Airline Ambassadors International is an organization, affiliated with the United Nations, that helps ordinary people become “Ambassadors of Goodwill” in their own communities and abroad.  The organization started as airline employees making a difference in their travels, but now medical personnel, students, families, etc., can volunteer with Airline Ambassadors.

Their mission is to provide help and aid to people and communities in need around the globe.  They work to provide food for the hungry, to provide education, to help communities to work and grow together, to advocate for children, to watch for and work on stopping the evil of human trafficking, and help to provide disaster relief when disaster strikes.  In fact, they have been in Haiti, working to provide relief, since the earthquake struck in January of this year.  The picture below is Airline Ambassadors founder, Nancy Rivard, in February at an orphanage that Airline Ambassadors supports in Port-au-Prince.There are so many ways that ordinary people can volunteer or help.  Airline Ambassadors has many adopted projects around the world.  There are ways to raise funds for these projects or to even go and help.  Examples include a soup kitchen in Argentina, a Women’s Center in Darfur, and even helping to provide computer education for Native Americans in our own country.  By becoming an actual member of Airline Ambassadors, you can help children all over the world, as well as participate in many of Airline Ambassadors’ programs.  You can go on a humanitarian mission with Airline Ambassadors.  They even have weekend trips available.  Even children and youth can get involved, or you can go on a trip with your child.  I think that would be awesome, just to expose my children to the world around them, a world that is outside the confines of their home and neighborhood.  If you happen to work for American Airlines, you can even volunteer to be a children’s escort, escorting children for medical care or escorting orphans to their new families.

Airline Ambassadors enables ordinary people to become extraordinary in helping those who are in desperate need.  I encourage you to read stories from their work, written by bloggers who volunteer with Airline Ambassadors, on the Airline Ambassadors blog.  You can also follow them on Facebook and Twitter.

My nephew Trey was diagnosed with Stage 4 neuroblastoma in November 2006.  In 2007, his parents took him to New York, where Dr. LaQuaglia was able to successfully remove the tumor.  He still has to go to NYC for scans every 3 months, and it was through his website that I found out about this next organization, Candlelighters, NYC.Candlelighters, NYC is an organization that seeks to help connect families who are dealing with the same diagnosis in a child, that of cancer.  They believe that families shouldn’t have to go through something like this alone but with a network of support and friends to help carry them through.  As Barbara Zobian, the President of Candlelighters, puts it, There is no one who can offer better advice and support than a Mom who “really knows what another Mom is going through and has been there before.” Candlelighters helps to give families education, fun events, and memories that they can carry with them through their child’s illness.Families who are in New York City or families who come there for treatment are all touched by the work of Candlelighters, NYC.  Tons of photos are taken of the families, and Barbara is able to print these out and provide them to each family.  When a child is an inpatient in the hospital, especially if that child is in intensive care, Barbara makes a special effort to print larger photos of the kids, as she wants the doctors and nurses treating the children to know the REAL KID, not just the way they look now in the intensive care unit, very often, bloated and  unconscious.

Barbara also has this to say….very inspirational: These kids are so amazing and have soooo much life in them. They don’t vex and worry about their treatment like we do. If we, as adults are having a procedure, we worry for days before, but the kids just go, get treated ( and yes, sometimes it is very painful) then come back and play and smile.We have so much to learn from these heroes.
Candlighters, NYC offers kids and families the opportunity to get out of their everyday, normal environment and enjoy fun times together, making memories all along the way.  They go on frequent outings to FAO Schwarz and Bloomingdales for parties.

The kids are able to just enjoy being kids, dancing and playing on the Big Piano at FAO Schwarz or visiting Santa at Bloomingdales.

Just from seeing Trey’s experience, his whole family’s experience through his illness, I can attest to this fact: Cancer does not just affect the child who has it, it is a disease that affects and changes the whole family’s life.  It’s a disease that affects so many today, gripping more and more younger children/young adults.  These families are given the love and support and prayers that they so desperately need through Candlelighters, NYC.

You can help to make this organization’s programs and events possible by making a donation to Candlelighters, NYC.  You can also see more photos on their website.  If you’re a family in NYC dealing with childhood cancer, fill out the form to become a member.

Candlelighters, NYC truly shines a light to families in their darkest of times…..

A couple of weeks ago, I featured an organization that helps women who are trapped in the sex industry….this organization was called Treasures. Below is an interview with Harmony Dust, founder of Treasures:
1) How does a person, who would like to start a ministry in this field, even go about approaching the strip clubs? Are the strip clubs welcoming to this, or are they very standoffish?

It is tough to cover the scope of this question in a few sentences. We actually hold trainings for people interested in starting a strip club outreach where we answer this question over the course of a weekend. But the bottom line is that the clubs are, and will be welcoming, as long as you go in with a relationship building approach and truly respect and value each and every person you encounter. This is true of the women as well as the door guys and managers. The other thing I would say is to make sure that you are covered in prayer.

2) How would a woman, who’s never been in this type of situation, get started in a ministry like Treasures? Are the girls open to listening to someone who’s not been where they’ve been?

We have plenty of women on our team that do not have a background in the industry and there is definitely a place for them! I have found that some of the girls we reach are actually relieved to talk to someone they call “normal”. I have had some girls tell me that it is so nice to talk to someone that isn’t in the business for a change. On the other hand, we sometimes have women express apprehension about getting peer mentoring from someone who has never been in the business. Usually the apprehension boils down to an insecurity about being judged. As long as the volunteer/staff can show and express that while she may not have walked in her shoes, she knows what it means to need grace and is not coming from an “Oh my gosh, how could you do such and such” place, they are able to make a great connection.

3) What is your advice on helping to prevent young girls from being “sucked in” to the sex industry? How can we best fight this industry?

Because the reasons women enter sex industry are varied, the answer has many layers to it as well. Because we know that there is such a high rate of sexual abuse among women in the sex industry, I believe that early intervention for victims of sexual abuse is needed. When a victim is identified, it is important that she (he) has a safe place to talk about these experiences (ie counseling, support groups, a school counselor etc). This will help reduce the shame and isolation they feel. Also, hopefully, they will be less likely to connect their sexuality with their self-worth.

Another way that we can prevent young women from being lured into the industry is through raising awareness. Both regarding the stories (and pain) that women who have been in the industry experience, and regarding the tactics of pimps and traffickers that prey on vulnerable young girls.

In terms of raising awareness, Just an FYI, on our new site, launching in a few weeks, we will have a section with information on pimping and trafficking. This will dispel some of the myths about trafficking. For now, you can look at the Stats section for some information that will shed light on the women in the industry.

For more info, you can check out the Treasures website.

A while ago, I wrote a review on Scars and Stilettos, a book written by Harmony Dust, a former exotic dancer whose life has been transformed through Jesus Christ. 
Now I’m excited to share with you Harmony’s ministry, Treasures, which was started back in 2004.

It all started when Harmony was waiting for her husband’s plane to come in, and as she waited, she waited in a parking lot across from the strip club where she used to work.  It was there that the idea began to form, and she placed little note cards on each stripper’s car before she left. The words on the cards read, “Her value…far above rubies and pearls.”  After that, Treasures was begun.  You can read the whole story here.  Today Treasures is still alive and working in the cities of Los Angeles and Las Vegas.  With over 30 women on the team, they reach out to exotic dancers, letting them know that they are valued and loved by God.   They hand out little gift bags with makeup and jewelry, as well as praying with the women, giving testimonies to the women, sharing God’s Word, and just talking with them.  Visiting approximately 150 strip clubs, they have ministered to over 1,000 women. Our message to these women is that they truly are treasures and that there is a God who loves them with a fierce passion!

On the Treasures website, there is a whole page filled with verses for different feelings/emotions/situations: Treasures for Your Troubles.  They also share The Truth About a Treasure, which is a wonderful encouragement and resource.  You can read different stories and testimonies on the site, as well.  The stories will make you weep with sadness for these women and men who have gone through such horrible things in their lives….yet you’ll weep with joy when you read how the healing power of Jesus Christ has worked in their lives.  Two stories that stuck out to me were Ashley’s Story and Steven’s Story.  Steven’s story really shows how rooted pornography can become in a person’s life….it’s something that more men than we can probably imagine struggle with.  In his story, he’s very candid and open about his struggles, and how his life has been changed through the love of Jesus.  The sex industry/pornography industry is an aggressive industry in our nation and all over the world.  It’s an industry that we, as Christian parents, need to do everything in our power to guard our children from.  The stories you read on Treasures are very eye-opening and real….the things that these individuals have gone through are still going on with other women, children, and men today.

You can support Treasures through donation (which the Denver Foundation will match).  You can become a Treasure Builder and give monthly.  You can even search the internet, in turn, giving to Treasures.  Every time you search the internet using goodsearch.com, you’re giving to the ministry of Treasures.  There are other ways to give, as well, and you can apply to become a part of the Treasures Team.  They also sell a Treasures t-shirt in their online store.  I’d encourage you to sign up for their newsletter no matter what.  You can also follow them on Twitter and Facebook.

Lastly, if you are an exotic dancer or an ex-dancer, Treasures would love to hear from you; they’d love to send you more information.

Personally, after reading the book and understanding the work that they do, my eyes have been opened to the need for this kind of ministry all over our nation, even right here in my own community.  There are so many strip clubs in our little city, which means there are hundreds of women, if not more, who need someone to just reach out to them and show them that there is Someone who treasures them, that they are valuable….they need someone to shine the light of Jesus.