Read for Japan

Dear Family and Friends,

We were talking to our kids at lunch about recent events in Japan and how we wanted to donate money to our church’s humanitarian aid fund to help with the recovery efforts there.  We told them that they could also help by earning additional points on myjobchart.com (which is where my kids track their chores and earn allowance). We’d give the kids extra chores to earn points which they could then turn in for money to donate. The kids were enthusiastic about helping and we got started right after lunch.  However, as we were mopping the floor together, Joshua started complaining, and asked if he could be done yet and just go read.  I said no.  He said “But mom, I get points for reading, too!”  And I thought, well, that’s true.  We give our kids 100 points (or a dollar) for every book read. Then I thought maybe we could expand this a bit, since there are really a limited number of chores the kids can do around the house, and ask family and friends if they would be willing to pledge money for pages my kids read in a day. So next Wednesday, since we don’t have anything else scheduled, we are going to have a  “Read for Japan” day dedicated to reading and earning money to send to the humanitarian fund.  This will give my kids an opportunity to serve and will help strengthen reading skills.  If you would be willing to help us out in this and pledge a little money so our kids can feel like they are really earning something and making a difference, that would be great.  Maybe just a penny a page, or a penny every 10 pages, or anything would be great.  I will send out an email to those who pledged on Thursday letting them know how many pages were read and then you can pay in whatever way works best for you (paypal, in person, by mail). We’ll give the money to our kids and they can turn it in at church the next Sunday.  I know this will be a positive experience for them and they will remember the feeling they get from serving others, and hopefully continue it in the future.  If you would be willing to pledge, just email me or comment here.  Alternatively, if you have kids of your own, or don't know me or my kids, maybe you could set up a reading day for the kids you're in charge of (let me know if you do!), and we all can give a little more.

Thanks

Erin

(Note: I'm not seeking money from complete strangers.  This is mostly being funded by extended family, but I just thought I'd share the idea in case anyone else would like to set something up for their kids.  Thanks!)