Could 2,500 practitioners commit to making three small food changes over 10 days?
We called it the Power of 3 Challenge, and we promised that if 2,500 practitioners pledged to give it a try, we would donate $25,000 to feed Syrian refugee children who were experiencing so much trauma and malnutrition (even starvation) in the wake of serious conflict.
After the challenge (and if you participated, I want to say thank you very much), we sent the $25,000 to support relief efforts in Camp Za’atari. This camp in Jordan is helping give children and their families the food they so desperately need to survive, as well as a place to stay.
We chose to make our donation through Save the Children because they are known worldwide for their responsible humanitarian efforts.
A while back, Save the Children sent us this video. It’s a little over 2 minutes, but shares the story of Camp Za’atari, and a little boy named Kamal who is living amidst this terrible crisis.
When I think about the trauma kids like Kamal have experienced and the lack of food and fresh water they have to deal with on a daily basis, I think about the terrible effects it could have on them later in life.
That amount of trauma can cause so much damage to a child’s body and mind. And malnutrition at an early age leads to both cognitive challenges as well as stunted growth.
So if I could make a difference in the life of even one child, I was excited and ready to take on the challenge.
And I’m so glad so many of you were too.
Because of the support this community gives to NICABM, we were able to help Kamal, his family, and the other families living in Camp Za’atari.
The war in Syria is an ongoing tragedy. If you’d like to send a contribution to help support the refugee camps, Save the Children is one place you can do that.
Of course, there are so many other ways to give back, from donating time and skills to just reaching out a hand to someone in need. So how do you make an imprint on the world? Please let us know in the comment section below.
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As an herbalist of 30+ years, I’ve begun to believe that an old adage of Hippocrates is as true today as when it was written: “Sound mind, sound body. Good health is learning to use exercise, sunlight, diet and mental energy to promote wellness with every breath and step.” So I would suggest that the rise of autism, ADD/ADHD is a reflection of a greater imbalance in diet and lifestyle. That is the root cause of both conditions, and one that can easily be remedied with persistence and care. I have a personal friend who has raised her son (with Autism) to the age of 15. He is a great example of what loving attention and diet responsibility can do. No one should have to suffer from conditions that can be treated naturally without harm to body organs or systems. If anyone on this site is interested in learning more, please email me at the email listed above. Blessings!
Meg Turner, Educator, herbalist, artists, activist
Firstly my great thanks to you Ruth for the speakers you share. I set an alarm to wake at crazy hours to listen, and it has always been of great benefit to me.
It is a puzzle to me that there need be any comment regarding which people in the world receive assistance. To me the giver chooses to give in the form, and to whom resonates with their heart.
Reading this I rejoice that giving has taken place. That someone somewhere in the world is having a better life, thanks to the knidness of someone they do not know personally, yet who has the heart to participate in healing of all forms.
In the act of receiving, there are many levels. The physical goods, or funds to purchase goods from financial donations. The feeling that both the giver and recipient feel is enduring. Mutual respect and an expression of universal love.
About seventeen years ago,iI had a health condition, which I was told could not improve. The senior neurologist told me that people like you normall never get out of bed, let alone walk. For a period of time, I could read and write numbers, but not words.
My loss felt great and unfair, as I felt I had always had a kind heart. I have come to believe that every challenge we face, is an invitation to be more. In the ensuing years I have explored other aspects of my being, which I may never have considered.
I encourage everyone to embrace all that comes, without fear or blame. It took me many years to come to this place of greater acceptance and peace. We are all more magnificent than we realise. The human spirit is boundless.
I see my greatest gift to the world as being my heartfelt belief that everyone can heal. I believe each one of us that believes in the magnificence of everyone in this universe, and that all things are genuinely possible, generate an energy of upliftment and recovery. That when we speak, they are not just words offerred to give someone hope, that they don’t truly believe their sentiments offered. They are sincere.
The poem I posted a few minutes ago, i wrote for a lady in Shanghai, China that sent me a health product, but chose not to charge me the postage. I was so touched that the poem flowed effortlessly. I had it translated in to Chinese and sent it with joy and appreciation. Love and blessing to all. Living so far away from USA, I feel extremely honoured to participate in Ruth’s forum and some speakers, such as Tara, have had a profound influence in the way I try to live my life.
WE ARE ONE
Miles of ocean, connects the people of the world
The air we breathe circulates the globe
The same sun and moon shine above us
Lighting our way, enriching all living things
As my heart beats, yours is beating too
When we pray, we speak to the same creator
Love for all mankind flows through us
Like a cascading, never ending waterfall
The universal truth
The language of the heart
The musical notes of a familiar tune
A mother’s love for her children
We all sleep under the same sky
We hold joy in our hands
We share through our love and caring
We are one
Gail Price
(will submit my personal comments in regard to the posts I’ve read in a separate post Blessings)
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I do so appreciate the varied points of view on the subject of “Saving” our planet, children of the world; however, I do agree that our focus does need to help our hungry children – especially latino kids who need food so they can study and understand, they cannot on empty bellies, and indeed that is for children everywhere.
I think also if we can help the next door neighbor, or the person down the street, to become mindfull of behavior that has become beyond imagination – rude, gross, please or thankyou has become obsolete. Anyway thanks everyone here for your sound input for me to learn and consider. I am here on the forum because I want clearance on the path I am to take now in my life.
In today’s LA Times, there is a lead article that every single day in our LA public schools, $100,000 worth of school lunch food is THROWN IN THE TRASH by students! This is unreal! Kids are so addicted to processed food that they can’t abide food that is actually REAL food! This is not just a “kid” problem… where are the adults? I wish there were some way to harvest that daily $100K waste and have it do good for the undernourished kids in Syria.
Haha, shouldn’t you be charging for that kind of kn?loedgew!
I am so impressed with your thought filled behaviors……it makes me proud to be tuned into you and really proud to be a psychologist associated with your work….even if only virtually right now……
It is great that you did that, most appropriate, feeding others in great need. And to be cutting back ourselves, not needing to be eating so much rich foods, one could feel guilty while others are starving.
I’m thrilled that you have made this enormous contribution. Thanks to everyone who participated!
I volunteer with Nebraskans for Peace and RESULTS to end war and poverty (respectively), so that such conditions will no longer exist, hopefully within our lifetime.
I encourage everyone who reads this message to get involved in such an organization. There are between 1 and 2 million organizations around the globe that are working for a more peaceful and verdant world for everyone. By joining with like-minded activists, we not only help individuals and families (which we do as therapists), but we literally save and transform the lives of millions of people.
I value your work and ways that you give to practitioners in terms of education as well as the greater world in need. I myself like to think globally but act locally; I donate meals and supplies to the local domestic violence shelter throughout the year. It is so important for us to give back to our communities. I also am planning on becoming a CERT member in my community (CERT stands for Community Emergency Response Team) by undergoing a training later in the year. There are so many ways to contribute our knowledge and expertise – we just have to find what works for us!
as part of the international community that accesses the resources of nicabm I am trying to be mindful of my response to comments that nicabm should look after North America before extending it’s compassion to children and families in the global community. As an Australian I feel extraordinarily privileged to live in a country that is not torn apart by guns and starvation. Australia, like North America is an unjust society with the polar extremes of privilege and oppression and a large middle ground in between the two poles. I don’t think $25000.00 will have a significant impact on alleviating the structural imbalance that creates poverty and disempowerment. I do, however, believe that $25000.00 will have a significant impact for some of the people who don’t have access to food, water and decent shelter in Syria. As Dan Siegel reminds us…. Einstein believes that separation in an optical delusion of consciousness…. We are all interconnected and we can extend our compassion to our local, national and international fellow beings. We may not change the world overnight but we will help build the trust that leads us to feel that we have to look after ourselves before we look after others.
Heard you! But considered from a different perspective, it’s all the same, it’s just one world, what’s done to help one of us is done for all, ultimately, at a higher level… There is no “them vs us”. So, dear Suzanne, please rest assurred that all is well indeed.. Much love and many blessings to you.
Ruth, thank you so much for your ongoing work and the difference you make!
While I came to your web forum after that challenge,I fully support and laud your efforts to help the Syrian refugees have something to eat-it is a crisis of monumental magnitude-what you did was wonderful.While,yes,challenges exist here and everywhere,THAT crisis is so huge and pressing, the needs of these displaced people cannot be overstated.
Although the plight of the world is awful and many atrocities occur on an hourly basis, I find myself disappointed that this forum would be used to solicit funds for an other country considering the state of the North American continent. Our own children have to endure constant abuse from Television, school,religion, , family, medical field and predators of all sorts.LETS FIX OUR OWN NEIBORHOOD BEFORE WE SPREAD OUR OWN SICKNESS. A sick society trying to help someone elses sickness is only making more. TEACH A MAN TO FISH.
Universal Hug
Yes Suzanne – I completely agree with you that we need to focus on the US first and foremost: autism is on the rise as it is now 1 in 45 in NJ and 1 in 68 in the US, so is ADD/ADHD, 70% of the population is overweight and 39% obese, child abuse and teen depression on the rise, birth defects on the rise. We need action not merely awareness. We need to reverse these health concerns affecting our youngsters – the future generation. Caring and autistic child to adulthood will cost about a staggering $3.2 million. Let’s share with one another alternate natural solutions. Ijust read an MD who cured her son of autism. I would love to hear from you! sallysnyder@hotmail.com
Dear Americans, fellow, and all other compassionate humans,
I fail to comprehend your attitudes. The US has its problems, sure. It has spread its problems throughout the world. WE have a duty to clear up the mess as well as a compassionate concern for all other people everywhere – isn’t that latter what NICABM is all about? Then and only then will our own diseases start to heal. We need to encompass the world with love not fence off our own back yards with hate.