Dear Friends and Donors,
 
As we rapidly approach the end of this calendar year, I thought it would be nice to send out a message with the intent of recapping the 1st full year of iCompassion’s operation.
 
Within the Executive Board, I am probably the most known for being the least impressed and emotionally moved by meeting goals. My fellow board members would probably agree. We could have helped a billion people, but without hard numbers, I wouldn’t be phased.
 
However, we do have some things that can be quantified that I can share with you. As I started looking at this, my heart was both admonished and excited.  Here goes…
 
Without any special capital or fundraising campaigns, iCompassion was able to:

• Raise over $22,000 for Venezuela, Cuba, Lebanon, India, Uganda, Moldova, and local partners. With the exception of some unspent money, all $22,000 has been used for the benefit of those we serve; 100% for our humanitarian mission. What other charity or non-profit can claim the same?
• Partner with several local organizations which helped us expand our network of doing good; they provided some much-needed labor and also helped defray some shipping costs that we didn’t have to spend out of our own funds
• Special mention for Venezuela projects: our Advisory Board members, Marty & Mercedes, have sent hundreds of boxes of aid (food, toiletries, baby food, baby essentials, and over-the-counter medicines) to multiple local communities and pediatricians in various provinces. For Christmas, over 500 pairs of sneakers/shoes were sent to children in need
• We got a website up and running and it is used to streamline donations and giving; in 2019, we will make it more attractive and use it to even greater effect
• Provide funds to one of our contacts in Cuba for the continued build-out of an occupational training center; this will help locals develop skills to become self-sustaining, which in turn will benefit the whole community
• Conduct leadership training for about 100 Cuban youth in the areas of Gifts/Talents and how to determine what they are and how to put them to best use
• Participate in multiple local homeless outreach events in Fort Lauderdale, distributing food and clothing to our homeless friends in the community
• Ate many meals at El Rinconcito on Bird Road (feel free to come and join us if you are in the area and are able). LOL

 
Looking to 2019, we are looking to do more of the same, but even more. We want to be positioned where we can do the most good and are actively listening and preparing for the next wave. One of the areas where we are likely to get involved is with orphans; there are a couple of places that we are evaluating for partnership. Stay tuned.
 
Finally, a very big Thank You to all of you who have opened your hearts and have given to this great work. You will certainly have great reward. For those who haven’t given or were unable to give, we love you very much and are grateful that you are on this journey with us. We already know it is in your heart to be a part of iCompassion’s mission, so if now at the end of the year you are able to donate to the work of iCompassion, please reach out to myself or one of the other Board members or just go to our website and do it electronically. Any way you do it, you will get a tax receipt so that you can deduct the amount given from your 2018 taxes. 
 
May you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy, Blessed, New Year!

​We’ve reached the tail end of the year, where the holiday season is upon us. Traditionally, Thanksgiving Day is the kick-off to the holiday season that ends with New Year’s Day. In between these two days are Black Friday, the hunt for the perfect gifts, holiday parties, Christmas, Hanukkah, etc…. This time of year has become so saturated with activities that a person hardly has the chance to breathe.

For one friend, that is very close to me, this time of year is especially difficult. Just before Thanksgiving Day is his wedding anniversary. A few days after Thanksgiving  is the annual reminder of his wife’s death. She left way too soon.

iCompassion serves the underprivileged, forgotten, discarded, and poorest people on Earth. The needs out there in the world are great, and we do what we can to help. Just in the past 12 months alone, we’ve helped people in places like: Venezuela, Cuba, Lebanon, Uganda, India, Moldova, Romania, and right here in the U.S.A. Our leadership and partners have a heart to help humanity. We are Thankful for our partners and our donors. Without you, iCompassion would just be another aid organization.

While iCompassion has helped thousands of hurting individuals in the past year, I would like to remind you, who are reading this, that there are many people all around you that need your help; maybe not in the physical sense or financially, but emotionally, spiritually, relationally. My friend, for instance, has a good life, with great children, and knows his mission in life. Many, like him, do not. These are the ones that you can show compassion. Maybe it is over a cup of coffee or lunch or dinner. The main thing is: You can positively impact someone’s life right where you are. You can be a lifeline. You can be light in dark places.

We at iCompassion are thankful for you. We hope that you all have a great end-of-year holiday season with your loved ones. For those of you on the journey with us (and hopefully more of you joining in), we are looking forward to, and planning, at very great 2019 serving the underprivileged all over the world. 

Finally, take good care of yourselves. Be kind to others. And, if you are so inclined, help us make a difference in this world. You can donate via our donation page or “Get Involved” page. 
​
Love to you and yours!

"Life is Cheap" -- Thorin Oakenshield in The Hobbit

In many parts of the world, the worldview held by Thorin Oakenshield holds true. This worldview is either influenced by the local governmental system or it influences the governmental system or both. Regardless, suffering and death are universal terrors.

In the book The Hobbit, Thorin Oakenshield is single-mindedly focused on one goal -- taking back his ancestral homeland, Erebor, and the vast gold and wealth entrapped within it. Along his path, he unexpectedly forms a friendship with a hobbit named Bilbo Baggins. A hobbit is not a powerful or fearsome creature, but is quite gentle and humble. The Dwarves of Erebor, however, are powerful fighters who will not shy away from danger. But, it is this hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, that saves Thorin's life (selflessly putting himself in harms way).

Thorin eventually takes back Erebor, but gets into new fights. At one point, he is willing to sacrifice all of his friends and family for the treasure horde within Erebor. His single-minded focus became an obsession and he is heard saying "Life is Cheap."

Life may be cheap in many places. But, iCompassion does not believe that. Each life has incredible value. Life cannot be measured in currency or gold or diamonds or any other way. For many, it is God-given. For others, it has intrinsic value. Our mission is to serve the underprivileged wherever they may be.

Still, how do you prioritize? We believe that the best way for us to serve the people that will benefit from our efforts is to work with trusted partners, at the local level, in the communities where the underprivileged people are. As an example, we have partnerships in Lebanon where we help underprivileged Syrians and Iraqis who have fled their homes because of civil war and ISIS. Our most recent endeavor is to help orphans in Venezuela by partnering with a local farmer who will supply beans and rice to a local orphanage. 

iCompassion are not necessarily "miracle-workers", but for the poor, sick, and forgotten, we may very well be the lifeline they need until their breakthrough arrives. For us, life is not cheap.

Thankfully, Thorin Oakenshield changed his views near the end of the story. His last statement to Bilbo Baggins was:
"Farewell Master Burglar... If more people valued home above gold, this world would be a merrier place."

​Indeed!