SEND HOPE --
Write HOPE on your Envelopes!
Send Hope Cards!

Yesterday, I had one of these "daaah, why didn't *I* think of THAT?" moments! Yep, me!

I read Peter Shankman's HARO daily... and read about HOPE IS IN THE CARDS. I clicked.. and WOW!

What is HOPE? Well, at it's simplest, it is, as the website says:

How simple is that? SEND HOPE -- And yet, how to reach folks and get 300 million messages of HOPE out there? Yes, 300 million!

It starts with YOU, and with ME -- with all Americans! As Nike Says, JUST DO IT and from me, PLEASE SEND HOPE!

Let me tell you about the Founder of HOPE Is In The Cards, Russ Haan!

Apparently, he woke up one day, in the gloom of our present economy and said LET'S MAKE HOPE! How can a single man do this? Don't quite know... but he certainly is! His story is here!

Russ is absolutely correct, as you all know... we can't simply sit in gloom and doom, we need to uplift each other to a better day (and we pray it comes soon!) HOPE is BORN of simple cards, and as pals we know what cards mean to someone who is ill, or a simple thoughtful message! HOPE will soon fill the backs of envelopes everywhere! (more about Russ at the bottom of this page!)

Imagine your postal carrier seeing HOPE, HOPE and MORE HOPE all over the backs of your envelopes.... and bringing the postal workers some peace in this crazy world too! SEND HOPE!

Visit the HOPE website Here... to learn more! Check out the HOPE PARTNERS, card companies and more that donated their cards, time, energy, and dollars to help this cause! Support them too!

Don't forget to print out my tuck in! Pass it along to pals in your letters so they can pass to their pals.. share the word, and get that HOPE flowing worldwide!

Please SEND HOPE!

Thank you! Wendy

As a website writer and hyper-pen-pal, I just had to email Russ! I asked him a few questions and thought I'd share the answers with you here. I'm sharing both to encourage anyone else out there to JUST DO IT (as Nike says), but also to SEE how One Man DOES IT!

"I own small design firm called After Hours Creative. Ten years ago I also founded a small greeting card company called Max & Lucy"

OK, this makes sense, he has a greeting card company so he knows this field! He chooses to use his energies (and his contacts in the greeting card world) to provide something for the greater good.. I like that! Check out Max & Lucy cards next time you see them!

Then I just asked WHY he did this, how did he even think of such an absurd goal of THREE HUNDRED MILLION CARDS!?

"When news and work started heading south, I just wanted to find a way to do something positive, so I used my experience with BOTH those industries and thus the idea was born. INSANE.... but I could either really give it a try,or just move on to something else. I decided that this was the right idea and the right time and that, of everything else I could do, this actuallymattered. So I just jumped... I mean seriously, the most I could lose would be things that were already in peril already. But if I could pull it off, then it would be brilliant for everyone.

By the way, the goal is 300 million.... ‹nothinglike going BIG)! I really liked the idea of one positive message to each and every American. Thus, the 300 million.

We did design some cool HOPE cards which are located at Amazing Mail so folks can use the art we created and make cards online, and we may offer the designs to some other card makers, but the key thing from my point of view is to get people to WRITE and MAIL right NOW!"

Finally, I asked WHERE he found all the energy? Hey, I want some too!

" In terms of the energy source ‹oh boy, I wish I knew)! I've always had a passion for things, and I've always wanted to tilt the planet just a wee, tiny bit in the positive direction. I just never thought it would happen this way...."

Kudos to Russ from HopeIsInTheCards.org!