And Other Duties as Assigned

There is a wonderful tradition in St. Louis called Old Newsboys Day. Before I was in the know, I thought all of those people standing on corners trading newspapers for money were former newspaper "boys." The real deal is that those corners are staffed by non-profit organization volunteers, staff and in some cases, the executive director. I got up at 5:30 a.m. this morning, bundled up in all of my outdoor gear and met Jackie, one of the team members here and we stood on a busy intersection and "sold" special edition papers. We collected $406.00 for the Old Newsboys organization. They then distribute the money collected to 249 (I counted) local charities. Picture this: it is freezing cold, and there you are, dodging cars, looking for rolled down car windows with a dollar bill being waved at you. Your challenge is to dart out there, grab the dollar, hand the driver a paper, thank them and do it all over again. It is a very humbling experience; an experience that allows people of all income levels to be a part of the giving community. Very satisfying indeed.