Everyone wants to do good during the holiday season and this year, the Family Travel Network is participating in two major efforts to do good for others. One of these is Passports With Purpose, a fantastic collaborative online fundraiser with the goal of building a school in rural Cambodia through American Assistance for Cambodia (AAfC). The good news is that through this effort, online shoppers can do good and score great presents - all at the same time.
Passports With Purpose is the brainchild of four travel bloggers: Debbie Dubrow, Michelle Duffy, Pam Mandel and Beth Whitman. These talented writers decided to bring the online travel community together for a single purpose: to build a school to serve the youth and rural poor children in Cambodia with the help of AAfC. A total of $13,000 is needed to achieve this effort.
"One of the things I was struck by on my own visit to Cambodia was the strong spirit of hope, and the desire to rebuild both the intellectual society and successful economy that had been destroyed by the Khmer Rouge in the late '70's," said Debbie Dubrow. "This year, Passports with Purpose will establish a school in a rural area whose children have been deprived from any educational facilities."
Passports with Purpose's goal of building a rural school is a very worthwhile effort and the Family Travel Network is very excited to participate. Nancy Schretter, the Family Travel Network's Managing Editor, has donated a brand new iPod touch (retail value $199) to be raffled off to raise money for this cause. Dozens of other travel sites and blogs have donated prizes as well.
If you're interested in the iPod touch, or any of the many other great prizes available, go to the Passports with Purpose site (www.passportswithpurpose.com) and look review the list of available items. Then, simply purchase raffle tickets for the prizes you'd like to receive. Each raffle ticket is $10.
American Assistance for Cambodia is an independent non-profit organization with 501(c)(3) status and all funds raised will go directly to build a rural school. For more information on AAfC, visit www.cambodiaschools.com. The online fundraiser ends on December 21, 2009 and Passports with Purpose will announce the prize winners on January 5, 2010.
The Family Travel Network's other holiday initiative is Together for Good and its Tweet-Up for Good cruise on January 3-10, 2010. Founded by Nancy Schretter, Together for Good is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting giving back as part of the travel experience. For more information, visit www.togetherforgood.org.
