Create a heartspace, help students in Tanzania

ToMamaWithLove.org: Give your mom the gift of giving back

According to the LA Times, this year Americans alone will spend $14.6 billion on Mother’s Day. Imagine if the gifts we gave made the world a better place for children and mamas everywhere.

By now, hopefully your calendar, a Twitter post or all the Mother’s Day cards in the stores has reminded you that Mother’s Day is this Sunday. My mom, always taught me that a gift I made just for her was what she really wanted – so this year I’m taking the time to do just that. She taught me I could change the world, and with my gift this year I plan to do that, too. Actually, my mom also reminded us you couldn’t go wrong with buying her shoes, but that’s a post for another time.

This year, my gift will be my personally created “heartspace” on To Mama With Love, and a donation in my mother’s name that will help another mama who is even farther away. In her village in Arusha, Tanzania, Mama Lucy (@MamaLucy) is literally a mother to an entire school that she envisioned and built using her money she made selling chickens as seed capital. Serving over 400 children, the school is already one of the top-ranked primary schools in her region – all because of a woman with a vision of a brighter future and an organization called Epic Change, which helped generate thousands of donations via various social media outreach efforts.

Here’s one story from a student at the school in Tanzania:

“I started learning at this school since I was six years old; Now I am 12. Mama Lucy is a founder of our school Shepherds Junior. She is a hard-working mama. She is kind. She loves us and I love her very much.” – Nihad, a student at Mama Lucy’s school, echoing the sentiments of her fellow students.

Mama Lucy has another dream – to build a home on campus for some of the children who attend her school including a few of the TwitterKids of Tanzania. This Mother’s Day, as you think about the mamas in your life, consider doing two things:

1. Create your own heartspace to show how much you love the mommas in your life. The donation to create your heartspace will go directly to Mama Lucy’s real-life heartspace – a children’s home in Arusha, Tanzania. Look around on the site at the new heartspaces popping up!

2. Post your special creation to your blog, Facebook, Twitter, etc. encouraging others to create theirs as well. This is a chance to make a real difference in the world for our next generation.

3. Use #tomamawithlove on Twitter

Read more on Social Edge, Tech Cocktail and across the blogosphere!

Spreading the love,
Sloane

Related articles by Zemanta

• Epic Change Launches “To Mama With Love” (thegreenskeptic.com)
• From Tanzania: To Mama With Love (epicchangeblog.org)
• Show Your Mama Some Love (or Facebook Like) (beth.typepad.com)

Sloane Berrent is a cause-based marketing consultant who works with nonprofits and social cause organizations. See her business profile, contact Sloane or leave a comment.