If you have an old bicycle that you're planning to throw away or one that's sitting in your garage that you're not using, donate it to charity instead!  You can give your bike to a homeless person or to one of these organizations:

www.bikesacrossborders.org

www.bikesfortheworld.org

www.workingbikes.org

Sunday, September 21 is National Neighborhood Day.  On this day or on any day of the year, plan a neighborhood gathering in order to get to know your neighbors -- close-knit neighborhoods have lower crime rates, and neighborhood get-togethers can be lots of fun!  You can also include a charity project in your neighborhood party!

Visit the National Neighborhood Day website at www.neighborhoodday.org.

There are many applications that you can add to your Facebook profile which benefit charity!  The applications mentioned in this episode are Greenbook, Save the Earth, (Lil) Green Patch, FreeCause.com's Pink Ribbon, More Rice, and Save the Rainforest.

You can give your partially used, unwanted, or expired gift cards to charity!  The Salvation Army, battered women's shelters, and homeless shelters can use gift cards to buy supplies for people in need.

Here are the websites of other charities mentioned in this episode that you can donate gift cards to:

www.thethankyoufoundation.org/contribute.php

www.rmhc.org

www.chemoangels.net/Donation%20Pages/donate_giftcard.htm

Express your opinion about any issue that matters to you by calling, writing, emailing, or visiting your elected officials!

You can look up current bills at http://thomas.loc.gov.  To find contact information for your members of Congress, visit www.senate.gov and www.house.gov.  You can also call your representatives by dialing the Capitol Switchboard, 202-224-3121.