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1 tweet, $1

Last week, we (the brave, intelligent and hilarious SCBB summer interns) set out to start conversations with our twitter followers over @SmallCanBeBig. We asked one simple question: What is something small that's had a big impact in your life? With every tweet, retweet, and mention, a dollar was donated to a family who had fallen behind on their utility bills and are currently facing shutoff. For them, it means the possibility of no hot water or a stove on which to cook meals. For us, it was a call to action to help reverse their course.

When we launched the campaign, we weren’t sure how people would respond. Deep down, we had our fears and insecurities (we are just interns after all) that our campaign would flop. Fortunately, and a BIG thanks to you, that was not the case.

You shared impactful quotes and moments that mattered, and we loved hearing about them! With your help, we raised over $100 for Ms. S and her two children. She is now one step closer to paying off the debt and getting back on her feet.

Here are some of our favorite contributions:

Our next BIG thing: a chance to reach a much much wider audience. To help, click http://bit.ly/16viwDZ and be a part of a large twitter blast that will share the SmallCanBeBig story on a HUGE scale. We can't wait, but we need your help! If you have any questions please email [email protected]

Cheers,

Eliza, Jackie, Mikaela & Tim, the SCBB Summer Intern Team

Today, we're turning tweets into donations

Helping a family has never been so easy.

Tweet @SmallCanBeBig something small that has made a BIG impact in your life. A generous donor has offered to match every tweet received with a $1 donation, up to $250.

It’s no secret we believe the smallest things, when shared together, can have a big impact. We’ve seen it in the hundreds of thousands of dollars raised, by you, for families facing homelessness. We’ve seen it firsthand in the hundreds of families who have gotten a second chance because of our help. It’s BIG.

Your tweet will not only raise a dollar for a family in need, but it will also automatically enter you into a raffle for the chance to win awesome local gift cards (free food!). In the meantime, welcome to the conversation. We look forward to talking with you.

Cheers,

The SCBB Summer Intern Team

THIS Is the Bee's Knees

A very generous donor just emailed to let us know what's up: 'Around December I decided I wanted to do a personal SmallCanBeBig campaign of my own. I've committed (read as: set aside money and made a list) of close friends, near and far, who I will send the 'Bee Big' poster to each month for 2013. Just to see what happens. I have not told anyone this and don't intend to tell my friends who are on my list either.' We love it. And if you mysteriously get a beautiful bee poster in the mail this year, perhaps it's because someone thinks you're awesome!

A pep talk: 'Create something that will make the world awesome...what's your Space Jam?'

Must-see: Brooklyn Castle tells the stories of five members of the chess team at a below-the-poverty-line inner city junior high school that has won more national championships than any other in the country. The film follows the challenges these kids face in their personal lives as well as on the chessboard, and is as much about the sting of their losses as it is about the anticipation of their victories.

bijan

Copley Square, Boston.

(Leica M9-P| ISO 400, 1/30, f/1.4, 35mm)

scbb-blog

Captures the cold! MA shelters like Pine Street Inn and Father Bill's have 'winter protocol' meaning area's homeless are not turned away for beds and can stay in during the day when temps drop below 32.

Guest post! Wonder Women of Boston

Wonder Women of Boston is a host of events that serve as an opportunity for women of all ages and backgrounds to meet each other, learn about each other's work, and make new, valuable connections. Most events have a suggested donation of $5-$10 benefiting our Community Partners. As an individual and a small business owner I am continually thinking about how my product and my vendor choices have a lasting impact on the earth and my own community. I believe it is possible for companies to be both profitable and accountable to social good. One of the primary ways I, as a small business owner, spread the word about smart consumption is by highlighting the work of people and organizations that share my values and improve our community. Wonder Women of Boston is not different and has focused on charitable giving as a compliment to networking and professional development.

We feel that as you develop in your life and career you should help others do the same. We are able to raise a small amount of money at each event. Although $5 as an individual does not seem like a lot, collectively event attendees generate around $500, which make an important contribution to the work done by our Community Partners. We are delighted to partner with SmallCanBeBig and know that the money we raise helps with the immediate need of a Boston family.

As founder of the Wonder Women of Boston network, Jeanne Dasaro helps women leaders, artists, and professionals of diverse backgrounds connect with and support each other. She is a Boston-based storyteller, activist, and event coordinator.

People who give money to charity end up wealthier than those who don't give to charity. After doing complex number crunching to control for different variables, a researcher concluded that charitable giving isn't just correlated with higher income; it actually causes higher income. Some explanations for this surprising effect include the brain stimulation caused by charitable activity and also the fact that those who are seen behaving charitably are likely to be elevated to leadership positions.

Excerpted from The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin, one of our new favorite thought leaders on this sort of thing for obvious reasons.

SCBB profiled in WSJ Sunday story, 10/28/12

Due to the new emergency shelter regulations, children are being denied shelter when they have no safe place to sleep at night. Children and their families are sleeping in cars, showing up at hospital emergency rooms and sleeping in places unfit for human habitation, after being denied access to shelter. This is unacceptable. Massachusetts can and must do better.

REMINDER: Hearing on Family Shelter regulations on Thursday, October 25, 2012 – 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM via Homes for Families blog

M is a single mother of 5 children who became homeless and has temporary housing. She has very much wanted to enroll in the COMPASS Community College Collaborative employment program but could not get after-school care for her son who needs an aide - and the school system would not provide this service. With SCBB funding an aide was hired, allowing M to attend the CCCC, her son to be in a top quality early childhood program with appropriate services - AND the aide hired to care for M's son is also a CCCC graduate, who herself has an autistic son, and who is now working in her desired field, early childhood education.

-Jodi Hill, Executive Director at COMPASS for Kids and COMPASS Community College Collaborative

Have you done something BIG lately?

#the power of one #our communities #family goals

This is the story of Caine's Arcade, a 9 year-old little boy with a big imagination we only thought existed in Calvin and Hobbes. Caine's dad recalls how his son sat outside every weekend over the summer, patiently waiting for just one customer to buy a $2 Fun Pass. Finally, there was one customer - and that one customer made a BIG difference for this little boy.

When we saw this short film the story connected with us beyond our own memories of cardboard creativity. We connected because it's about someone else believing in our simple dreams, and as we've seen here that can mean BIG things happen! The story of Caine's Arcade is about the power of imagination. The power of a small $2 Fun Pass. The BIG power of one.

#caine's arcade #American dream #power of one #donation #imagination #Calving and Hobbes

A different view of families who live 'on the edge'

B.J. Epstein's Huffington Post article "Shutting Windows: Against Cultural Boycotts" urges readers to engage with cultures different than their own to prevent the idea of 'shutting the window.' "Shutting the window leaves us sitting at home alone, by ourselves, ignorant, hating and fearing what is outside without ever daring to take a peek."

These days there is at least one article in every major newspaper about families living in poverty. We have written countless tumblr posts complete with graphs about homelessness. We can learn all about the facts and figures but it's difficult to engage with numbers. On the other hand, it's easy to engage with people. Let's learn about the goals, dreams, families, and routines of those going through a tough time. Chances are great that we will find something in common.

#homeless prevention #poverty #cultural engagement #culture boycott #commonality

Nine year-old Caine builds an arcade out of cardboard at his dad's used auto parts store. Cue flashmob & the best day of Caine's life. The power of people to have an impact on one. How big is that?

Source: NPR

Guest Post: SCBB Teams Up with Mind/View Films

SmallCanBeBig, Read Between the Lines and Mind/View Films are teaming up in an effort to raise funds for a new film while simultaneously helping families. The feature film, Electric City, will be directed by award winning filmmaker, Nick DeRuve and produced by Roger Moran of Mind/View Films.

Electric City is the story of a local economy that flounders when a big business moves on to another town. In a more personal way, it’s about a thirteen year-old attempting to keep his family intact when they receive a final eviction notice. Today, this is unfortunately a narrative of national relevance.

I was presented the script by Nick DeRuve last year. As the writer and director, he was driven to write and get this story on film because he lived it. 'On the edge' was how he was raised, it was the environment in which he grew up. He took all those elements in his life and molded it into a story. He has been evicted before in his life, and he’d had to worry about his family's financial stability as a kid.

As soon as I read it, I was emotionally attached because of how I was able to relate. I grew up in Paterson, a pretty rough and low-income city in New Jersey. My parents worked hard all their life to make sure I didn't have to worry, but it wasn't always the case. Like a lot of parents, they struggled at times to make ends meet. Particularly, a couple of years ago when the economy hit a low. Financially, things became difficult and we couldn't keep up with payments. Their house is currently going through foreclosure.

Nick and I both met and had the passion to tell this story because, to us, it truly hits home. We both want to make this film as a way of giving back to our families and inspiring other families to keep aspiring.

With that premise in mind, we felt it was only right to attempt to make this film while at the same time helping families in need. It’s a common issue today; we all know someone who has been affected by the threat of foreclosure or eviction. Mind/View Films and Nick's company, Read Between the Lines, have always had a shared mission of making films about social issues.

Our goal is to raise $50,000 through our IndieGoGo campaign. $.20 cents of every dollar raised will be donated to SmallCanBeBig. This is just the beginning of a long relationship with SmallCanBeBig, we look forward to involving the film industry and raising awareness for families who live on the edge.

The film will be shot this summer in the director’s hometown of Schenectady, NY. Check out our page here.

Respectfully, Roger Moran Mind/View Films, LLC

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