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If you want to make money for your organization or charity, you need to know where you will be getting your money from. Of course, you will want to be able to appeal to a wide range of donors, but in fact you will get the most money by targeting donors.

You have seen this in action already in fundraising efforts you have likely observed: Cancer societies often appeal for donations from people who have lost someone to cancer; Girl Scouts target customers leaving grocery stores as these are likely candidates to buy a box of cookies. Targeting your audience and carefully planning where you will look for money will help ensure that all your resources all well-spent and that you get the best return on your time and effort investment.

So who gives money?

Plenty of people and groups are willing to give money to non-profit organizations that support a good cause. Some of the people and groups that offer money are:

Individual People or Donors: Many non-profits, especially the smaller ones, get much of their money from concerned individuals. People are extremely generous about supporting causes that they believe in. Some will donate just small amounts of money – sometimes just a few dollars at a time – that can quickly add up.

More affluent philanthropists may offer you large sums of money. No matter what your fundraising goals in the long run, you should spend at least some of your fundraising efforts trying to reach individual donors. Not only are these donors likely to support your group if your group seems to offer a legitimate help to society, but educating individual donors about the importance of your cause will help spread the word about your group’s mandate and programs.

The more individuals know about your group, the more your group is likely to thrive. Another benefit of individual donors, especially for the smaller non-profit, is that individuals are often quite community-minded. If you are a small group mostly interested in helping the local community, local donors are the ones most likely to be interested in – and supportive of – your group.

Companies: Industry is actually a big supporter of non-profits. The profits made by companies in your area are pumped back into the community in many ways – including through employment, taxation, and through direct donations. Browse through your local papers and look for articles about corporate or company donations and sponsorship.

You will notice that some companies and industries in your area are especially adept at contributing to charities and non-profit groups. In some cases, companies contribute in order to be a part of a community or in order to bolster their image in a community. In many cases, companies and industry give to charities because an owner or shareholders believe strongly in a cause.

Many companies and larger industries have a large amount of money, and in some cases they may be willing to share a small amount with a worthwhile cause. Even if you cannot gain on-going support from a company or industry, these sources are often great for individual donations or support. For example, if you are organizing a fair or sale, a company may be willing to grant supplies, volunteers, or money in exchange for some free advertising, which can be as simple as a large banner at your event proclaiming “refreshments generously provided by Acme Bakery.”

Governments: Local, state, and federal governments are a huge source of money for non-profit groups.

Other Charitable Groups: Non-profits often help each other. Larger organizations such as the Red Cross or United Way will often give support and even money support to local charities and groups doing similar work. Churches, schools, and local groups will often fundraise or gather donations for a group they believe in. There are also larger foundations and philanthropical groups, such as the famous Rockefeller Foundation, which exist solely to help other groups and individuals do charitable work. These groups can be a great resource, and, large and small, they should not be ignored.

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If you are debating a move to the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI) and the purchase of St. Thomas real estate or other VI islands, you may first want to learn something about the Caribbean culture.

The unique Caribbean culture of the USVI is composed of the heritage of its former inhabitants. Early USVI property owners included those from West Africa, Denmark, Spain, Ireland, Poland and Germany, as far back as the end of the 15th century. A large part of the Caribbean culture is reverberated in the USVI music. Here you will be plunged in cariso, calypso, reggae, soca and steel pan songs and melodies. Art is rampant in the local flavor of its drawings, paintings, photography and sculpture. Camille Pissarro, a noted Impressionist painter was but one of the achieved artists who owned property on St. Thomas and other USVI islands.

You will get a great look at Caribbean culture at the numerous festivities. On St. Croix Island there is a festivity called the Three Kings Day, St. Johns Island is the home of the USVI Fourth of July celebrations, and on St. Thomas Island is the yearly Carnival. There are tons of other celebrations annually which reflect the areas Caribbean culture.

Christopher Columbus discovered the U.S. Virgin Islands the year after he discovered the mainland in 1493. Possession all USVI real estate and the dominion of the area first went to the British, and then the Dutch, the French, the Spanish, the Knights of Malta and then the Danes. The United States purchased the Virgin Islands in the middle of World War one, for a payment of $25 million.

The history behind the Caribbean owners of St. Thomas property is engulfed in Caribbean history including the Pirates of the Seas and is best found at the island’s historic Fort Christian national landmark. The oldest structure on the islands, Fort Christian is in the town of Charlotte Amalie. Here you can visit the Virgin Islands Museum and research the memorabilia of early islanders. The Fort Christian Market Square has been a bustling market since the 1700’s. While food and other goods are sold there now, its first sales were of slaves. Emancipation Garden is near Market Square. It is named for Governor Peter von Scholten’s 1848 emancipation of the slaves. The oldest tabernacle in the U.S. that has persisted in continuous use is on St. Thomas as well.

Nearby Blackbeard’s Castle is a historical slice of Caribbean culture as well. It hovers over the small town, as it has since the 17th century. Once a bastioned castle called Skytsborg, it is today home to a hotel and restaurant.

Other interesting views of Caribbean culture can be found at Crown House on St. Thomas Government Hill. Still elegant, it was the home of the harbormaster and governor general of the West Indies when Denmark ruled the area. Seven Arches Museum, an additional bit of local Danish history, is a completely restored circa 1700 home, complete with slave billets.

Owning St. Thomas property is clearly buying a slice of history in a land engrossed in Caribbean culture.

GR is a retired Airline Captain who has been involved in real estate and building since childhood. Now, he is retired in the US Virgin Islands where he writes and does more marketing from home. A good place to learn about the islands and to find your home is http://www.StThomasLuxuryHomes.com

There’s more to taking care of your Hummels than you think! The value of Hummel figurines never goes down, only up – so it is important to know how to preserve your keepsake. Read on to learn some interesting facts about preserving the value of Hummel figurines.

The best way to clean your Hummel:
Over time your Hummels will be come dirty. There are a few important things you should know about Hummel Figurines before you clean them.

M. I. Hummels are made of earthenware, a type of ceramic. Any part of the figurine not protected by a glaze is able to absorb moisture.

These Hummels are also created with an air hole. These holes are usually in a spot where you wouldn’t notice. The reason for the hole is so gasses can escape during the firing process. If this hole was not there, the Hummel could be ruined.

The insides of the figurines are not glazed. If you put a figurine in water to clean it without covering the air hole, water can get inside. Once this happens, you will have moisture in the inside, which can gradually discolor the figurine. This discoloration process starts from the inside out and eventually the colors will start fading on the outside. So many people wonder why their Hummel’s colors fade even though they keep it out of direct sunlight. Little do they know it was because of the way they were cleaning it!

If you cover the air hole, cleaning with water should not hurt it. I would still be careful about leaving it in water too long though. Just be sure to use a mild soap or shampoo or just wiping with a soft cloth will do it.

Important – A Hummel figurine can be as slippery as ice when coated with soap and water. Clean over a surface that would protect the Hummel just in case it should slip out of your hands.

How to get rid of that silvery sheen:
Ever seen this? It looks like shiny spots and has a silvery look to it. No matter how hard you try, it cannot be removed! It’s called oxidation. It’s caused by re-oxidation of the metallic oxide paint used by Goebel artists to hand-paint the figurines. The oxidation can be caused by excessively damp storage or by wrapping the figurine in silk paper. How do you prevent this? Just make sure you store your Hummel in a dry cool place and avoid extreme temperature changes. Make sure they are wrapped in colorless foam or some sort of bubble wrap. But what if it’s too late? What if your Hummel already has this silvery sheen? How do you get rid of it? Well, you’ll be happy to know there is a cure! Professional refireing will restore the figurines to its original appearance.

My Hummel looks like it has spider webs growing on it:
Have you ever seen figurines that look like they have spider webs on them? This is usually a bigger problem than getting cracks or chips in your Hummel. Crazing is hairline cracks in the glaze on the Hummel. It doesn’t hurt your Hummel, but it’s not the prettiest thing to look at! To prevent crazing, keep your Hummel in an area where the temperature and humidity levels are fairly consistent. High humidity areas are not good because then we are back to the moisture problem, which can cause discoloration. Moving your Hummel from humid areas to dry areas back and forth will cause expansion and contraction and this is how the crazing begins.

How to keep your Hummel from discoloring:
Try not to keep your Hummel in direct sunlight. If your Hummel is displayed in a windowsill, move it! Direct light over time will discolor your Hummel. Also, take care in cleaning your Hummel. Make sure you cover the little hole we talked about earlier.

How to store your Hummels:
A lot of people like to store fragile items in newspapers. But I can tell you that this is one big “no no” for Hummel Figurines! Why? The ink from the newspapers will start to blend with the colors on your Hummel. Don’t get me wrong – this is something that can be fixed, but it’s time consuming and not all that fun!

The best way to store your Hummel is to keep the box and the padding to protect it. Always store this way if you can. If you don’t have the box anymore here’s what you can do:

Wrap the figurine well in something like colorless foam or bubble wrap. Try to put it in it’s own box if possible for the best protection. As I mentioned earlier, make sure that the Hummel will not be stored in an area where there are extreme temperature changes (crazing) or excessive humidity (discoloration).

Make sure when you are purchasing a Hummel from a retailer that it is coming from a secured cabinet. Retailers that care about their Hummels will keep them stored this way to prevent damage from customers constantly picking them up. How would you know if the Hummel you are buying does not already have moisture build up or damage on the inside? You probably wouldn’t. But making sure it is coming from a reputable retailer that takes care in displaying his merchandise will give you peace of mind. After all, Hummels don’t come cheap!

Evelyn Becker writes articles for Deutsches Haus http://www.deutscheshaus.cc which is located in St. Paul, Minnesota. Deutsches Haus offers German collectibles, souvenirs, gifts and foods.

To properly study the history of our modern wheelchair, we’ll have to go as back as ancient time, times when first men walked the grounds and to evaluate their first practical inventions.

So, scrolling back in human kind history, we come across an important event, around the year 4000 Before Christ, when two useful objects were supposing invented. One of these two is the chair, a place to sit on that was transportable, used to sit and eat, talk, socialize and to improve the early human houses.

The second important one would obviously be the wheel, a revolutionary discovery for mankind that allowed them to freely transport hunted animals or their assets and later even themselves. Archeological discoveries place both in the basin of the old Mediterranean Sea.

Later on, we are informed by history analyzers that an ancient Greek vase dated as back as 535 BC shows an image of a wheeled bed, a bed for children to be exact. Around the same period in china, an even breathtaking invention is revealed by some engravings: a chariot, used to transport important people that was, just as drawings show, a chair on wheels carried by an inferior ranged person.

The Chinese culture and religion seems to facilitate the process of evolution of wheelchairs, as we find out that in the year 200 they were forced to carry their immobilized to a place called Fountain of Youth. In order to do that, Chinese invented the wheelbarrow, a mobile bed carried by relatives or servants.

Further on in the history of wheelchairs we find Greek and roman testimonies about getting sick people out for walks in such devices.

Even Philip the King Of Spain in the time, had such a wheelchair that was being pushed by its servants making him able this way to do his chores and take his daily walks through the impressive palace gardens. Still, we have to wait until the 17th century to see a wheelchair that slightly resembles the modern ones.

It’s the first self controllable wheelchair ever built, designed and invited by a young man named Stephen Farfler. This is the point in history that started to divide antique wheelchairs into many categories, by design or functionality.

History of wheelchairs – the models

The bath chair originated in England had three wells, two big in back, one small in front

The seating wheelchair, from the 18th century, came to adjust comfort for the disabled. It looked like a luxury home chair, but with reclinable abilities, two big wheels on its sides and a small support wheel at its back

The lightweight wheelchair, developed in India from reeds

Herbert A. Everest developed in 1933, in Los Angeles, a metallic wheelchair that could be compared to an auto vehicle, powered by own motor, and with 4 wheels

Another important step was taken By Samuel Duke in 1934 that invented the folding wheelchair, used for transportation into other vehicles

From here on, the history of wheelchairs leads us to the modern wheelchair we all know, a sports object actually that has everything from comfort, fold abilities and speed, to great suspensions and looks.

Want more Wheelchair Histoy

http://www.wheelchairhelpcenter.info/