Clay chose to use his fame for good, like raising awareness for impoverished children or children with special needs. He went from being teased by bullies at school to becoming a Pop Icon. A lot of his fans have become more active in charity fundraisers and in volunteering because of his influence.
1. Clay is Caring He has great concern for children in need, and is using his fame to make a difference through UNICEF and theNational Inclusion Project.
This post is a bit off-topic My older brother had a sock monkey and when he got older, I also played with it. When I was a lot younger, about age 4; I had a stuffed toy frog named Freddy the Frog. While these were dearly loved toys, I don't recall what happened to these and some of the toys that my brother and I had; I can imagine what happened to them. See my dad was in retail , and we moved a lot; so I imagine they got left behind or we were asked to sell them in a yard sale. We moved 8 times, 7 of them before I was 15. Don't feel bad though, it's not like my brother and I lacked any toys(there are a lot of children who do). It's just that it would have been nice to pass these things on to other generations, like to my brother's children and grandchildren. I do have a baby quilt and a child's rocker, and a few other things that aren't in bad shape to be over 40 years old(how time flies!)
So do you have any favorite mementos from childhood or remember some that you no longer have? Let me know in the little comment box. I appreciate any and all comments!
Please Stay Tuned-I have scheduled a 3 part series on January 30th through February the first on 9 Great Things About Clay Aiken.
Seed Newsvine On his fan club blog, Clay has announced a mystery event on Friday, March the 12th at 7 PM in Raleigh. My guess is that this could be the recording of his upcoming PBS special or a concert with Ruben Studdard.
While Haiti is the focus of most of the world's media-including television, internet and print, there are some who promote urgent donations now and others, like Tom Brokaw-who recommend donating for Haiti relief in 3 months when donor apathy will have caused most people to stop giving. Whichever is best for you, please give as you are able. There are many places and information on ways to give, please be careful that the charity that you give to is a legitimate one like UNICEF, Red Cross and others. CNN Impact has a detailed list of reliable charities and ways to help. If you're a blogger, it's not too late to get involved with the Bloggers' Day of Action, though the date for it has already happened. I know there's an information overload and pleas everywhere for Haiti; but if you imagine that it's your relative, friend or yourself over there suffering-that will spur you to do something and to do more.
The first video is from SueRue, the second is a montage that I made.
Seed Newsvine 1st Picture source:FreeFoto.com There are several other great bloggers who are Claymates(Clay Aiken fans), and it's time to shine the spotlight on them-many of them I count as my online friends(listed in totally random order);
Two major inclusion events are happening within the next four weeks in the United States. The first one, Youth Inclusion Voices, begins tomorrow; and the second- Golfing For Inclusion 2010 is on February 1.. According to its Facebook page, Youth Inclusion Voices is a conference where..."Twenty young people from across the country will come together in January to participate in a national summit. Their goal: develop an advocacy campaign that builds awareness and support for the full social and educational inclusion of people with disabilities. Share their vision of a world where people of all abilities have the same opportunities."" This event is sponsored by the National Inclusion Project, Including Samuel and All Kids Can Golfing For Inclusion is a fundraiser for the National Inclusion Project located in Palm Beach Gardens, FL. Some Clay Aiken fans participate, but this particular fundraiser caters to corporate sponsorship(There is a Champions Gala every October in Raleigh, and is open for everyone who can come). It's an all day event beginning in the morning with brunch and a golf lesson with Pro Golfer Wayne Player, the golf tournament, awards reception, dinner, and a concert by American Idol, Broadway star, and professional singer Clay Aiken .
Whether or not you can make it to this golf fundraiser, there is an auction online and at the site. It doesn't matter if you don't have a lot of money to give (it helps :) ), you can still help out the cause of bridging the gaps between people with and without disabilities,by; posting a blog or sharing this one with a friend, visit the National Inclusion Project site(in the links above) to learn more, use Goodsearch as your web search and choose the National Inclusion Project as your cause?(every search you make earns a penny for the charity), get involved next winter with Wrapping For Inclusion, or even playing games at Iwon.com. Thank you.