Vacations are for Doing Good

Summer is vacation time for many of us in the US of A, especially families with kids on break from school. This Fourth of July weekend, perhaps you're running the numbers to determine how far a tank of $5 per gallon gas can take you. Let me break it down for you: not far. However, I think we can recognize the bounty our lives offer. Which got me thinking not about my own vacation plans, but about the nonprofits that create unforgettable experiences for children who can't otherwise afford it.

Readers of the New York Times are likely familiar with The Fresh Air Fund, a nonprofit backed by the newspaper. Inner city children experience the countryside through family stays and camps, sometimes the first trip the children have taken out of the city. Farther afield is Boston-based My World, a nonprofit started by Peace Corps volunteers who wanted their students to experience the natural wonders of Africa usually reserved for well-to-do Western tourists. Through the program, Tanzanian children visit national parks and conservation areas; those trips bolster a curriculum that connects lessons in geology, physics, and conservation with the giraffes, craters and mountains they see. So before you hit the road or fly the friendly skies, consider supporting one of these fine programs. $100 — the cost of dinner and drinks here in San Francisco — pays for one child's My World expedition. Through The Fresh Air Fund, it's easy to set up a $35 monthly payment that may fund a child's first opportunity to swim in a lake or see The Big Dipper.