I Believe in Zero - 12 Days of UNICEF

So what does this blog have to do with Clay Aiken? Everything. It encompasses his heart and the pledge he made many years ago to use his new found celebrity to educate and bring some good into this world. He has succeeded ten fold - whether as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, The Bubel/Aiken Foundation or Broadway Cares. We have been blessed with his beautiful voice - not just singing, but bringing to light the needs of children both near and far.

25,000 Children die every day of preventable causes. 25,000 Children Every Day - those words have been echoing through my mind for several days. It boggles the mind - 25,000 Children from preventable causes. For example, Mosquito-borne malaria is the biggest single killer of children in Africa, where a child dies from malaria every 30 seconds. A simple mosquito net can decrease infection rates by 50 percent.




YOU can help (yes YOU!!) for $17.79 YOU can provide three mosquito nets treated with long-lasting insect repellent to protect children from mosquitoes and other biting insects. The simple provision of mosquito nets, together with UNICEF awareness campaigns, can really save lives and so can you!

As tight as things are for me right now, I am so thankful for everything that I am blessed to have - a roof over my head, health, my children growing, going to school, safe from war, disease and unimaginable poverty.

So now down to the nitty gritty. UNICEF has a new campaign, which began yesterday - 12 Days of UNICEF

"12 Days of UNICEF," a blogging campaign to encourage Americans to give back this holiday season with Inspired Gifts. Beginning December 19 and running through December 31, UNICEF celebrity Ambassadors and Supporters, including Lucy Liu and Clay Aiken, will post daily blogs on the UNICEF website about Inspired Gifts and their impact on children around the world.

To check out the field notes, go to:

UNICEF Field Notes

Need to know more? Here's the FAQs (and nothing but the FAQs)!!!!

UNICEF Inspired Gifts FAQ

Now no excuses, here's the link to

Start Shopping!!!!

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Clay Aiken Holiday Card

Clay Aiken wishes you Merry Christmas with Love!

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Clay Aiken & Everything I Needed to Know

Clay Aiken has taught me quite a bit in the past five years. Some of these lessons I knew, but Clay reinforced the ideals.

Clay Aiken is a different kind of celebrity - he cares. He defined his path early on in life and has not deviated from his goal. That goal? To lead a life of service.

Clay has proven in his actions that he is here to make a difference, to affect the lives of others in a positive way. Whether it's through his affiliation with UNICEF (UNICEF site) or his own foundation, The Bubel/Aiken Foundation (TBAF Site), he is making a difference.

One of the ways that Clay makes a difference is through education. Prior to American Idol, Clay's path was to become a special education teacher. In his book Learning to Sing, Clay points out that

"I was planning to teach in the classroom. I am still teaching. My classroom has just gotten a lot bigger."

This was true in 2005 and remains true to this day.

I have learned a lot from Clay Aiken, more than this blog can handle. I have learned about love and I have learned about hatred. I have learned that "family" comes in many shapes and forms. Clay puts this best when he writes of the couple who took he and his mother in after they left his biological father ~

"What I learned from Nanny and Pop, and their children, and all the folks who came to our aid in those difficult times, is that family is what you make of it. Family is about love."

Through Clay, I have found an amazing family on the Internet. These people come from all walks of life, every age, race, religion and political affiliation. What we have in common is Clay and through Clay, and what he has taught each of us, we are also making a difference. We have embraced his causes. We have given, volunteered, learned more and become active participants in this world. It feels good. It feels right.

With that, here's a little video about Everything that I Needed to Know I Learned from Clay Aiken. Hope you enjoy

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