A Must Read if You Have a Youth in Michigan: ePIFanyNow.org

Disclosure: This is not a sponsored post. I just appreciate the initiative Bob has created here for the youth, and for the state as a whole.

We've all heard about initiatives to 'Pass It Forward.' I know I've participated on my own, randomly here and there, and I've had it done to me as well (someone paid for my coffee at a drive-through one time, I thought it was cool). Sometimes it really is the little things that can make a positive difference.

Bob Hoffman, the founder of ePIFanyNow knows the value of kindness, and evidently he's not the only one. This initiative that started out small is getting bigger and bigger, and now there is a Y-PIF Award to discuss too. Designed to honor kids in grades 5-8 and 9-12 who are passing it forward and making a positive contribution to their communities, this award is orchestrated to help their initial reach go even further. 

Outstanding charitable youth may get more details about the award and register online at www.epifanynow.org. Applications are due by April 10, 2015. They will be reviewed by members of the ePIFanyNow™ Board and selection committee and narrowed down to three finalists in each category. Though founded in East Lansing, any student in the state of Michigan is eligible to participate.

The top three chosen submissions from each age category will be highlighted on the ePIFanyNow.org website, where the public can 'vote' for their favorite. Each vote will cost $1 and will be collected via PayPal. All money collected will be donated as the prize, to the winner's favorite charity.

Online voting will open Monday, April 20th and will close at 3pm at the next ePIFanyNow™ annual party on Sunday, May 3. The event will run from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the MUS Federal Credit Union main headquarters (3777 West Road in East Lansing). 

The two final Y-PIF Award recipients - one from each category - will be announced at the end of the party. Winners will be determined by points given by the selection committee during the initial review process. Those will be worth 60% of the score. The final 40% of the score will be based on the amount of money each finalist raises before and during the event.

The winner in each category will receive $500 from ePIFanyNow™, which will either go to a pre-approved charity of the winner's choice or the winner's in-kind project for further development. All charities and projects will be vetted by members of the ePIFanyNow™ Board and selection committee during the review process. For finalists who are not selected as one of the Y-PIF Award winners, all monies raised through the online voting process will still be awarded to the charities noted in those participants' applications. 

I love the idea of helping make the world a better place. When one person steps up and does something kind, it's nice. When a lot of people do, it's amazing! If you live in Michigan, tell your principal...youth leaders, etc. about this award. This is a great way to get our youth involved in passing it forward...and passing it forward is always (and thankfully) very contagious.

If you want to know more, please click over to check it out. Also be sure to share the word...the more entrants the better (for everyone!). Teaching our children to pass it forward now, can only lead to good things.

You an learn more about ePIFanyNow™ by visiting the website. You can also follow along on Facebook and/or Twitter.