This morning I heard a commercial for the Pepsi Refresh Project. They are looking for people, businesses, and non-profits with ideas that will have a positive impact and Pepsi is giving away millions of dollars to fund them. Here’s how it works: you post your cause, people vote for their favorites, and the ones with the most votes each month get funding.
Immediately I thought of us and our many quests: to find a cure for vitiligo, increase awareness about vitiligo, and our desire to learn how to deal with the emotional effects of living with vitiligo. Surely, I thought, if I can write a great essay about our plight we would get money. After all, it is a very important cause that affects millions of people world-wide.
So off I went to their website to begin, and what I found was a jolt of reality.
1. Dance & Art Therapy for Children with Autism and their Families.
2. Make gowns for cancer patients when hospice is called into the home.
3. Buy an Arm Bike so that disabled patients can exercise in our gym.
4. Create a sensory room for students with autism and other disabilities.
5. Create a garden to help support the local food bank.
Once I read through a page or 2 of these requests (and mind you, there were a few nonessential ones mixed in, too) I felt thankful. Thankful that vitiligo is not life-threatening, and thankful that there are so many people in our world who care and want to help others. That’s really quite amazing when you think about it. Each and every one of us on earth has not-so-nice issues that we deal with every day, but many are able to step out of their own world to focus on bettering the lives of those around them.
With this in mind, I got an idea. What if we, our collective group of people with vitiligo, became benefactors (supporters) of a selected charitable foundation? Not only would we be helping others, our actions may inspire others to give…and perhaps this would lead to worldwide attention to vitiligo.
If you’re with me, leave a comment with some potential charities we could support. In the end, we’ll vote on one, and I will put a ‘donate now’ button on here to collect the monies to give.
P.S.
After watching, “God Grew Tired of Us”, a documentary which tells the story of 4 young Sudanese men who were a part of the ‘lost boys’, and their life from the refugee camp to America, I decided to donate 5% of the net profits from Vitiligo Cover Lotion sales to the John Dau Foundation.
Here is the official description of the documentary– my own just would not do it justice. And please go here if you would like to read a bio about John Dau.