs. Zombies diorama pictured here.

Some of the items are just plain bizarre, like the hilarious, albeit somewhat creepy Peashooter costume, which fans of the game will readily recognize (peas not included). Another fantastic item is this personalized sketch, where a PopCap artist will draw whatever sketch you like, whether it’s you as a Plants vs. Zombie zombie (or plant), or you as a Peggle character, or a new undiscovered Bejeweled jewel.

The current round of auctions will last until Thursday, June 28, and then a third and final round will last until Tuesday, July 12. If like me you have someone in your life who’s a Plants vs. Zombies (or Peggle, or Bejeweled) fan, this is your chance to get truly one-of-a-kind artwork that helps a great cause.