09_09_09: A Personal Favor

Something amazing is going to happen on September 9, 2009. We are going to raise almost $100,000 to have a major impact on preventing future children from being trafficked. That's right--you, and me.

My friend Diana Scimone is holding a one day fundraiser on 09-09-09. The goal is to have 9,000 people donate $9 so that we can get the Born2Fly wordless book into the hands of the children who need to see it.

The gist of it:
Most kids are lured into sex slavery because they don’t know the deceptive tactics of traffickers. What if we could warn children and their parents ahead of time? What if we could teach them about the lies traffickers use—and how to stand up against them? The rate of trafficking would drop and millions of kids would never enter the dark world of trafficking.

That’s exactly what the Born2Fly Project is all about: educating kids and their parents about the dangers of trafficking, with the ultimate goal of ending it. The centerpiece of B2F is a wordless book that teaches kids to make wise choices—wordless so we don’t have to translate it into hundreds of languages. A companion curriculum will reinforce the important concepts in the book.

Born to Fly is at the critical moment. The books and curriculum are nearly complete. We need to print these strategic materials and give them to at-risk kids and parents around the world. The 1-day fundraiser will raise money to do that—and prevent millions of kids from being trafficked. Traffickers think kids are commodities. On 9/9/09, tell kids they’re priceless. All it takes is $9.

What you can do:

• Donate: Go to www.born2fly.org and use the Chip-in widget to donate $9--or simply click on the link below.
  
• Email: Tell 9 people about 09-09-09 and send them to www.born2fly.org.
• Social Media: Use Facebook, blogs, and Twitter to tell your friends. Follow @09_09_09, and add a Twibbon after you've donated: http://bit.ly/xml6t
• Check Diana Scimone's blog for the latest, including daily updates on the awesome prizes you could win by being a part of this fundraiser--everything from beauty products to Chris Brogan's new book, "Trust Agents."
  

I'd like to ask you to consider donating $9, either today or on 09-09-09 itself, to make this book happen. Diana is a tireless abolitionist against child trafficking and even sent me a generous check to make sure I was able to go on the Love146 partner trip this year. I would love to repay the favor and have you join with me in blessing Diana and the thousands of children that would benefit from this book. A personal thanks from me to you!

Love,
Emily