New Post

We need a new post, so I'm just going to list a couple of things that have happened with MckMama over the past couple days.

• MckMama lost her wallet, but it was returned to her completely intact by a total stranger
• She announced the winner of the Kindle and the winner will be donating it to her own church
• She tweeted last night with her feelings about Gerber "Yogurt for Babies"
• She posted a video to her blog that featured her youngest child taking a bath while her other children could be heard in the background

* You will also find a post below for recipe sharing after requests from several readers. It has been added to the sidebar (at the bottom), so that you can continually read and add to it.

For those of you who are new to this blog, I want you to know that this site does not have a Twitter account or a Facebook account. I am aware that there are individuals out there who repeatedly post negative comments that are directed at MckMama and her readers on Twitter or take direct quotes from here and put them on Twitter, Facebook, and MckMama's blog. I am not behind that activity nor do I endorse it. I know that the original MWOP had posted something similar in the past, but I would prefer that we keep our comments and discussion on this site. I just don't believe those comments are going to have the desired impact on MckMama or her readers. It seems that those comments typically end up turning off MckMama's readers who are starting to question her and make it more difficult for them to keep an open mind about the information that is shared here.

This site is comprised of former loyal MckMama supporters, occasional readers, those who still support MckMama, those who are on the fence, and those who do not support MckMama. There are people who comment frequently, people who rarely comment, and people who lurk, but never comment. I would like to ask everyone to treat one another with respect when interacting here.

A Couple Reminders

We need a new post, so I am just posting this filler post for now.

For those of you who are new to this blog, I want you to know that this site does not have a Twitter account or a Facebook account. I am aware that there are individuals out there who repeatedly post negative comments that are directed at MckMama and her readers on Twitter or take direct quotes from here and put them on Twitter, Facebook, and MckMama's blog. I am not behind that activity nor do I endorse it. I know that the original MWOP had posted something similar in the past, but I would prefer that we keep our comments and discussion on this site. I just don't believe those comments are going to have the desired impact on MckMama or her readers. It seems that those comments typically end up turning off MckMama's readers who are starting to question her and make it more difficult for them to keep an open mind about the information that is shared here.

This site is comprised of former loyal MckMama supporters, occasional readers, those who still support MckMama, those who are on the fence, and those who do not support MckMama. There are people who comment frequently, people who rarely comment, and people who lurk, but never comment. I would like to ask everyone to treat one another with respect when interacting here. We don't always have to agree with each other. In fact, I don't think it's possible for so many people to agree all the time. I encourage everyone to share their perspectives here since censorship on MckMama's blog is one of the reasons why this site came to exist.

By The Numbers

There are a lot of inaccurate perceptions about this site and its intended purpose.

When the original MWOP started this blog, this was the description that she used when describing the reason for the existence of this site and it is still accurate today (more than 1 year later):

MckMama Without Pity (MWOP) came about as a place to discuss the inconsistencies and bad business/life practices preached in Jennifer McKinney's popular blog, "mckmama.com". Since there is heavy moderation on her site, and on her Blog Frog Community, there was no place to discuss the red flags that her readers have seen.

Now there is.

This site is comprised of former loyal MckMama supporters, occasional readers, those who still support MckMama, those who are on the fence, and those who do not support MckMama. There are people who comment frequently, people who rarely comment, and people who lurk, but never comment.

It would be impossible to control everything that is said here and it would be counterproductive. This site exists because people have not been allowed to express their feelings in the past without censorship (deleted comments, edited comments, etc.). I simply ask that we treat one another with respect. We will not always agree with one another and that's to be expected with the volume of voices here.

While I know that many people like to dismiss what is said on this site because it's just a small, token number of individuals, I just want to clarify that it's simply not true.

There are currently 428 Google Followers (those who appear in the box at the top-right of this site), but there are 929 subscribers to this site. In addition to that, there are many others who read this site by clicking directly.

On March 2, we were receiving an average of 8,400+ visits per day and 17,000+ page views. Today (March 8), we now receive an average of 12,000+ visits per day and 23,000+ page views.

This is just a reminder that this site does not have a Twitter account or a Facebook account. I am aware that there are individuals out there who repeatedly post negative comments that are directed at MckMama and her readers on Twitter, Facebook, or MckMama's blog or take direct quotes from here and post them on Twitter for MckMama and her readers to see. I am not behind that activity, nor do I endorse it. I know that MWOP had posted something similar in the past, but I would prefer that we keep our comments and discussions on this site.

Peeling Off The Layers

There have been a number of "red flags" that have surfaced over the years since we have come to know MckMama.

I think it's interesting to look at the progression and evolution of MckMama to see how much she's changed (or how much she hasn't).

Here are the first tweets where I realized that many of her readers were sending items to MckMama:



MckMama complained that her phone was not working:



And 1 day later:



And then her readers started gifting hotel rooms to her when Stellan was in the hospital @ 40 minutes from MckMama's house:





One of my very first red flags was this tweet while Stellan was in the hospital in Boston in April 2009:



Just because I am curious, what kind of phone can you use to watch TV?



In May 2009 (after Stellan was discharged from the hospital and MckMama was back home), she posted some pictures from the newly decorated room of her two oldest boys (names have been blurred out by me in the pictures that show their wall letters). This blog post was posted on May 23, 2009:





And just because I know MWOP readers will get a kick out of her closing here, I wanted to share this last image from that post:



4 days after the above post, MckMama tweeted the following series of tweets on May 27, 2009:









In February/March 2010, MckMama and her husband had the opportunity to travel to Africa for the first time with Compassion International.

Ironically, here are her tweets from exactly one year ago today (March 5, 2010):







1 year later after her 2nd trip to Africa with GHNI just ended less than 1 week ago, she posted the following just yesterday (March 4, 2011):

I will leave you with this quote about onions (and, no, it's not from the movie "Shrek")...

Life is like an onion: you peel it off one layer at a time, and sometimes you weep.
- Carl Sandburg

Words vs Actions

Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote, "What you do speaks so loud, that I cannot hear what you say."

Here is a Twitter conversation between MckMama and a reader back in June 2010 after MckMama had already written a blog post in March 2010 indicating that her husband gave up his iPhone, so that they could sponsor another Compassion child. This was after MckMama's first trip to Africa with Compassion:









Here is a twitpic that MckMama posted earlier this week (Wed. March 2). Clearly, her husband gave up his iPhone in March 2010:



If you're having trouble reading the text that goes along with the above twitpic, here it is slightly bigger:



Despite so many posts about how she and her husband have started anew and are making concerted efforts to be financially responsible, a substantial judgment of $27,000+ was filed against her this week:



You can click on the above image to enlarge it.

Skype Hype - Part # 2

This a follow-up to the previous post, "Skype Hype" here on MWOP.

On the morning of Mon. February 21, MckMama posted the following blog post:



She told her readers about the "Skype contest" for the very first time in that post:



One of MckMama's readers, "Cathy", left the following comment on that post that morning:



MckMama replied to "Cathy":



Then, MckMama sent the following e-mail to Cathy on the night of Mon. February 21:



You can click on the above e-mail to enlarge it.

Cathy definitely interpreted that she was already a "winner" based on the verbiage used in the above e-mail.

On the night of Mon. February 21, the village of Garmaam was officially opened up for adoption and MckMama wrote another blog post with another description of the "Skype contest" in that post:



Once the call was changed from Thursday night to Friday night, Cathy was no longer able to include her co-workers in the Skype call. She also heard some information about MckMama that caused her to question MckMama's integrity.

Then, MckMama sent the following e-mail out to the 4 Skype "winners" very early in the morning on Thurs. February 24:



On the afternoon of Thurs. February 24, Cathy received the following e-mail from MckMama:



In the meantime, Cathy started doing her own research on MckMama and GHNI by reading MWOP and doing her own internet research. She chose to cancel her adoption of the village on Fri. February 25, but still participated in the Skype call on Fri. night. Cathy did record the Skype calls and posted the videos on YouTube here.

A discussion took place on Facebook on the night of Thurs. March 3. In this discussion, Cathy explained her experience with the Skype contest and described all of the above information in a post on Facebook.








MckMama replied to that post by writing the following:



Here was Cathy's response:



She wrote this response to another individual on that same Facebook post on the night of Thurs. March 3:




MckMama deleted this Facebook post and the responses shortly after the above comments were posted.

Business As Usual

MckMama has been back home for approximately 2 days now and things are already back to normal.

Things have been very busy on her end. She posted a blog post that generated lots of drama and criticism and has already started a giveaway for this week.

In addition to all of the breast milk that she transported (along with clothing, a camera, her cell phone, a laptop, an electric breast pump, a cooler, etc.), MckMama was also able to bring back coffee beans from her trip to Harar, Ethiopia. In her current giveaway, MckMama is giving away ten one-pound bags of coffee beans to one lucky winner. Readers can enter this giveaway by leaving a comment on MckMama's blog post and they can also enter a second time if they sign up to receive a copy of the Global Hope Network International (GHNI) newsletter.

Speaking of GHNI, I'm not sure what is going on with their website, but it has been down for the majority of the past two days. The site will appear for brief periods of time, but you may get an error message or a blank screen the next time you try to access it.

Thing have been busy over here, too. The previous post became bogged down with comments in less than 24 hours. There is a lot of new information floating around in the comment section on the last post, but I am going to hold off on addressing those issues unless/until we can find more information to support these comments.

For those of you who are new to this blog, I want you to know that this site does not have a Twitter account or a Facebook account. I am aware that there are individuals out there who repeatedly post negative comments that are directed at MckMama and her readers on Twitter or take direct quotes from here and put them on Twitter, but I am not behind that activity nor do I endorse it. I know that MWOP had posted something similar in the past, but I would prefer that we keep our comments and discussion on this site. I just don't believe those comments are going to have the desired impact on MckMama or her readers. It seems that those comments typically end up turning off MckMama's readers who are starting to question her and make it more difficult for them to keep an open mind about the information that is shared here.

Stay tuned for more information on the big giveaway for a Nook or Kindle to two MckMama readers that make a donation for a "great cause".

Got Milk???

MckMama certainly does.

In her latest blog post since returning home from her travels with GHNI, MckMama posted a picture of a freezer drawer that is more than halfway filled with bags of breast milk. She claims that she pumped all of this breast milk while she was on her 2-week trip and transported it all the way back home despite climate changes, long flights, etc.

Of course, MckMama claims that she wasn't able to do this all alone. It takes a village. In MckMama's case, she states that she is grateful for the "hotel kitchens" where she could store her milk, airport juice vendors that stored her milk for "hours", and flight attendants who assisted with keeping her milk on ice during her flight across the Atlantic Ocean.

She claims that this breast milk is approximately half of what she pumped while she was gone and the rest of that breast milk was pumped and dumped. She also states that she bonded with other breastfeeding moms while she was on her trip. According to MckMama, she held a picture of her children and she would pump while other mothers were nursing their children under trees in Garmaam.

Now that she has returned home, MckMama states that she and her youngest child have been able to seamlessly resume their breastfeeding mother and child relationship.

* She is also promoting a giveaway for a Nook or Kindle to two lucky readers if they donate to a good cause.

Skype Hype

At the beginning of MckMama's campaign to get the GHNI village of Garmaam "adopted" by 100 of her readers, she wrote a post entitled, "Tonight is the night!", and it was posted on her blog on Monday morning, February 21. At the end of that blog post, Mckmama wrote the following:

"Additionally, on Thursday evening (at around the same times as I listed above), four of you who join Garmaam’s extended village will have the opportunity to join live with each other and the people of Garmaam in a video call (Both ways! The village will see and hear you…and vice versa!) to the village!! I’ll give you more details in my next post, but if you are planning to help adopt Garmaam, be thinking now about possibly being a part of the call. How will we decide which four will participate? I’m so glad you asked!

The four people with the most creative idea about how you will gather a crowd of people around your computer to meet Garmaam will get the spots. More to come tonight!!"

Approximately 12 + hours later (on Monday evening), she posted another post on her blog, entitled "This is Garmaam." In that post, she announced that the day for the Skype calls had been changed. Here's what she wrote:

"Also, on Friday evening (8:00 pm Pacific, 11:00 Eastern…and yes, I know I said Thursday earlier, but we changed it!), four of the 100 of you who join with Garmaam will have the chance to be part of a live video conference call that we will rise very early and have with Garmaam at sunrise. You will be able to see and hear the villagers, and the villagers will be able to see and hear the four of you on the screen at the same time! But it won’t be just you. To help spread awareness about this amazing Ethiopian village, as well as the beauty and the needs here, please email me sometime before Tuesday evening in the States if you want to be considered for the call. Let me know how you would gather a crowd around your computer for the video experience. Would you gather your neighbors at your house to meet “your” new village? Maybe you work evenings and would bring your computer (Your computer must have a web cam!) to have your coworkers participate? Would you meet with people from your church for the evening call? Have your teenager invite a slew of friends over for an African themed sleepover? Gather your buddies around the poker table? Get creative! We’ll pick the four people with the best plans, and I’ll email them back so we’ll be squared away for the call on Friday evening, when each of the four can carry out their plan and participate in the live conference call!

I will of course attend the live video call and photograph it so I can post about how it went. Technology is amazing. But our neighbors around the globe are even moreso. To learn more about how your $12 a month will help the village, click here. For a deeper explanation of how GHNI seeks to help villages transform themselves, click here."

The "winners" of the Skype calls were never announced.


But information started to surface the very next day. On Tuesday afternoon, one of the "winners" hinted that she was one of the chosen 4 by telling her blog readers that they were going to want to come to her house on Friday night (the night of the Skype call). It seemed a little odd since the village had not yet been adopted by MckMama's readers. MckMama had asked her readers to contact her via e-mail by Tuesday night, if they wanted to be considered for the Skype call, but had the "winners" already been chosen?

People might say that this doesn't matter and it wasn't even a true "giveaway", but I think this is just one more story that illustrates the way MckMama handles these situations.

Before the Skype call on Friday, February 25, a commenter posted here on MWOP. She stated that she was one of the "winners" and she stated that she would be recording the Skype call and make it available online. MWOPers had their doubts, but it turns out that she was one of the "winners". After corresponding with this individual, I was able to confirm her story and the timing of the events. MckMama contacted her on Monday, February 21 to see if she would like to be considered for the Skype call. The wording of that e-mail definitely implies that there was never a contest. It seemed the decision had already been made.

This individual commented here on Saturday, February 26 (the morning after her Skype call took place) and posted the following comment under the username "It's all coming together", but I have removed her name and the identifying information from her comment. With her permission, I am sharing the content of that comment with you below:

"Good morning everyone - you too, Mckmama. I have a full day of kids & work to attend to, but wanted to say something before I sign off for the day.

My name is (name removed) and I was a sheeple. Well, more like a part time sheeple. A few years ago I started reading blogs and came across Jens. We had a lot in common... both had fairly rocky relationships (mine not physically violent thank God), I was pregnant with my 4th child and have since had a 5th (all but 1 were preemies with 2 spending 2+ months in the hospital), we own our own small business, I am an amateur photographer, etc, etc, etc... she lived just a short drive from me.

When Stellan was having all his heart problem I felt horrible for her. I knew what long hospital stays did to families, and knew if I had to spend time away from family/work etc, I'd be financially ruined. So I helped her. I paid for hotel rooms... sent gift cards... sent money anonymously.

At one point almost a year ago I confronted her via e-mail about some issues I had with her lying. She e-mailed me back and smoothed it all over - very nicely I might add. It was a big band-aid and made everything better for a short time.

Just like many of you, I had questions pop up from time to time. I always told myself that since she was so popular, people were bound to be jealous - and that some people just had NO life outside of trashing Ms. McKinney. And really, some of her "lies" were small - really nothing that mattered (unless you took the time to put the WHOLE PICTURE together). So why bother, ya know? And with all the horrible things happening to her, she needed people who truly cared. I justified it rather nicely, wrapped it up and put a big bow on it - and went on reading her blog.

I felt she was doing such an amazing and difficult thing to leave her family when she headed back to Africa this time. I, too, have 5 kids - and can't imagine being away for 2 weeks! When she asked for people to sponsor the 2nd village, I really thought it would be a great way to be involved. (Identifying information removed)

On Monday the 21st, I got an e-mail from Jen saying she wanted me to be part of the skype chat. It also says, "You guys might need to sign up now to hold a spot for your (Identifying information removed)?" I thought it was weird since I knew the village hadn't been 100% adopted yet - and I guess I thought it was a contest for everyone who signed up to sponsor them. I was excited - as I hadn't yet spent some time researching GHNI. To be CLEAR - I have found nothing derogatory about them. To be more clear - I have found NOTHING. It's all fluff. No #'s about what money goes where - or what percentage of my $12 actually GOES to help them. I don't have the time or the desire to hunt down their non-profit info, or tax return info... but on their website - the information I would want to have as a donor, isn't there.

None of it mattered anyways. It turned out that a girl I work with knows someone who knows Jen. She shared with me some information that I really took to heart. I was told to read here, at MWOP - and read the "Links you might want to read" - and to read back through her blog as well.

Why would I bother to try to dig up dirt? What this girl told me really bothered me. AND... I've spent HOURS over the last few years reading her blog - and have spent my families money to help her. For my personal knowledge, I could easily justify spending a few more hours reading/researching in lieu of being a "sheeple" for the next several years.

The first thing I realized on my own was that the woman who BANNED Susan G Komen ads on her blog is asking her readers to donate $12 a month for a village that practices polygamy. Struck me as odd...

Then came more. LOTS more. You've all managed to cover all the major "OH MY GOD" realizations quite nicely on here.

As for ANYONE who disagrees with my posting those videos to my youtube - Jennifer asked ALL 4 of us skype people to take pictures and record if possible and share with her. I have the e-mail to prove this. She was planning on sharing them all herself.

Also, please refer to the nipple/breastfeeding shots she posted. She could care less about ANYONE'S privacy. It's 100% clear to me that she is ONLY out to make a buck. I believe that with every fiber in me, and I seriously questioned whether or not she owned THIS blog too.... she'd be the one to capitalize on "negative MckMama dirt" faster than anyone else. Then I realized there were no ads here... lol

All I did was participate IN SPITE of wanting to scream at her... Yes, I managed to get a few sarcastic comments in... and post the videos to youtube. After I saw the people from town with her and the CHILDREN, I knew I couldn't say what was on my mind. I simply shared with you before she did. (although I'm sure my video wouldn't have made the cut and she would have said they had technical issues and it didn't get recorded or something).

For any of you who truly LOVE Jennifer... go for it. Just be careful. Share your thoughts with her on her blog. She'll love to hear them. I'm still digging and trying to find facts to back up the stories I've been told this week - and IF any prove to be true I have no problem sharing with you all. I, myself, am walking away from her. She can make all her money off other people and other clicks. I've had enough."

In emails, MckMama also encouraged the Skype "winners" to contact local television stations, news media, newspapers, etc., stating the "positive exposure would be great".

Another Exciting Day in Africa

MckMama has been busy today.

She posted a picture of an Ethiopian child, holding a toy gun. In light of the recent deaths of 4 Americans killed by pirates earlier this week and ongoing turmoil in Libya, Egypt, etc., some readers felt that this picture was insensitive.

She also has hinted that she might have attracted a new ad network, but she plans to post more about that later.

And, finally, tonight is the big night for the Skype call between 4 lucky MckMama readers & the village of Garmaam (of course, at least 2 of those readers know MckMama in real life).

MckMama will be heading home from Africa this weekend and will be returning home until she leaves for her next out-of-state photo shoot.

Another day, another $12

Just to catch everyone up, MckMama was able to get both villages (Ola Nagele and Garmaam) "adopted" by her readers. Jeff Power and GHNI also did a little push on Twitter to promote the adoption campaign for the second village, Garmaam.

Village # 1 (Ola Nagele) was adopted in @ 3 1/2 - 4 hours

Village # 2 (Garmaam) was adopted in @ 37-45 hours (* exact amount of time unknown since no adoption campaign updates were done during an @ 8 hour timeframe)

And...

MckMama has a new post up that addresses a number of questions about Africa, GHNI, etc. Despite the fact that she has been asked many questions before her trip and during her trip, I find it interesting that she did not answer some of the more difficult questions until both villages were adopted.

As always, I would like to encourage everyone to do their own research before donating to any cause or charity. I think this is even more important when the donations are ongoing. Charity Navigator evaluates over 5,500 charities and is a great resource when you are conducting research about organizations you are considering.

MckMama's Campaign to "Adopt" a 2nd Village

MckMama started her 2nd campaign to adopt the village of Garmaam in Ethiopia last night (Mon. Feb. 21) at 11 PM (Eastern Time). It is now approximately 23 1/2 hours later (10:30 PM Eastern Time) and we have not heard the official word on whether or not GHNI has received the 99/100/101 sponsors that they were hoping to recruit for this cause. The last update was @ 8 1/2 hours ago and reported that there were 45 remaining spots (55 individuals had commited to adopt the village Garmaam). The last village (Ola Nagele) was completely adopted within approximately 3 1/2 - 4 hours. There were some reports that people were having issues with PayPal today, but I don't know if that had a big impact on this campaign or not.

* As of 11:07 PM Eastern Time (Tues. Feb. 22), 21 spots remain for the adoption campaign http://garmaam.ghni.org/.

* As of 8:47 AM Eastern Time (Wed. Feb. 23), 16 spots remain for the adoption campaign.

* As of 11:34 AM Eastern Time (Wed. Feb. 23), 9 spots remain for the adoption campaign.

* As of 12:33 PM Eastern Time (Wed. Feb. 23), 5 spots remain for the adoption campaign.

* As of @ 8:30 PM Eastern Time (Wed. Feb. 23), Garmaam has been fully adopted.

I mentioned this in a previous post, but I would like to share this information again. A Google search reveals no information about the village of Ola Nagele (the first village MckMama and her readers sponsored last week) other than the information that has been posted by GHNI, other participants in this trip, and MckMama's readers http://lmgtfy.com/?q=%22ola+nagele%22. This may not mean anything, but it does seem strange since their site states that Ola Nagele has almost 4,000 residents, yet there is no other information out there about this village.

Just like Ola Nagele, the only information that a Google search can find about the village of Garmaam seems to be blog posts from GHNI, MckMama, MckMama's readers, and the other individuals who traveled along on this trip http://lmgtfy.com/?q=%22garmaam%22. Again, this may not mean anything, but it does seem strange.

I will leave you with a YouTube video that features GHNI's Jeff Power, introducing the village of Garmaam: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pp3_3jQzuTQ .

As always, I would like to encourage everyone to do their own research before donating to any cause or charity. I think this is even more important when the donations are ongoing. Charity Navigator evaluates over 5,500 charities and is a great resource when you are conducting research about organizations you are considering.

You may just get your chance...

to be one of the next 99/100/101 MckMama readers to "adopt" a village through GHNI. Starting tonight at 11 PM (Eastern Time Zone), MckMama will begin her latest campaign to "adopt" the village of Garmaam in Ethiopia.

4 of those lucky readers will be chosen to Skype with the village on Friday, if they enter the most "creative" way they plan to gather people around their computer for the Skype session.

As always, I would like to encourage everyone to do their own research before donating to any cause or charity. I think this is even more important when the donations are ongoing. Charity Navigator evaluates over 5,500 charities and is a great resource when you are conducting research about organizations you are considering.

MckMama's in Ethiopia now...

MckMama is no longer in Kenya and has flown with the GHNI crew to Ethiopia. She will be asking her readers to commit to "adopt" another village and will be looking for another 99/100/101 readers to participate in this campaign. Readers will be asked to contribute $12 per month for the next 3-5 years while the village learns to self-sustain.

In the meantime, many questions about how GHNI teaches the villagers to self-sustain have not been answered. The most common questions that still remain are: What does GHNI provide to the villagers? How much of the monthly contributions directly impacts those villagers? How does that money impact the villagers? Do the villagers receive food, supplies, etc. from GHNI or just guidance and support? In the week that MckMama was in Ola Nagele, did anything get done besides the installation of the pipe? Does social media really play any role in all of this other than helping to spread awareness and solicit donations for the cause? Why is MckMama there? Couldn't someone from GHNI, etc. have provided MckMama with photos and videos to post on her blog? Couldn't she have done that from home? Why was it necessary for her to be there? Is any work (other than blogging, taking pictures, recording videos, tweeting, posting on Facebook, etc.) actually being done by all of those individuals who are on this trip? Are they just there to document and report back?

As she is now in her second week of this trip, I would have hoped that her readers would have the answers to most of these questions above.

Again, I would always encourage everyone to do their own research before donating to any cause or charity. I think this is even more important when the donations are ongoing. Charity Navigator evaluates over 5,500 charities and is a great resource when you are conducting research about organizations you are considering.

Did you know MckMama's still in Africa?

MckMama's still in Africa.

Despite the fact that her current trip to Africa is with GHNI (Global Hope Network International), MckMama was able to arrange a visit with two of the children that she sponsors through Compassion International. MckMama arranged these visits at her expense. Per her blog post, she was going to travel 4 hours to meet up with the children and one of the children was going to have to travel 6-7 hours (each way) to visit with her.

She also posted on her blog today with a Q & A post where she answered questions that have been posted by her blog readers. Unfortunately, those questions and answers don't address the more common questions about this trip: Why is she there? What does GHNI really do? What type of work is being done by the individuals who are on this trip? How will teaching social media (Twitter, Tumblr, Skype, etc.) to these villages help them? There are a lot of vague descriptions about the protocols and practices of GHNI, but there are not any clear answers about the methodology that is used.

Why is MckMama in Africa?

Why is MckMama in Africa?

This seems to be the million dollar question right now. MckMama is currently in Africa with a humanitarian organization called GHNI (Global Hope Network International). The organization has a site: http://www.globalhopenetwork.org/ According to their website, their mission is to "bring help & hope to the hidden & hurting".

Until MckMama mentioned this organization in a blog post on December 18, 2010 (entitled a $300 giveaway of one of the best Christmas present ideas...ever), I had never heard of GHNI.

In that blog post, MckMama mentioned that she had "discovered one of the best Christmas present ideas, ever ". She goes on to describe "Hope Dollars", which is a type of gift card, available through GHNI. Per MckMama's post (on 12/18/10), "These gift cards are from Global Hope Network International, a non-profit, humanitarian aid organization that brings hope and change to the poorest villages in the world. Instead of giving your secretary a Starbucks gift card or your mom a tin of chocolates, do what I plan to do this Christmas and give these gift cards that can, literally, change the world! The person you give the card to can then use it to pick something out for a family or village in an underdeveloped nation." Then, MckMama promoted a giveaway with GHNI for 3 separate $100 "Hope Dollars" gift cards for her blog readers, as well as a promotion for her blog readers that chose to purchase these gift cards directly from the organization.

This was the first time that we ever heard MckMama mention GHNI, but it certainly would not be the last. On December 22, MckMama announces that she will be returning to Africa. On December 27, we learn that MckMama will be traveling with GHNI and she hosts a live chat in her Blog Frog Community to answer questions about this trip. Many questions were asked, but there are still so very many that have not yet been answered.

Since December 27, many individuals have tried to learn as much as possible about GHNI, but there really is very little information out there.

Global Hope Network International is not listed on the Charity Navigator website http://charitynavigator.org/ or Charity Watch website http://www.charitywatch.org/. In contrast, Compassion International (MckMama traveled with this organization last year on her trip to Africa) is registered with both Charity Navigator and Charity Watch.

The GHNI headquarters is in Orlando, FL and the organization is not a BBB accredited business http://www.bbb.org/central-florida/business-reviews/charity-local/global-hope-network-international-in-orlando-fl-171151628. The BBB information indicates that the organization was established in 2002, but there really is very little information out there on GHNI.

Another website recently investigated this organization and you can find their posts here:
http://www.sweepingcobwebs.com/2010/12/30/global-hope-network-international/
http://www.sweepingcobwebs.com/2011/01/20/ghni-scam-or-lifesaver/

* Both of the above posts contain some very interesting information about GHNI and also highlight the lack of information about GHNI.

* The "Sweeping the Cobwebs" blog does have the GHNI - IRS 990 tax form from the year ending with 8/31/2009. You can find it here.

The GHNI website promotes their use of the TCD (Transformational Community Development) method. The organization provides guidance and coaching to the village with an emphasis on the following areas: Water, Food, Wellness, Income, and Education. If you would like to "adopt a village", the organization requests $12 per month from each individual and the model is set up so that the organization continues to support each village for 3-5 years. GHNI states that you can unsubscribe at any time.

GHNI uses social media to interact with donors and prospective donors. During MckMama's trip to Kenya, there have been videos uploaded to the following sites: http://extendedvillage.com/ , http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Pursuit-of-Everything/130360573700573, http://qik.com/video/36364195, and http://qik.com/video/16d8a46bee1d43ab9b373e1ba4f756e1. Many tweets have been sent out by a number of the individuals on the GHNI trip, including: MckMama, AJ Leon, Melissa Leon, GHNI, Jeff Power, and Jonathan Ahlschwede.

Pictures and videos from this trip typically reveal images of the GHNI group (including MckMama) standing around and documenting the work that is being done by the village residents. Pictures are being taken, tweets are being sent, and blog posts are being written.

Also, a Google search reveals no information about the village of Ola Nagele other than the information that has been posted by GHNI, other participants in this trip, and MckMama's readers http://lmgtfy.com/?q=%22Ola+Nagele%22. This may not mean anything, but it does seem strange since their site states that Ola Nagele has almost 4,000 residents, but there is no other information out there about this village.

In the end, there are still more questions than answers. However, I would always advise individuals to use extreme caution when donating money to any cause. A number of questions about GHNI have been posted on MckMama's blog, Facebook page, and Blog Frog community, but most of those questions have been partially answered, deleted, or ignored. A reputable organization should willingly disclose the information you seek when you ask questions about financial reports, practices, etc.

I know that it's easy to get emotional when you see pictures of beautiful children and living conditions that are less than desirable. There is a reason why social media is being so heavily used to promote this cause. They are hoping that the images and videos generate an emotional response from you that compels you to donate. It's admirable that people want to help, but I would encourage you to do your research first before donating to any organization.

The Chosen Ones

Well, today has been an exciting day. MckMama has been promoting GHNI's efforts to "adopt" the village of Ola Nagele in Africa. Unfortunately, only 100 (make that 101 - MckMama's grandmother ended up being added to the list at the end) individuals could participate in this effort. Those who were fortunate enough to be one of the first 100 (or 101) to sign up were mentioned on MckMama's blog and she even linked to their personal blogs if they provided that information.

If you were not able to be one of the first 100 (or 101) to sign up, you will have the opportunity to adopt a second village next week.

The cost to "adopt" a village is $12 per month, but they have stated that the plan is to support the village for 3-5 years.

* Based on information on GHNI's site found by reader "kb": http://signup.olanagele.ghni.org/ , it appears that you can cancel with GHNI at any time.

Shirtless Children

A new post since the last one was taking forever to load. In reference to MckMama's "shirtless children" add to Google engines, thanks to her last post (complete with pictures), here's an article on the New York Times about protecting your children's images online:

Guardians of Their Smiles

Tuesday's Challenge

We have a challenge for you. It's a doozie, and you can't find the answer by Googling. Ironically, as a "mommy blog", this challenge should be easy. Oh and if you can do it, you don't win anything, except notoriety on a little-known blog. You ready?

Name one character trait of each of the Many Small Children. Just need one, but you can get bonus points for more than one. These are not physical traits, and not "mom" responses to comments made, just a personality trait that makes these kids who they are.

Example: "Gavin doesn't need sleep. He doesn't nap and he goes to bed late. He loves Handy Manny and recently he's been biting his siblings. He can also be stubborn about using the potty, but he can be bribed with chocolate most days."

Ready........go!

General Comments 02-01-2010

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