Save The Rainforest

Well the holiday season is almost behind us but before 2007 is gone we'd like to share another opportunity for our readers to give back. At rainforestalliance.org you can save a half an acre of rain forest in South and Central America for only $25.00.

As stated on thier website The Rain Forest Allaince Mission is to conserve biodiversity and ensure sustainable livelihoods by transforming land-use practices, business practices and consumer behavior. There is a wealth of information on this site so please stop by and look around and maybe even visit The Frog Blog or send an e-card to a friend.

The holidays may be coming to a close but with the new year dawning, there's never been a better time to make changes.

Happy New Year!

Vince

Merry Christmas!

We just wanted to stop in and wish everyone a very merry Christmas! By now you may be cleaning up the dishes or relaxing with your family, hopefully stuffed full of food and love. Even if you're not, just remember that you are not alone....we all look up to the same sky and we are never ever really alone.

May hope and happiness fill your new year!

Merry Christmas!

Vince & Chrissie

Therapy Dogs

How often have we heard the dogs are "Man's best friend". Well recent studies make that statement more true today than ever. Case studies have shown that a by holding a or petting an animal can actually release tension and lower your blood pressure. This is where Therapy Dogs International, Inc comes in.

Therapy Dogs International, Inc. (TDI) is a volunteer group organized to provide qualified handlers and their Therapy Dogs for visitations to nursing homes, hospitals and any other place where Therapy Dogs are needed

How can you and your dog become part of TDI ?

If you would like more information, please contact TDI via email at tdi@gti.net, or if you would prefer, call us at (973) 252-9800

Thank you,

Vince

Keep Pushing

"Triumph often is nearest when defeat seems inescapable"-B.C Forbes

Are you starting a new business? Looking back at a past New Years Resolution that you did not keep? or simply struggling with an area of your life? There where times ( and some times even now) when I questioned my vision of Try Change -Inspirational T-Shirts for Change would actually come about. I wondered if people would be interested in a line of t-shirts that promoted something other than guns, skulls, violence and intolerance. Funny thing though just when I thought I was off track something great (not good) would happen to put me back on course.

I was recently sharing with a friend on how when we started Try Change it was hard finding people that believed that we could be successful. Now we have people that want to be part of Try Change. Our new website will be up soon and the shirts will actually be in stores. My message tonight for those who are out there fighting the good fight to bring about change is to Keep Pushing. We (the world ) need you!

"Endurance is one of the most difficult disciplines, but it is to the one who endures that the final victory comes"- Buddha

Vince

Quick Update

With the holiday season upon us I just want to give everyone a quick update on the launch of or Try Change T-Shirts- Inspirational T-Shirts for Change;
This past weekend we:

• Approved the Flow Chart our our new upgraded website which will go live in the next weeks.
• Approved the final designs of the new line of Try Change T-Shirts
• Completed our "Factoring Application" for retail sales
• Received our distribution proposal from Waitex Inc.
• Completed our holiday shopping for the family we adopted from the homeless shelter

We thank everyone for their continued support as we prepare for the launch of our line of T-Shirts that promote Peace, Hope, Faith , Diversity and Positive Change.

Vince

Good Giving

I saw a little blurb about The Case Foundation on the news this afternoon and thought I would check it out. Their Guide to Giving is a great idea for the holidays. It really captures the spirit of the season. You can give and actually help someone else at the same time.

Here is an excerpt from their website:

Our mission is to achieve sustainable solutions to complex social
problems by investing in collaboration, leadership, and entrepreneurship.

Jean and Steve Case founded the Case Foundation in 1997 to
reflect their family's heartfelt commitment to finding lasting solutions to complex social challenges. Today, the foundation is pursuing a number of initiatives, and is particularly focused on three strategies:

Encouraging collaboration;
Supporting successful leaders; and
Fostering entrepreneurship in the nonprofit sector.

With the hussle and bussle of the holiday season upon us it is very easy to lose your true holiday spirit. Why not take a moment to see if you can't make someone else wish come true while still finishing up some shopping?

Vince

Childs Play Charity

So often when I think of items that are donated to less privileged children I think of clothes and maybe some toys. I recently came across a pretty cool organization that donates DVD and Video Games to children who are in the hospital. childsplaycharity.org is the name of the organization.

Here's information on this group via their website:

Since 2003, over 100,000 gamers worldwide have banded together through Child’s Play, a community based charity grown and nurtured from the game culture and industry. Over two million dollars in donations of toys, games, books and cash for sick kids in children’s hospitals across North America and the world have been collected since our inception.
This year, we have continued expanding across the country and the globe. With over 45 partner hospitals and more arriving every month, you can be sure to find one from the map above that needs your help! You can choose to purchase requested items from their online retailer wish lists, or make a cash donation that helps out Child’s Play hospitals everywhere. Any items purchased through Amazon will be shipped directly to your hospital of choice, so please be sure to select their shipping address rather than your own.

It's so great fining organizations like this one who are going about the business of making a difference. i hope you this information useful and remember we do not have to wait for the holidays to give to others :-)

Please join one of our communities at:Razoo
Idealist
Change.org
MyBlogLog
BlogCatalog
Try Change News Letter

Thank you,

Vince

Right Here , Right Now

This week I had the opportunity to travel to Orlando Fla. to attend a conference pertaining to my job in the hospitality field. I asked Chrissie to come down with me a couple of days before the conference started to check out what Orlando has to offer. We decided to get up early one morning and take a drive to Coco Beach. The weather was great and there were only a couple of people on the beach due to the Red Tide so it seemed we had the whole place to ourselves. Walking along the beach I thought of how peaceful and relaxing everything was at the moment. I also thought of how I'm always working on the next thing whether it's the next task at work, the next workout at the gym or the next assignment needed to be completed for Try Change.

Taking that walk also reminded me that it's great for me to be focused on task and assignments that need to be finished but it's also just as important to enjoy where I'm at during any moment in time. I admit it's easy to say that when your walking along a beach in 85 degree weather in the middle of December but still I should find more time to relax and enjoy the little things in life as well. Here's to quiet times, no traffic, no pushy people at the mall and no deadlines.

I hope this holiday season gives you time to relax and enjoy the little things in life.

Vince

Noticed in Razoo!

Hello fellow bloggers

We were recently mentioned in Razoos Blogger Digest. Follow the link and select post number seven:

December 5, 2007

It's time for the second installment of Razoo's bi-weekly member digest. Twice a month we highlight what's hot on Razoo. Only Razoo members get this exclusive perk, so consider yourself a part of the inner circle.
The GoodTravels Contest is in it's fourth week and folks are registering to become eligible to win a free trip to anywhere in the world!
Click on the image to the right in order to get started!

So, without further ado, here's the second installment of seven great things on
Razoo:
1.Discussions: This topic is all about the warm and fuzzy.
2.Photos: All the world needs is love ...
3.Member: Meet David. We're pretty sure he's not as furry as his profile pic
suggests.
4.Good Travels Contest: Where have you traveled that inspired you?
5.Video: According to Razoo's boss, this critter tastes like chicken!
6.Group: Ever wonder what an organically grown community looks like?
7.Soapbox: Why buy a Lexus when you can do what Vince did?

Most Requested "How-To"
Razoo'ers send messages to our Community Guru all of the time. In the past two weeks he received requests concerning how to change account notification preferences (such as Friend Requests, Kudos, Messages, etc.)
Login to Razoo.
Click on the "Preferences" link below the "My World" tab.
Uncheck/check the notifications you would like to receive/stop receiving, and then click "Save." This solution and more can be found on the Frequently Asked Questions page. Of course, you can always shoot the Community Guru an e-mail. He promises to send you a personalized answer -- that is, before he finishes building a robot that will do his job for him. :-)

Thanks for your support!



Vince

*Please join one of our communities at:Razoo

Idealist

Change.org

MyBlogLog

BlogCatalog

Try Change News Letter

Homeless Children?

Unfortunately that often is response when people are told that yes we do have homeless children. Often people think of homeless individuals as older gray haired men or women but children also make up the homeless population. Tonight we bring yet again another way you can make a difference. At Project Night Night you can, with your friends, assemble items such as a blanket , books and stuff animals then contact Project Night Night to order a tote bag $3.00 that you can place the items in.Then just select a shelter that you want to deliver the Project Night Night Tote Bags to.

Project Night Night has won several charity awards and has appeared in numerous publications including San Francisco Business Times and Glamour Magazine.

*Please join one of our communities at:
Razoo
Idealist
Change.org
MyBlogLog
BlogCatalog
Try Change News Letter

Together we can make a difference!

Vince

Something Different

Another Holiday season is once again upon us and judging by some of the TV commercials I'm in big trouble if I don't buy my fiance a Lexus or a diamond from Jarred. It seems the ante goes up each year and I'd swear there was a time when getting what you really needed for the holiday's was enough. This year Chrissie and I decided to adopt a family from the Hilda Barg Homeless Shelter here in Woodbridge VA. The shelter is part of Volunteers of America Chesapeake network of services. As you may know Try Change is a official partner of Volunteers of America Chesapeake so we look for ways to assist this worthy organization. Our decision was based upon the fact that we are far more fortunate that many people in this world and it's our obligation to give back whenever we can.

If you are like us your closet, storage space or garage is full of items you have gathered over the years. Do we really need to go out and buy another new cell phone that will be replaced by the new and improved version in 3 months?
Why not take some of the money and help give someone a holiday to remember?

Happy Holidays!

Vince

*Please join one of our communities at:

Razoo

Idealist

Change.org

MyBlogLog

BlogCatalog

Try Change News Letter

Mentor Someone

Looking for a way to help change someone's life? Here's an award mentoring program that could help:

icouldbe.org is an award-winning non-profit organization that mentors teenagers to successfully transition from high school to college and/or their chosen career path. As a premiere e-mentoring program, icouldbe.org provides a secure online community where adults representing hundreds of careers and students find each other.

Too many American high school students:

Can't Explore. With caseloads as high as 1,000 students per counselor, guidance counselors are too overburdened to effectively advise students on their futures. High school students receive less than 3 hours of career counseling over 4 years.

Don't Connect. There are over 16,000,000 American youths that need mentors and only 4,000,000 mentors.

Never Grasp. Students know very little about various professions and unwittingly choose the wrong career path.

Another inspirational story and resource brought to you by Try Change. Please join our community and help spread the Try Change message as we launch our new line of Try Change Inspirational t-shirts for change.

Thanks for stopping by!

Vince

*Please join one of our communities at:
Razoo
Idealist
Change.org
MyBlogLog
BlogCatalog
Try Change News Letter

Another Step

Tonight we took another step closer to realizing our dream of a line of Try Change Apparel. We met with a well established retail sales representative with many contacts in the retail field... This is the first time we showed our new line to anyone outside the immediate Try Change team. After viewing the designs the representative, he stated that he thought the designs were fresh and offered more than the skulls that seem to be on every shirt you see these days. He agreed to meet us again once we have the final samples completed . These samples are made to assist sales team members in conducting presentations to retail stores. If he is as impressed by the samples as he was with the designs he will put together a sales team to make sales calls to some of the major players in the retail field. One of (if not the number one) retailer we want to target is one of his old accounts so we should be able to get our line in front of that chain's buyer.

A couple of items still need to fall in place ( finish production on the samples and upgrade our website) however tonight we came away with several goals accomplished! Soon we will be able to show you some of the new Try Change shirts and hopefully the names of retail stores they can be found in :-)