In our daily task of researching and writing about disaster preparedness and response, we understand the reality of preparing for the worst. However, we often remind ourselves that "the worst" is only a narrow slice of the world we live in.

During this holiday season, we want to take time out to focus on a very different kind of 'emergency response.' There are people choosing to respond in ways that can inspire us all to ask "Are we doing enough? Could we make room for one more?"

We know some families in the Nashville area who have made room in their homes by adopting children from African orphanages. We wanted to find out more, and that's how we learned about Gwen and Suzanne.

They call themselves "two moms who love orphans" and met when they were both in the process of their first adoption. Today, between the two families they have 13 children. And together, Gwen and Suzanne founded 147millionorphans.com, a site dedicated to raising awareness of the millions of orphaned children worldwide.

Among their many initiatives, these two young American women produce T-shirts to help adoptive families generate the funds they need, help Ugandan women achieve a sustainable income from handmade necklaces, and partner with churches to help grow their ministries. And with every life they touch, the world becomes a better place.

Inspired by Gwen and Suzanne, we encourage everyone to look at the world through an alternate lens. There are many realities out there, and infinite ways to make a difference (for starters, you'll find great ideas at 147millionorphans.com).

All the best to you and your loved ones this holiday season, and thank you all for reading our Continuity e-GUIDE this year. We look forward to joining you again on Wednesday, January 13th, 2009.

The Continuity e-GUIDE team

There are many outstanding programs offering both outreach to others and disaster relief across the globe. Here, we are spotlighting just a few of those organizations that are making a difference. In addition to the organizations we've highlighted, we have also provided a comprehensive list of many more organizations that need our help. We urge you to consider making a commitment to the organization of your choice.

AmeriCares
www.americares.org

A non-profit disaster relief and humanitarian aid organization, AmeriCares provides immediate response to emergency medical needs, as well as supporting long-term humanitarian assistance programs for all people around the world. AmeriCares works both nationally and internationally for disaster relief, and recently airlifted $1.2 million in supplies to Darfur.

Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption
www.davethomasfoundationforadoption.org

The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption is a non-profit charity dedicated to increasing the adoption of the more than 150,000 children in North America's foster care system. The foundation's vision is that every child will have a permanent home and a loving family, and its mission is to dramatically increase the number of adoptions of waiting children in North America.

Feeding America
www.feedingamerica.org

Did you know that one in four people in a soup kitchen line is a child? Feeding America (formerly America's Second Harvest) is the nation's largest charitable hunger-relief organization. It provides a network of more than 200 regional member food banks and food-rescue programs and serves all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. The America's Second Harvest Network secures and distributes nearly 2 billion pounds of donated food and grocery products annually.

Habitat for Humanity
www.habitat.org

Habitat for Humanity International seeks to eliminate poverty housing and homelessness from the world, and to make decent shelter a matter of conscience and action. Habitat has built more than 200,000 houses around the world, providing more than 1,000,000 people in more than 3,000 communities with safe, decent, affordable shelter. Habitat builds and rehabilitates simple, decent houses with the help of the homeowner (partner) families and then sells the houses to partner families at no profit, financed with affordable, no-interest loans.

Humane Society of the United States
www.hsus.org

The Humane Society of the United States is the nation's largest animal protection organization representing more than nine million members and constituents. The non-profit organization is a mainstream voice for animals, with active programs in companion animals and equine protection, disaster preparedness and response, wildlife and habitat protection, animals in research and farm animal welfare.

RELIEF, CHARITABLE & OUTREACH ORGANIZATIONS
Action Against Hunger: www.aah-usa.org
ADRA International: www.adra.org
African Leadership Mocha Club: www.africanleadership.org
Air Serv International: www.airserv.org
American Friends Service Committee: www.afsc.org
American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, Inc: www.jdc.org
American Jewish World Service: www.ajws.org
American Red Cross: www.redcross.org
AmeriCares: www.americares.org
Ananda Marga Universal Relief Team (AMURT): www.amurt.net
ARMDI, Israeli Red Cross: www.armdi.org
Association for India's Development: www.aidindia.org
B’nai B’rith International: www.bnaibrith.org
Baptist World Aid: www.bwanet.org/bwaid
Big Brothers Big Sisters: www.bbbsi.org and www.bbbsa.org
Brother’s Brother Foundation: www.brothersbrother.org
CARE: www.care.org
Catholic Charities USA: www.catholiccharitiesusa.org
Catholic Relief Services: www.catholicrelief.org
Christian Children's Fund: www.childfund.org
Christian Disaster Response: www.cdresponse.org
Christian Reformed World Relief Committee: www.crwrc.org
Church World Service: www.churchworldservice.org
Concern Worldwide: www.concernusa.org
Convoy of Hope: www.convoyofhope.org
Corporation for National and Community Service Disaster Relief Fund: www.nationalservice.gov
Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption: www.davethomasfoundationforadoption.org
Direct Relief International: www.directrelief.org
Disaster Psychiatry Outreach: www.disasterpsych.org
Doctors Without Borders: www.doctorswithoutborders.org
Episcopal Relief and Development: www.er-d.org
Feeding America: www.feedingamerica.org
Food for the Hungry, Inc.: www.fh.org
Feed the Children: www.feedthechildren.org
Habitat for Humanity International: www.habitat.org
Heart to Heart International: www.hearttoheart.org
Humane Society of the United States: www.hsus.org
International Aid: www.internationalaid.org
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies: www.ifrc.org
International Medical Corps: www.imcworldwide.org
International Orthodox Christian Charities: www.iocc.org
International Relief Teams: www.IRTeams.org
International Rescue Committee: www.theIRC.org
Islamic Relief Worldwide: www.islamic-relief.com
Kick Start: www.kickstart.org/
Latter-Day Saint Charities: www.lds.org/ldsfoundation
Lutheran World Relief: www.lwr.org
MAP International: www.map.org
Medical Teams International: www.medicalteams.org
Mennonite Disaster Service: www.mds.mennonite.net
Mercy Corps: www.mercycorps.org
Nazarene Disaster Response: www.crossroadsonthecoast.com
National Mentoring Partnership: www.mentoring.org
Network for Good: www.networkforgood.org
Operation Blessing International: www.ob.org
Operation USA: www.opusa.org
Oxfam America: www.oxfamamerica.org
Oxfam International: www.oxfam.org
Plan USA: www.planusa.org
Presbyterian Hunger Program: www.pcusa.org/hunger/give.htm
Prison Fellowship International: www.pfm.org
Project Concern International: www.projectconcern.org
Project HOPE: www.projecthope.org
Relief International: www.ri.org
Salvation Army: www.salvationarmy.org
Save the Children USA: www.savethechildren.org
Share Our Strength: www.strength.org
Stop Hunger Now: www.stophungernow.org
U.N. World Food Programme: www.wfp.org
UMCOR: www.umcor.org
UNICEF: www.unicef.org
USAID: www.usaid.gov
Water Missions International: www.watermissions.org
World Concern: www.worldconcern.org
World Emergency Relief: www.worldemergencyrelief.org
World Hope International: www.worldhope.org
World Relief: www.worldrelief.org
World Vision: www.worldvision.org

Based on the philosophy of "working together", the weekly Continuity e-GUIDE provides a concise seven-day snapshot of the business continuity and emergency management industry from around the world right down to the local level.

• Article idea? Contact the Editor, Michelle Morra at michelle.morra@disaster-resource.com.
• Want to sponsor a weekly update? Contact Tommy Rainey at tommyr@disaster-resource.com.
• Interested in featuring your press release? Contact Daniel Herrera at daniel@disaster-resource.com