Giving Back

I love Chef Catalog--perhaps too much! I love looking at the new kitchen gadgets and, in some cases, buying them. I pay special attention to the items that carry the SOS icon, indicating that when they are purchased, a portion of the sale goes to charity. Giving back is important, whether it is by purchasing kitchen equipment, donating to hunger outreach programs, or volunteering at a soup kitchen. Sometimes I think the need to give back--to do good--is almost as basic as the need to eat and fulfill our other biological needs.

I'd like to take this opportunity to let you know about another way you can give back. All of us remember the heartbreaking images we watched on television or saw in magazines and newspapers of the destruction caused in Southeast Asia by the tsunami of 2004. We barely had time to catch our breaths when Mother Nature sent us a message that we in the United States were not immune from her fury. The aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita have changed much of that region--and of ourselves--forever.

It is my honor to work for a publisher who feels the need to give back, to do good works, with what she does. From her vision, Village Earth Press was born. Books published under this imprint will benefit organizations doing good around the world. Profits from the books will be shared with these organizations, and directed toward the next project that will make a difference.

I am happy to announce the publication of the first book under the Village Earth Press imprint. In 2005, our publisher and director of photography traveled to Thailand to document tsunami recovery efforts. Later that year, they visited the U.S. Gulf Coast, witnessing efforts there to bring life to a new sense of normalcy. The Gift of Hope in the Wake of the 2004 Tsunami and 2005 Hurricanes is the result. Eloquent prose combines with evocative photographs to tell the story of regions and cultures rebuilding. Most important, it tells of the triumph of the human spirit.

When you purchase a copy of The Gift of Hope, one-third of the purchase price will be donated to Habitat for Humanity and Give2Asia, two organizations working with residents to rebuild lives. The book can be preordered at the Village Earth Press web site: http://www.villageearthpress.com.