Bay Area Citizen Article and other positive press!
Since beginning this project Houston Chronicle online posted this picture and the following article. The article was then printed in the Bay Area Citizen. Later two magazine articles were written about this project, one in Contact Magazine and one in Unity Magazine. I have also recieved the Pride of Pageantry award for this effort. I encourage all of you, to reach out and realize that you can make a difference!!
Article: A 13-year-old beauty pageant winner makes her mark in the community by challenging others to perform random acts of kindness with her Give A Gift program.
Emily Avera, a Pasadena resident and member of a Webster church, is the 2008 South Texas Dream Girls USA pageant winner, and she said she plans to do a lot of good during her reign.The pageant is not solely about looks and Avera said she and her mother signed up right away when they realized it was just what they were looking for.The pageant requires 40 hours of community service, an on-stage personal introduction and an essay about why the contestant is proud to be an American.
Avera created the Give A Gift and Pass It On service project to encourage people to think of others who are less fortunate.
The idea is to take $5 and use it to brighten someone else’s day and in turn, help someone in need, regardless of the level of need.
Avera encourages participants of her program to provide feedback about how the $5 was spent and to describe the reaction of the receiver. That way, Avera can monitor the success of her program.
Buying a flower for someone who is having a bad day, a meal for a homeless person or greeting a new friend or neighbor with a sweet treat are some of the suggestions Avera gives for what to do with the $5.After one person completes a good deed, Avera asks that the receiver is also told about the project so he or she can carry out the same act, by spending just $5 on someone else who could use a bit of cheer. The idea is to keep the cycle of kindness going.“The point of the project is that one good deed inspires another,” Avera said.
The project began when Avera used the $250 prize money she won in the pageant and distributed it in $5 in incrememts to “church members, a local sorority chapter and other groups.”When her money ran out, Avera said she received an outpouring of support from others who offered to donate $5 toward the project, and the $5 Give A Gift challenge was born. Avera said she encourages her family, friends and neighbors to take part.
“I really want it to have a good effect on a lot of people,” Avera said. “My mom (Christy Harper) did it while she was in New York on a business trip, and my stepdad works in China and he does it all the way over there.”Harper said she is very proud of Avera and how she has embraced this project and the idea of giving.“This project was her idea and I thought it was a great use for her prize money.” Harper said. “I also feel like she really understands that anyone can make a difference and that even a little gift or act of kindness causes a ripple effect that can be far-reaching.”
Avera said she started at a very young age getting involved in charities because her older sister does a lot of volunteer work for things like multiple sclerosis, and Avera “used to help a lot with that and also with The Bridge, making packages for the soldiers in Iraq.”Harper said she is heavily involved in this project with her daughter.“I am her photographer, organizer, chauffer, proofreader, cheerleader and sometimes her coach, when she lets me, and of course her biggest fan,” Harper said.
Avera attends Unity Christian church in Webster, where many members participated in her gift program.Avera said another acitivity she is involved in is the drill team, the Starlettes, where she is lieutenant colonel.
She is also in journalism this year, at Fairmont Junior High a new venture, and she has also been selected by her school to be a VIP Viking Instructional pal, which let's her be a mentor to a younger student.
“I want to encourage everyone to try the Give a Gift challenge,” Avera said. “Do it every week or even every two weeks. I like helping people and it’s just fun. I like to know that every little bit helps make a difference in the world.”
For more information about the Give a Gift challenge or to tell Avera the results of your Give a Gift effort send her an e-mail to lilemily010@sbcglobal.net or to Christy Harper at christy.i.harper@sbcglobal.net.