I Didn't Vote For Him...

...but I appreciate his automated response.

I sent my two senators emails last week regarding the plight of Eric Volz -- a young man I went to high school with. Senators Alexander and Corker have web forms whereby you can submit email, comments, gripes, ideas, etc. I'm sure, directly to their inbox.

Senator Corker (or an aide or an automatic-reply script) took the time to write me back. Take a read below. And if you're so inclined, find your elected official and tell them what's on your mind.

March 30, 2007

Dear Mr. Moseley,

Thank you for contacting my office to share your concerns about the imprisonment of Eric Volz. Your opinion is important to me, and I appreciate the time you took to share your thoughts.

As you know, Eric Volz is a Tennessean who has been convicted and imprisoned in Nicaragua on murder charges. I have sent a letter in conjunction with other Members of Congress to Secretary Rice informing her of the situation and requesting the State Department's involvement to ensure a fair legal process. At this time, there is an appeal pending in the court, and a date for the hearing has not been scheduled.

I will remain vigilant to investigate the details of the case, and will be communicating frequently with the U.S. Embassy in Nicaragua to monitor Mr. Volz's safety. Thank you again for your letter. I hope you will continue to share your thoughts with me over the next six years.

Sincerely,

Bob Corker United States Senator

Initials/kr

The Clean Air Partnership

I just had a great meeting with Linda, who is with the Clean Air Partnership. Linda leads a life that tries to make the air we all share a little better to breathe. So, she volunteers a lot of time with this great organization to raise awareness among the rest of us as to the little things we can do to make a difference.

We'll be featuring some of their ideas in our 5 Minutes of Caring coming up. Until then, check out their place for ideas.

Also, see where your state ranks in terms of carpooling.

Radio Song

We're stopping short of calling it CoolPeopleRadio, but it's close.

Any by "close" I mean CoolPeopleCare will be on the radio each morning at 9:50 a.m. for approximately 60 seconds starting April 2.

It's a feature called "One minute of caring" that will be running on WRLT, Lightning 100 here in Nashville. It's content from our site as well as fresh, new content, in addition to preview content from our upcoming book.

Our Partners, Oasis Center are sponsoring the first 8 weeks of our one-minute-radio-show and for that we are grateful.

We're going to cram as much "good" into our 60 seconds each morning as we can. We'll highlight upcoming events, do short interviews with those in the community who are working hard to make a positive change, and hopefully offering a brief opportunity for individuals to pause and think about something other than the idiot driving in front of them or their TPS report cover sheet.

And, for those of you outside of 100.1's signal strength, they stream their radio programming in real-time on their web site. And if you miss it alltogether, we'll be running them here on "The Other Side of the Pillow" the week after they run on the radio.

So, stay tuned to 100.1 WRLT, Lightning 100, starting next Monday, April 2 for our new "One minute of caring" feature.

See you on the radio...

Rewind: Week of 3/19-3/23

Monday, March 19: Give Vision

Those old glasses that no longer work for you might be a perfect fit for someone else.

Tuesday, March 20: Tree Nation

Watch your tree grow hand-in-hand with possibility in Africa.

Wednesday, March 21: Set a Goal

Plan your work and work your plan.

Thursday, March 22: World Water Day

Today, think of those whose necessity is your luxury.

Friday, March 23: World TB Day

It infects 1/3 of the world's population.

Lionshare

I had the pleasure of meeting Dave Buehring today. Dave is the founder of Lionshare Leadership Group, an organization that trains people to be better leaders. His approach is distinctively Christian, but anyone could learn from his ideas.

Dave is someone who gets two of the major emerging trends relating to leadership, particularly in the nonprofit sector.

First of all, Dave understands that there is a void of leadership in the nonprofit world as many people who jump into the industry right out of college get burned out. And, with many other folks not jumping in until it's time for a second career, there is a clear void of quality leaders in their late twenties and thirties. Dave is training people to fill that gap.

Secondly, Dave understands that emerging generations are highly skeptical. Because people today are growing up in a post-Enron world, and because the easy dissemination of information due to the proliferation of technology makes it easy to poke holes in our leaders, trying to find someone who lives a consistent life and finishes well is nearly an impossible task. In steps Dave.

I thoroughly enjoy meeting people who get 'it.' These people make me glad to do what I do so that the world can be a better place.

If you are interested in more information about Dave and his organization, check out their website.

An Idea I Like: Charitable ATMs

I just read over on Philanthropy 2173 about charitable ATMs that have premiered in California. I think this is a smart concept.

Basically, at any ATM, the user can donate money to selected charities as part of their deposit or withdrawal transaction. This kind of convenience makes it easier for people to give to charities.

While convenience is a great feature of this endeavor, what I really love is the fact the big business is using its tools to make a difference. While some thing that more regulations and fewer profits are the answers to an increasingly greedy world where need is ever rife, I believe that simple motivation on the parts of large corporations can go a long way.

And this is a perfect example. An integrated system that is used by millions of people now has an added feature that benefits the sector of society that does great work. So, if you're near one of these, use it and let me know your thoughts.

Rewind: Week of 3/12-3/16

Monday, March 12: Your Air Filter

Make a regular habit of changing your filter in the name of efficiency.

Tuesday, March 13: Don't Lie

Can you not tell a lie?

Wednesday, March 14: End Potholes

Is there anything worse in the middle of the road than a pothole?

Thursday, March 15: Toothbrush Revolution

Here's how to make a difference with your thrice-used item.

Friday, March 16: All Those Hangers

Finally you can properly clean out your closet.

Spot Litterbugs

Claudia, a cool person, had this to say about our 5 Minutes of Caring for Wednesday of this week, "End Potholes."

I have been meaning to tell you how much I enjoy getting these emails every morning. Thank you for putting so much effort into them. I love the one today, because that’s what I do a lot. You can go on the internet and fill it out and they usually take care of it within a couple of days.

Something else car related is if you are driving and the driver in front of you throws a cigarette butt out of the window. There are post cards that you can get from Metro Beautification that allow you to records the car’s info and nature of offense. You then send it to Metro and they in turn send a letter to the culprit to make him or her feel bad about littering. I used to do that a lot and ran out of cards. I need to do it again. I have seen people throw all kinds of stuff out of their car, paper, cigarettes, chicken bones, you name it.

Thanks for the info, Claudia!

And remember, anyone can leave comments like these on any of our articles.

Read. Do. Interact.

Rewind: Week of 3/5-3/9

Monday, March 5: Check Your Bottom

Don't let energy and money escape through a closed door.

Tuesday, March 6: Learn the Heimlich

We hope you never need to use it, but be prepared - just in case.

Wednesday, March 7: Use Your Blinker

C'mon, people. It ain't that hard.

Thursday, March 8: World Kidney Day

Celebrate by giving yourself a check up.

Friday, March 9: Spring Checklist

There's more to do than just adjusting your clocks.

I Read a Book: Begging for Change

I just finished Robert Egger's great book, Begging for Change. I poured through it in about 3 days. Robert is someone who gets it.

By 'it' I mean the way things are going. In the nonprofit world, as he accurately points out, you’ve got to have one eye on the future and one eye on the present. You simultaneously have to know what needs exist today and what will be changing tomorrow.

This is no easy task, especially given the way nonprofits are structured today. Many are moving towards a more corporate look and feel to gain efficiency. While that may be beneficial in some case, it is not a blueprint for success for every organization. In the nonprofit world, nothing is cookie cutter.

Egger understands the trends that are emerging in this sector, and he goes deeper than pure analysis, offering suggestions and models for things that work. Having successfully begun not just a nonprofit, but an entire movement, Egger's voice needs to be heard by every nonprofit employee, executive, board member, volunteer, and donor.

He's also a nice guy. I had the pleasure of meeting him and briefly sharing some ideas together a few weeks ago in Birmingham. He clearly understands the need to engage young people in philanthropy, and knows that to do so, different tools are needed.

This is a book well worth reading, especially if you work or volunteer regularly in the nonprofit world. I'll be sharing some of Egger's ideas, as well as my own, this Thursday. So, if you're interested in learning more about some emerging trends for nonprofits, as well as how volunteers can help transition great organizations, then you should come to lunch.

What It's Like to Write a Book: Volume 1

This fall, CoolPeopleCare will offer our first book, New Day Revolution: How to Save the World in 24 Hours, published by Xyzzy Press.

As work progresses on the book, I'll be chronicling the process. Writing a book was always a pipe dream, something I hoped would happen one day. I even went so far as to write three chapters for one concept I had, but never did anything past that, mainly because like many of us who have jobs, families, and other responsibilities, things just got in the way.

But now that there's a publisher who wants to print this, a contract that's been signed, and a concept that works, off we go.

Our relationship with Xyzzy is something that has happened randomly, like a lot of things with CoolPeopleCare. Once we began the site and began to tell people about it, it caught on pretty quickly. We thought there were lots of folks who wanted to make a difference, but just needed to be pointed in the right direction. As different entities found us, we offered T-shirts, an idea for Lent, and now, a manual for changing the world.

We like Xyzzy for lots of reasons. They're a start-up, like us. They aim to publish books that make a difference. They want to get the right stories into the hands of the right people and make the world a better place. We have access to the president of the company. We have an equally vested interest in seeing this book succeed. We're equally enthusiastic and equally as eager.

Once contact was made, we began to dream together. What could a book look like? What do people need? What story can we tell? How can we best do it?

And, after a few meetings, we had an idea. Everyday, we all wake up, and each of us gets 24 hours to use as we please. Some of us will use the circumstances and choices of the day to better our own causes and serve our own self-interest. Some of us will selflessly live all 1440 minutes in service to someone else. But most of us will walk a middle ground as we take care of our responsibilities and make a difference in the process. But it's not always something easy to do or that's easily spelled out.

Until now (hopefully).

This book will offer over 100 practical ideas for you to use each moment of each day to save the world. We're not all Jack Bauer, running around, defusing nukes and keeping America safe. We're also not all Mother Teresa, living and dying with the poor all around us. Most of us have utility bills to pay, children to raise, and jobs to do.

But we've all got five minutes. And we all drive somewhere. And we all go shopping. And we all spend time at home. And we all sleep. And we all get dressed and ready for our day.

And now we'll show you how to use those everyday activities to save the world, especially if you do them over and over again, accompanied by a host of revolutionaries around the world.

We really can save the world in 24 hours. And we're writing the book to prove it.

A sample chapter is done and will soon be sent to a designer and editor. Stay tuned here for updates as we progress on this nervously exciting journey.

Rewind: Week of 2/26-3/2

Monday, February 26: Buy a Bulb

Channel your generosity to make your favorite place energy efficient.

Tuesday, February 27: Pull Forward

Don't be a backer-inner or backer-outer.

Wednesday, February 28: Your Own Stirrer

Pack your own tools when visiting the coffee shop.

Thursday, March 1: Write (A Lot)

Lots of letters can really stack up on one person's desk.

Friday, March 2: Read Across America

Celebrate Dr. Seuss' birthday by reading one of his classics.