That Time Someone Gave me 5,000 Tote Bags

Pittsburgh Donation

Mid-summer 2012, I was coordinating a project to redirect gently used tote bags to the Food Bank. We also received quite a bit of excess promotional merchandise – bags, cups, etc. This operation had no formal space other than my vehicle and occasionally my living room. We quite literally sorted and counted on the street, […]

My (Honest and For True) Festivus Miracle

holiday giving charity festivus

A few weeks ago, I posted a little challenge to ask people to send me a Christmas card and promising to donate $1 to Pittsburgh’s LGBTQ Community Center in exchange – to bolster their membership campaign. It was a very off the cuff thing so I didn’t expect a huge response. We got about 20 […]

GLCC Issues Emergency Appeal for Donations of Blankets, Coats

Pittsburgh homeless

Pittsburgh’s Gay and Lesbian Community Center (GLCC) has been collecting “Winter Gear” for several months as part of its commitment to the Service Access for Youth (SAY) coalition. This coalition of 22 organizations and businesses provides physical, emotional, and social supports for homeless youth, including LGBTQ youth. The Winter Gear drive has also been able […]

Two Women Who Restored My Faith in Humanity Yesterday

1.  State Representative Naomi Jakobbsen of Illinois left the bedside of her dying son to vote yet on “marriage equality” – a measure that passed with a cushion of one vote. Tragically, her son died before she could return to the hospital. How do you adequately say thank you to someone who would do this? For […]