CHARITY NAVIGATOR WATCHES and RATES CHARITIES

CHARITY NAVIGATOR - DOES YOUR MONEY GO WHERE IT SHOULD?

A dynamic site that lets you check out charities and has lots of great advice to help you be wise about your money when you donate!  As I see it, if a charity has five stars it is probably a great place to volunteer and meet people too!

SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME : SARAH VAUGHAN

From the YouTube poster of this great music video:

"Someone to Watch Over Me" is a song composed by George Gershwin with lyrics by Ira Gershwin from the musical Oh, Kay! (1926), where it was introduced by Gertrude Lawrence. It has been performed by numerous artists since its debut and is a jazz standard as well as a key work in the Great American Songbook.

Sarah's accompanied by Hal Mooney and His Studio Orchestra. Recorded New York, March 20, 1957. (EmArcy Records affiliate of Mercury Records)

AS YOU GET UNDER YOUR WARM COMFORTER TONIGHT THINK OF THE HOMELESS and HOMELESS TEENS ON THE COLD PAVEMENT OF CITY STREETS

NATIONAL COALITION FOR THE HOMELESS - YOUTH



EXCERPT:


The National Center for Housing and Child Welfare states there are between 1 million and 1.7 million homeless youth who have runaway or have been asked to leave their homes.

According to the US Department of HHS, 61.8% of homeless youth reported depression, 71.7% reported experiencing major trauma such as physical or sexual abuse, 79.5% experienced symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder for more than a month.


According to the US Interagency Council on Homelessness, 25% of former foster youth became homeless 2.5-4 years after exiting care. 


5% to 7% of American youths become homeless in any given year.
 
Homeless youth are evenly male-female, although females are more likely to seek help through shelters and hotline.


According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, between 6% and 22% of homeless girls are estimated to be pregnant.


75% of homeless or runaway youth have dropped out or will drop out of school.
Between 20% and 40% of homeless youth identify as LGBT.

Causes of Youth Homelessness

The causes of homelessness among youth falls into three, inter-related categories:

Family problems – Disruptive family conditions are the principal reason that young people leave home and many homeless youth leave home after years of physical and sexual abuse, strained relationships, addiction of a family member, and/or parental neglect.

• According to interviews conducted by the Street Outreach Program through the US Department of Health & Human Services, youth attributed homelessness to the following causes: 51.2% were asked to leave home by a parent or guardian, 24.7% were unable to find a job, 23.8% claim to be physically abused or beaten, or left due to caretaker's drug or alcohol abuse.  
• According to the National Conference for State Legislatures, Additionally, 17% of homeless youth were forced into unwanted sexual activity by a family or household member.

Economic problems – Some youth may become homeless when their families suffer financial crises resulting from lack of affordable housing, limited employment opportunities, insufficient wages, no medical insurance, or inadequate welfare benefits. Youth may become homeless while still with their families, but may be separated from their families by the shelter, transitional housing, or child welfare policies.

Residential instability – Some youth living in residential or institutional placements such as foster care, become homeless because they are discharged or emancipated with no housing or income support. One national study reported that more than one-in-five youth who arrived at shelters came directly from foster care, and that more than one-in-four had been in foster care in the previous year [National Association of Social Workers, 1992].

Taking Action

Homeless youth benefit from programs that meet immediate needs first, and then help them address other aspects of their lives.
Educational outreach programs, assistance in locating job training and employment, transitional living programs, and health care especially designed for, and directed at, homeless youth are also needed.
Homeless youth would benefit from many of the same measures that are needed to fight poverty and homelessness in the adult population, including the provision of affordable housing and employment that pays a living wage. In addition to these basic supports, the child welfare system must make every effort to prevent children from ending up on the streets.

Visit the National Campaign for Youth Shelter page to learn more!

Fact Sheets and Publications:  

• U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development - 2013 Point-in-Time Estimates of Homelessness 
• National Center on Family Homelessness - The Characteristics and Needs of Families Experiencing Homelessness
• National Center on Family Homelessness - A Framework for Developing Supports and Services for Families Experiencing Homelessness
• National Coalition for the Homeless - Youth Homelessness Fact Sheet
• U.S. Department of Health & Human Services: Street Outreach Program - Data Collection Project Executive Summary
• United States Interagency Council on Homelessness - Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness

Other Organizations

• The National Center on Family Homelessness
• National Network for Youth

THE MESSENGER IS SWIFT

JOHNNY MATHIS : TURN AROUND LOOK AT ME

I've always loved this oldie, recorded by so very many artists, but Johnny Mathis' smooth voice is just superb on this recording.  It's a very romantic song.

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ASCENT

JEAN MAALOUF on the HEALING POWER OF KINDNESS

Kindness holds the key to the secret of our own transformation and, in the process, of the transformation of the world.

JEAN MAALOUF, The Healing Power of Kindness

EARN AN ANGEL WING : MISTRESS MANIFESTO HOLIDAY 2016 EDITION

Did you know that every major religion on earth has a belief in Angels?  That means that most people on this earth have at least left the option open that they exist. Be you Catholic, Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist, or Moslem, there are angels. They are sometimes described differently; with wings, without, or simply as shining beings. They are often messengers or visitors, in dreams or while wide awake, and they sometimes give us a message (from God!) or save us from some danger. It's thought that everyone of us has at least one.  (As a child I was told to leave room in line for mine to walk back into school with me from recess!)

To prepare for this month's subject here at MISTRESS MANIFEST BLOGSPOT, I watch so many YouTube videos that claim to have caught angels on film.  Some of these videos are amazing.  I'm sure some of them truly caught angels doing rescues and some of them are enhanced or faked videos. 


I've been thinking about angels.

I'm not asking you to believe in angels or to pray to angels or even get into a debate over their existence on this earth or in heaven. I want you to be one, if not forever more, than just for this month, and if you can't earn two wings, earn one, by giving of yourself, either through volunteering or by opening your pocket book. At this time of year there are very many volunteer opportunities for people who cannot make long term commitments or don't have money to spare, and volunteering is known to be an excellent place to meet good people - maybe even a new man.  First I want you to self assess and ask yourself how selfish you've been, how self-involved and focused lately, and if being that way has brought you to jealousy, envy, meanness, or ingratitude. If you indeed have been more naughty than nice, turn it around and move towards helping someone else.


Don't think I've got my head in the clouds.  I'm completely aware of the terrible suffering in this world and sometimes I think evil violence has taken over.  



You can be someone's special angel secretly, not taking any credit at all, by sending a friend in need some cash, or by doing a little research to elect a charity that is doing what it says it's doing with the donations it receives.  (One of my friends, who was going through old boxes that had been delivered to her new apartment some time ago when she was just squeaking by, called me recently just stunned because she finally started to go through those boxes and found an envelope containing $500 in cash which she is 100% sure wasn't hers, knowing that someone who was doing the heavy lifting that day, had to have opened the lid and put it in there!)

You can also be a special angel through making donations, which are often tax deductible.  I'll be providing some links that I myself have chosen, with a focus on sex trafficking, slavery, and homeless teens.  Here at MISTRESS MANIFESTO BLOGSPOT you have the opportunity to read about a variety of women (and some men) who have been Kept by others, sometimes by choice (to me the best and only way to go circa 2016), but sometimes because choices were few, if any.  When a person is enslaved, their choices may be down to live or die.

Thanks for reading MISTRESS MANIFESTO BLOGSPOT.  It's been a successful year here. I've thoroughly enjoyed all the efforts that go into researching and writing this blog. At this time of year I reassess and feel satisfied that I did a good job.  While I never pick my topics just for the hits, it does feel good when a post gets lots of them.

I hope all of you will find happiness these holidays!

MIssy

YOU ARE MY SPECIAL ANGEL : THE VOGUES

What a lovely job this YouTube poster has done with the illustrations that go with the song "You Are My Special Angel." I chose this video over many others because of it.  The Vogues are one of my favorite Old School groups.  They were known for their harmonies.

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