Wow, it’s been awhile… but instead of making excuses, I should probably just launch into the nitty gritty huh? 

Spring means a lot of things, one of them being the Boston Marathon. This year I knew far too many folks running it and while I’m super proud of them, being unemployed means not being able to give as much as I’d love to… so why not pass along their links? Plus, it’s always good to see what NPs are active in the community, right? Maybe you could even consider volunteering for them. :)

These are the folks that ran for charity: Now there’s Matty (@MattyHammers), who ran for the National Organization for Rare Diseases (@RareDiseases #National)… Shawn (@RedRoomWolf… he’s about $900 away from his goal of $6,000) with Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary… Renee with Tufts Research in Childhood Obesity and Nutrition (actually never met her, but my friends at the South End Athletic Company threw a fundraiser for her)… Varun with Brigham & Women’s Hospital… and I can’t forget some of the other orgs that I love, like Back On My Feet (@BackOnMyFeet) who had a Burger Brigade running for them outfitted with special b.good (@b_good_) costumes… also Community Servings (@communityserv… $25 feeds a client for a week) and Boston Living Center (@LivingCenter… $10 provides a personal hygiene package for a client), a couple of my fave places to volunteer. 

So what else is coming up? 

* Saturday, April 30th * #Boston Boston Cares’ Dash for a Difference! It’s scavenger hunt meets Amazing Race. I’ll be there as a Project Leader at… well, I can’t tell you now can I? :) Sign up with a team of two or more. Fundraising incentives and prizes look pretty rad: http://bit.ly/ik1hth

* Saturday, April 30th * #Boston Bacon and Beer Festival at Royale! Vendors include… well there’s a lot. You should just go to their website. :) Tickets sold out in two minutes but you can head over to Bidding for Good to try and snatch a pair. Proceeds benefit Lovin’ Spoonfuls (@lovinfoodrescue), Community Servings (@communityserv), and Share Our Strength (@sharestrength). 

* Sunday, May 1st * #Boston Walk for Hunger (@WalkforHunger) to benefit Project Bread! 660,000 people in MA don’t have enough food to eat. This 20 mile walk helps fund over 400 food programs in the state. I’ll be volunteering on the walk and cheering you on! http://bit.ly/cHB1nd

* Thursday, May 12th * #Boston Theater Offensive’s annual extravaganza fundraiser, ClimACTS at Estate! I’ve gone to this event as both a volunteer and an attendee and it’s always been a crazy good time. http://bit.ly/c4satH PS - They’ve had issues with their Twitter account @OffensiveTweets, so they’re now @OUToffensive. 

Speaking of name changes, Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic (#Boston #National) is now Learning Ally. If you’re in the Boston area, their studio is in North Cambridge maybe a 5+minute walk from Porter Square and also accessible by the 77 bus. You basically get in a booth and record yourself reading anything from a psychology textbook to Gone with the Wind to a Harry Potter knock off. :) 

Today I heard about Haymakers for Hope (@Haymakers4Hope). They hold charity boxing events for The Jimmy Fund (@TheJimmyFund). Thanks to WHERE (@WHERE) for pointing me in their direction! Check out their page for more info. They reached out to me on Twitter so I’m going to see what kind of volunteer opportunities they have and I’ll report back. 

As a final note, I posted this on my Facebook the other day, but I figured I’d share here too. I’ve been watching a lot of TED talks lately. They’re usually about 18 minutes long, but this one’s a quickie. The gist? You matter. :)