***UPDATE: Time is running out on your chance to honor a local hero in Examiner.com's "American Inspired" contest (more details below). Through Jan. 27, you can vote on which finalist represents local heroism at its best. Winners will be announced Feb. 1. To cast your vote, head to http://www.examiner.com/america-inspired.***

From eating to shopping, Americans are going local.

Now, our impulse to keep it in the community is striking the charity world, too.

"Local giving is really important in that we can all personally experience giving in community and see the impact we're making," says Perla Ni, founder and CEO of GreatNonprofits.org. "While you may not have money to donate, you have time or talent that you can give to a local organization, which is something you can't easily do when giving internationally."

Ni adds that there is also more a "sense of accountability on part of the non-profits" because of the personal relationships that exist in a community, ensuring greater impact.

One example of the helping locally trend is the "America Inspired" contest launch by Examiner.com. Its aim: to "celebrate and honor extraordinary people" at the local level. At stake is a $50,000 grand prize; runners-up will receive $10,000.

Read more »

American Idol winner Kris Allen may sing for a living, but he knows all too well the challenges that public school teachers face thanks to his wife, Katie, a drama school teacher in Arkansas.

"She loves her job, but she often talks about the challenges," says Allen. "She'd love to take her students to see a play, but can't afford to. It's hard for teachers to do these kinds of things nowadays because schools don't get enough funding."

Not willing to ignore the issue, Allen has teamed up with online charity DonorsChoose.org on "Tool for the Classrooms," an initiative that launches today with the goal of raising thousands of dollars in funding for public school teachers and students nationwide.

Read more »

What do the Kardashians have to do with struggling Haiti?

Absolutely nothing, and it's up to celebrities to help switch the focus, actress and activist Susan Sarandon tells us.

"It's all of our job — besides the fundraising — to keep the needs of Haiti in the news, especially when the press is busy with Kardashians and whatever they're following at the moment," Sarandon says.

She also takes on critics who accuse celebrities of helping others just to promote themselves.

"It's an interesting myth that has risen that [celebrities] are only doing it for coverage," she says. "I don't think anyone that's gone into a war zone has gone just for the press. There are much easier, more full-proof ways of getting attention and coverage like going to an awards ceremony."

Since a devastating earthquake that killed hundreds of thousands and left millions homeless hit Haiti two years ago, Sarandon has been active with the Artists for Peace and Justice (APJ). Founded by Oscar-winning director Paul Haggis before the quake, APJ built the first free secondary school for Haiti's poorest children and has funded over 2,000 surgeries at a hospital in the capital of Port-au-Prince.

This progress inspired Sarandon to step up her involvement over the years.

"I only put my name on the line for very few organizations, ones that I can personally vouch for," she says.

She warns others to think carefully before giving to organizations that have little to show.

"A lot of the money that has been raised has not been spent, so I'm very cynical about certain members of iconic [non-profit] organizations," Sarandon says.

"Seek out the ones that can show you what they've done. You have to do research — to know that the money you give to an organization will be well-spent, if spent at all."

(Courtesy photo:Susan Sarandon shares a smile with a young Haitian patient at the St. Damien's Children's Hospital in Haiti.)

Here is roundup of MLK Day of Service-inspired activities taking place across the country today:

The Corporation for National and Community Service awarded MLK Day of Service grants to six organizations to lead service activities on the day, supporting more than 300 projects nationwide to meet local needs, including:

• HOPE worldwide is mobilizing thousands of volunteers across the nation, focusing on fire prevention and preparedness. Partnering with a number of local Red Cross branches, HOPE worldwide is hosting fire prevention fairs, canvassing to raise awareness of fire prevention and conducting smoke alarm inspection and installation.
• Points of Light is focusing its efforts on meeting the needs of veterans and military families, activating more than 185,000 volunteers through subgrantee projects. From MLK Day America's Sunday Suppers focused on veterans and military members in local movie theaters in Central California to the nation's largest MLK service project in Philadelphia with more than 85,000 volunteers.
• Service for Peace is mobilizing more than 25,000 volunteers with a focus on engaging and helping veterans and military families across the country, focusing on a wide array of issue areas, including leading the MLK Jr. National Food Drive, school cleanups, house rebuilding and promoting and restoring community garden art. Through the 40 Days of Peace campaign, Service for Peace will be working to reduce bullying, crime and violence across America from Jan. 16 to Feb. 24.
• Mobilizing nearly 12,000 volunteers on more than 65 college campuses across the country, Wisconsin Campus Compact and its partners will focus on education, healthy futures, economic opportunity and disaster preparedness with events ranging from working with area food banks to hosting a community breakfast for local leaders.
• Youth Service America will engage at least 50,000 youth volunteers on MLK Day through partner and grantee schools and community organizations. Young people, ages 5-25, will serve as part of programs organized by 16 MLK Day Lead Organizers funded by CNCS as well as nearly 500 other YSA grant funded projects. Many of these grantees will use MLK Day as part of a Semester of Service™, an extended youth-led experience of at least 70 hours of learning and service.
• Cesar Chavez Foundation is mobilizing more than 6,000 volunteers throughout the Southwest and Western region of the nation, focusing on education through digital literacy programs, community educational events and service learning projects.

For further MLK Day of Service coverage, read "How MLK Day became a 'day on' for Americans."

While millions of Americans enjoy a day today off for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a growing number will spend the day lending a hand in their community.

[Read: MLK Day of Service inspires events across country]

MLK Day, originally designated a federal holiday in 1983 by President Reagan to honor the civil rights leader, morphed into the "King Day of Service" under President Clinton.

Interested in getting out to give back today? Here are some resources for you:



• The HandOn Network: Find volunteer projects across the country by ZIP code, join a Sunday Supper or find out how to start your own project. project.

• MLKDay.gov: Start a project or join someone else's on this special site hosted by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS).

• VolunteerMatch is great starting place for newbie volunteers looking for opportunities in their neighborhood.

• Serve.gov, part of President Obama's United We Serve program, can help locate an opportunity thanks to its volunteer search engine powered by All for Good.

• The MLK Challenge website contains resources for faith-based groups.

Readers: How are you planning to make a difference on MLK Day? Do you have any additional tips or resources we missed?

The following story ran this previous weekend in USA WEEKEND

Can a goat help Haiti, two years after a devastating earthquake? Catherine Russi has high hopes for hers.

Russi, 66, of Colchester, Conn., a champion of the Norwich-based Haitian Health Foundation, inspired residents of the nursing home where she works to raise $150 to sponsor a goat.

"A goat provides food in the form of milk and cheese. It's a sustainable solution to feeding the hungry, as it provides more than just one meal," says Russi, who has been a longtime volunteer in USA WEEKEND's Make A Difference Day. Her church won the day's top award in 2010.

"Cathy is a super volunteer. She does great work for us, and doesn't ask for anything in return," says Dr. Jeremy Lowney, HHF founder. "We count our success [in Haiti] one person at a time. Haitians are an industrious people. With just a little bit of help, they can do so much."

A few ways to help Haiti:

• For $150, give a goat to a family or sponsor a student's tuition, uniforms and books through the Haitian Health Foundation. For $750, give a family permanent shelter.
• For $28 a month, sponsor a child through Save the Children. Contributions are pooled to provide programs for all eligible children in an area.
• For $60 to Partners in Health, help a Haitian family boost food production, ending malnutrition.
• The earthquake damaged or destroyed 87% of the Haiti's schools. For $5, provide a month's supply of materials for an entire class of children, or for $15, provide a teacher with a one-day training course through Concern Worldwide US.
• Meds and Food for Kids (MFK) expects to open a new Haitian-built factory this summer that will expand production of the peanut-based Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) by ten-fold, estimated to feed 80,000 children per year. Donate to help MFK raise money for this new factory in Haiti at http://mfkhaiti.org/index.php/contribute/.
• Or, simply hold a bake sale or lemonade stand to benefit your favorite charity in Haiti. That's what actress Soleil Moon Frye and her daughters, ages 3 and 6, did last Make A Difference Day, raising more than $150 for J/P Haitian Relief Foundation.

Readers: Did we miss a way to help? Share your tips and suggestions below!

Ever since the devastating Haiti earthquake two years ago, actress Soleil Moon Frye wanted to do something to help.

The problem? She didn't know where to start.

[Read: 6 easy ways to help Haiti.]

It wasn't until she bumped into friend Sean Penn early last year that a light bulb came on. The actor, who founded the J/P Haitian Relief Foundation (J/P HRO) to provide relief and assistance after the quake, invited Frye to come and witness his organization's work for herself. It didn't take long for her to accept.

"A couple of days later, I got my shots and was talking to my daughters [ages 3 and 6] about going to help," says Frye, a.k.a. Punky Brewster of the hit '80s TV show. "My kids now look for every opportunity they can to help Haiti!"

(Photo credit: On a recent trip to Haiti, actress Soleil Moon Frye shares a laugh with J/P HRO's Dream Team volunteers at the Ecole de L'Espoir in Haiti.)

Fast forward one year, two trips to Haiti, a bake sale and lemonade stand later, Frye and her daughters are seasoned supporters, dedicated to helping Haiti rebuild.

What does Haiti need most today, two years after the quake? Frye recently shared her thoughts with us:

Read more »

Indulge yourself for charity. Doesn't that sound great?

It's practically become business-as-usual at America's hair salons and spas. A whopping 85 percent of spas now donate products and services to charities, according to a 2011 survey produced by the International Spa Association and Price Waterhouse Coopers. And 33 percent partner with local groups such as special needs or civic organizations.

The trend has grown beyond donating hair to cancer patients. One great example is The Littlest Spa in Natick, Mass. Every month, founder Amy Elizabeth collects everything from toothpaste to nutritious snacks from clients and donates the items to a different group, including after-school programs, homeless shelters and food pantries. In exchange, customers receive "karma credits," good for a discount on a skin care service or massage.

"We also have held fundraising days for women's health and cancer charities," Elizabeth says.

Charities and customers aren't the only ones benefiting. Elizabeth says her good work is a boon for business, too. Now customers in search of karma credits come from several towns away.

"Advertising is expensive," explains Elizabeth, who instead devotes her limited resources to building up the karma credit program. "The word has spread and now I do several treatments a day" where people bring items to donate and get a facial or reflexology treatment while they're at it.

Former first lady Laura Bush joined husband ex-president George Bush, along with daughters Barbara and Jenna, on a whirlwind trip to three countries in Africa last December to raise awareness for cervical and breast cancer. [Photo below: Former president George Bush, Laura Bush, Jenna Bush Hager, and Barbara Bush visit Girls Leading Our World (GLOW) in Lusaka, Zambia. (By Paul Morse.)]

We recently spoke with Bush about the couple's commitment to combating Africa's high cervical cancer rate with their $75 million Pink Ribbon Red Ribbon initiative.

Read more »

Laura Bush has a warning for Americans:

"In times of economic uncertainty, there is a tendency to draw inward," says the former first lady [at right, visiting a HIV/AIDS hospital in Ethiopia, Dec. 4 (by Jenny Vaughan, AFP/Getty Images)]. "That is a mistake."

Bush urges Americans to look toward Africa — specifically, its women — when it comes to giving. Her admonishment is part of a recent, revealing interview with Kindness.

We spoke with her about her commitment, along with her ex-president husband, George Bush, to combat Africa's high cervical cancer rate with the couple's $75 million Pink Ribbon Red Ribbon initiative.

"Yes, these countries are poor," Laura Bush says. "But they are working hard to work against these diseases. It's important for us to do what we can to help the African countries pick up the slack. And hopefully one day, they'll no longer need this help."

Read more »