Please Join Us for Passports With Purpose

If you have been reading DeliciousBaby since last year, you may remember Passports with Purpose, the travel blogger's fundraiser founded by Pam Mandel of Nerd's Eye View, Beth Whitman of Wanderlust and Lipstick, Michelle Duffy of WanderMom, and myself. In a few short weeks, with the help of travel bloggers around the world, we raised $7400 for Heifer International. We also gave fabulous prizes to many donors, ranging from hotel rooms to video cameras and high-end travel gear.

Kids outside their floating home in Phnom Penh, Cambodia

This year we will be fund-raising to build a school in Cambodia through AAfC. We first learned about this program, through an article in the New York Times just as last year's fundraiser was wrapping up. There was no need for discussion, we all knew that this was the right fit for this year's Passports With Purpose fundraiser. As the four of us wrap up our planning, and head towards the launch on Nov 30, I hope you will start thinking about how you can contribute.

One of the things I was struck by on my own visit to Cambodia was the strong spirit of hope, and the desire to rebuild both at a personal level and a national level, the intellectual society and successful economy that had been destroyed by the Khmer Rouge in the late '70s. English language and computer schools seemed to be down every alleyway in Phnom Penh. Parents scrimped to sign young children up for lessons in English and computers and to learn the cultural arts that were all but lost during the Khmer Rouge Regime.

In rural areas, the sense of hope and the desire to rebuild might be just as strong, but the options are more limited. This year Passports with Purpose will establish a school in a rural area whose children have been deprived of any educational facilities. A school provides a much needed alternative to poverty or sex trafficking.

Each participating blogger will procure a prize valued at $75 or more and post about it on their blog. A complete list will appear on the Passports with Purpose website. Last year, prizes included travel gear, camera equipment, multi-night hotel stays, and more.

For each $10 in donations that you make to AAfC, you will will be entered to win a prize (or prizes) of your choice. The fundraiser begins on November 30th and closes on December 21. (Complete rules appear on the Passports With Purpose website) All proceeds go directly to AAfC. Get your pocketbooks ready, this is one fundraiser you are not going to want to miss!

• If you are a DeliciousBaby reader: Please come back on Nov 30th for information about how to make a donation. Each $10 donation will not only help build a school, but it will also enter you in a drawing for a travel related prize of your choice (I have an insider's look at the prize list and WOW are they fabulous)
• If you have a blog: Consider posting about passports with purpose or even procuring a prize. Not only will you help build a school, but the Passports With Purpose effort can help bring new readers to your blog. Learn more here
• If you work for a travel company: A Passports With Purpose sponsorship is a great way to reach out to travelers and travelbloggers. We are also looking for a few more high-quality prizes.

If you are interested in participating, please send email to info AT passportswithpurpose dot com.

Filed Under: blogging passports-with-purpose

1 comment | Posted on November 18, 2009 | Save to del.icio.us

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