Supply drive for the Philippines

[joi]

no worries felicia, it was offline messages to me personally. my response is heated. it upset me that my intentions were in question.

[JanisTX]

Oh, Joi, I'm sorry if someone was mean to you!!  I think that what you are doing is most kind and I know that it will be very appreciated!  Don't let the Boo Bears get you down!  You can't help EVERYONE, but you can change the world one good deed at a time!  Hang in there and know that others support you!

Maybe we could do another drive next summer & pick another deserving locale?  Move it around the world, so to speak? 

[AmyNeub]

Thanks for doing this! Our Tri-F Calli-Angel 👼

I will send you some for postage too. I love to give to others. Plus if this helps out the calligraphy community, then even better.

[JanisTX]

p.s.

BUT, let's do "help" that mean person!    They don't deserve it!

[AmyNeub]

Oh, Joi, I'm sorry if someone was mean to you!!  I think that what you are doing is most kind and I know that it will be very appreciated!  Don't let the Boo Bears get you down!  You can't help EVERYONE, but you can change the world one good deed at a time!  Hang in there and know that others support you!

Maybe we could do another drive next summer & pick another deserving locale?  Move it around the world, so to speak?

I agree. More calligraphers in need somewhere. Great idea!

[joi]

first i will say bad on me for replying when i was all fired up and pissed off. i should have walked away and calmed myself down. second, if i put myself in the shoes of others, i can see how this would seem unfair and i would be in the wrong to ask any of you to participate.  i would probably feel a bit of envy if i could not get some basic supplies and i saw that this was going on before really asking the broad questions of who is in need?  and define "need". who am i to determine who is in "need"?  all valid questions when you are asked to make a donation.
anyhoo, im moving on and carrying on  with positivity and my love for all of you  here on the Forum. and i have some exchange envelopes to start on... )

[joi]

i forgot to add about what is exactly needed.  my contact will not give me a list of supplies, because she is grateful for anything that i/we send, grateful for our generousity, our kindness, and for thinking of others. great response in my humble opinion.

[inkcatcher]

Seriously Ate Joi! You're doing great for the majority! I'm sure everyone will appreciate what you're trying to do! Just shake their comments off and focus on the larger cause! YOU'RE AWESOME

[Nickkih]

Positive positive :-)

[schin]

The calligraphy community is kind and generous that it may be difficult for outsiders to understand honest charity. It was very rude of this person to straight-up assume dishonesty, but let's not let him/her tarnish our intentions! I hope this has not soured you Joi, it is very kind of you to organize this and to take the trouble, and at the end of it all you will be making people happy which is more than what this person is doing with their time

[YokePenCo]

Awesome I can go ahead and post my box of stuff then! hehe

Just advice since I ship internationally ALOT Joi...

USPS is the ONLY affordable service to mail internationally out of the United States. First Class International has a weight restriction of 4 lbs, once you  go beyond that you have to do Priority Mail and the price triples. It's cheaper to do two First Class Packages than one Priority Mail.

[Estefa]

Dear Joi, I am so sorry that you had such a negative response. That must have been a disgusting experience. Like others said, no one here would question your honesty and good intentions.

I have read this and the other thread with great interest. I haven't written anything because I thought it would be absurd to send things to the States from Europe, have this whole circus with custom taxes etc. to then send it somewhere else again!!

About the question, why Philippines, my impression is that there simply is the biggest outside of America calligraphers community who are serious about it and who are very committed also here in the Forum, and who have limited supply of nibs and stuff. So I guess it's a rather logical choice for a first try to do this .

I think it's great you are organizing that.

[YokePenCo]

1.  my intentions - i know all of you do not know me personally, but my intentions were innocent and come from my desire to help others, period.  i regularly volunteer my time in my community, from serving at soup kitchens, donating food for the local pantry, to volunteering as a member of the Parent Board at our church preschool.  i have nothing to gain from this supply drive other than the smile it will give me to share my love of calligraphy with others.  this is not some plot by me to hoard supplies and resell them on Ebay for my personal financial gain (really?). 

Really people, come on......

2.  why did i pick the Philippines?  there are others who do not have easy access to supplies as well?  is this fair to them?
i did not set out to pick the Philippines.  this was idea was hatched in another thread.  someone said he was sending a box of some nibs and holders, and i offered to send some of my unused nibs as well.  and then instead of saddling said person with waiting for and adding my items and adding to the weight of his parcel (because if he had more than the 4lbs, then he would still have stuff to send, etc...).  i was the one who put the thought of a supply drive out there and i am a person that follows through on what i put out.  if you happen to live in a part of the world where supplies are hard to come by, i am very sorry.  if you would like to start a supply drive for yourself, by all means have at it.  is what i'm doing unfair to some?  sure.  but i also live in a world that is not fair, period.  is it fair that millions of children are hungry each day?  is it fair that millions of animals are put down because they can't find homes?  oh yes, both my dogs have been rescue dogs.  people, i'm talking about some nibs, some walnut crystals, and some plastic holders.  i'm not trying to change the world or make it a fair place.  i'm just a bored stay at home mom who wants to send someone my unused nibs.

Anyone who complains about where the supplies go has serious personal issues. This would be like condemning someone who donated to prostate cancer because you thought breast cancer was a better cause.

3.  the logistics - the beauty of having someone else volunteer to coordinate the details is that YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO IT!  if you feel like you could manage a supply drive in some other fashion, go right ahead and let me know what is needed.  but if you are not willing to be the lead, then don't criticize me for my decisions.  this is not a food and medical supplies drop to some war torn country.  nibs, people, nibs!

If you have supplies... then send it to a place/group you feel that needs it yourself. Again condemning someone for doing extra work and trying to do something nice is ridiculous.

To add a little bit to this, my contact in the Philippines informed me that Joi had contacted them regarding this and Joi is being legitimate. The simple fact I feel the need to verify this is saddening...

I do suggest something for the person(s) that contacted Joi questioning her sincerness or condemning her for choosing a place to donate.....If you have that much distrust in mankind then you are way out of place in the calligraphy world. You might want to find a nice group of politicians to hang out with since they are usually dishonest and insincere.


Joi....kudos to you for organizing this and also having to deal with a few morons along the way.

[joi]

wow...you guys are so great, thank you for your kind words. 

and Mr. Yoke, thank you very much for verifying my intentions, not that they needed any in the first place, but i so appreciate your support.  you continue to be a stellar gentleman!!!

thankfully it's been a very busy day - separate day camps for both kids, board meeting, errand running, kid #1 swim lessons, and then dealing with a baby sitter that locked herself and kid #2 (27 months!) out of the house - in other words i have been dealing with life today.  and i have not had a chance to put nib in ink and to paper for 1 minute!!!  so i have not had much time to stew over this and let it ruin my good intentions. 

earlier i was in contact with those that questioned me and we are all in a good place, i think and i hope.  i also encourage those to contribute to the forum and not just lurk about.  contributing is what makes this forum a great place...the sharing of ideas, thoughts, experiences, laughs, and camaraderie.

thank you all, i send each of you a big virtual hug!!!

xo,
joi

[Nickkih]

You are awesome Joi! We all support and adore you 😊