Valentine’s Day isn’t just candy hearts, cute cupcakes and Hallmark cards. If you take into account the statistic that 1 out of 3 women will experience violence in her lifetime, you are left with the staggering reality that over 1 billion women on our planet will be impacted by violence. In every country, every neighborhood, maybe even every family.
What’s a girl to do? Well, this week, Thelma thinks you should dance! Join the V-Day revolution called ONE BILLION RISING. The promise and premise? That on Valentine’s Day, February 14th, millions of women and men will gather to dance and demand an end to violence against women and girls. V-Day, founded by Eve Ensler of Th
e Vagina Monologues fame, is a 15 year old global activist movement and the leading organizer of ONE BILLION RISING.
Yes, dance! Sign up or Watch a Rising here Why Dance? It breaks the rules. Remember Footloose? Dancing can happen anywhere at anytime with anyone. Or alone. It’s free. No corporation can control it. Dancing joins people together. Like laughter, it’s contagious and spreads quickly. In some places, women will dance to take back control of their lives. In others, women will risk their lives to dance. Start or stage a Rising. Dance for Malala Yousafzai. Dance for India. Rise for a world where women are safe, free, equal and cherished.
If you can’t dance, spread the word. Sign Up. Read More. Watch the V-Day short film – it’s disturbing (violence/abuse), it’s 3 minutes long, and it will leave a lasting impression. Watch it here.
So, Thelma thinks we should all do something different for Valentine’s Day – let’s help shake the earth!
Thelma Says…Shake It, Baby. Strike. Dance Rise!
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billions – yes, BILLIONS – of dollars of pro bono and skills-based service to address core issues our communities face across the country and around the world. The goal? Transform how businesses leverage employees to make a lasting social impact by engaging, inspiring and mobilizing professional talent to build the capacity of non-profits.
Tick tock…five more shopping days left to find that perfect Christmas gift. ‘Tis the season to give and give back, so here’s something special from a New England sister/brother entrepreneur team. 
Turkey Day. Check. Ate too much. Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Check (and as much as you hate the name, today’s new moniker is here to stay).
It’s that time of year…ghosts, goblins and little Lady Gaga’s are everywhere. So are pumpkins, peanut butter cups and even some pranks. Before all the Halloween hoopla passes, check out this meaningful twist on the typical trick-or-treat bounty. It’s candy for a cause – 
Sunday morning (10/7/12), over 45,000 runners kicked off the 35th Bank of America Chicago Marathon. Besides attracting elite runners, first-timers and all those in between, the Chicago Marathon – and such races in general – have become big business for charity. Last year, the Chicago Marathon raised $13.4 million for a host of non-profits, local and international causes. For the thousands of runners who choose to make their Chicago Marathon experience more meaningful by running on behalf of a charity, Thelma salutes and thanks you. In total, they have raised more then $80 million through the Charity Program – an impact that extends well beyond the finish line.
To
day’s 5th place men’s finisher and winner of the 2012 Boston Marathon, Kenyan runner Wesley Korir is one such participant. ”Running is just a stepping stone,” he said. Wesley has seemingly hit his stride by combining his passion for running and helping others through 
On October 1 & 2, “Half the Sky” comes to us again – this time in the form of a special, two-night presentation of Independent Lens premiering on PBS.
Flash back to today…
Tasty Treats that Give Back – 
Sing For Hope – In June, Sing For Hope founder and opera soprano Monica Yunus performed at the 2012 Nobel Laureate World Summit in Chicago, where her father was one of over 20 Nobel Laureates in attendance. See her here -> 
MetroSquash – New Graduates from the Chicago program are off to college this fall. Smashing barriers with squash continues with summer and fall events at 
Liberace Foundation – The Scholarship Program that has awarded $6 million in music scholarships since 1976 is temporarily on hold, while 
Thelma knows her readers are a multilingual, multicultural bunch. So, you too may be suprised to learn that languages are disappearing at an unprecedented pace. Yes, languages are an endangered species. Experts believe 50% of the world’s 7,000 languages are at risk of disappearing in the next 100 years.
share samples of and research languages under threat. The