What's Happening...

So today I found out that Nick Lachey is doing more than sitting on the beach with his girl (which is what the tabloids want you to believe). He's helping out V8 in their efforts to feed the needy. According to their site: V8 recognizes that for too many Americans, the possibility of a day without food is a constant reality.

More than 35 million people nationwide face the everyday challenge of wondering where their next meal is coming from. As a result, V8 has teamed up with Feeding America (formerly America's Second Harvest) to donate more than 30 million servings of fresh vegetables to local food banks throughout the country over the next six months. Good job Nick!

Attend a free concert and help raise money for Parkinson's Research

If you're in New Jersey, attend a free concert to help raise money for Parkinson's Disease research. Record Store Day, presented by a consortium of independent music retailers spanning the United States and overseas with hundreds of store locations, will be sponsoring Buddy Holly Lives on January 31st, 2009. Vintage Vinyl Records will host "Buddy Holly Lives," a live in-store concert event. The free concert will seek to raise money for the Light of Day Foundation, a charitable organization dedicated to finding a cure for Parkinson's Disease. The event begins at noon and is expected to run until about 5 PM. The performers, including celebrated NY rocker Willie Nile, Columbia recording artist Nicole Atkins, Pat Dinizio, lead vocalist of the Smithereens, MTV featured artists Locksley and more, will each perform their favorite Buddy Holly tunes to celebrate the life of the rock legend and commemorate the 50th Anniversary of his tragic plane crash. The event will take place on the Vintage Vinyl in-store stage. Vintage Vinyl Records is an independently owned and operated records store in NJ since 1979. To learn more about this event, visit vvinyl.com and vvinyl.com/buddy.php Location: Vintage Vinyl Records, 51 Lafayette Road, Fords, NJ

Daytime Actor James Reynolds Will Visit the Veterans

Daytime actor and Emmy nominee James Reynolds is chairman of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) 2009 National Salute to Hospitalized Veterans. Reynolds, best known for his long- running performance as police officer Abe Carver on the popular “Day's of Our Lives” will lead VA's annual patient recognition program inviting the public to visit and honor hospitalized veterans during National Salute Week, Feb. 8-14. He serves as the national spokesperson for more than 131,000 volunteers serving veterans at VA facilities across the nation.

Reynolds was born and raised in the small farming community of Oskaloosa, Kan. During high school, he performed in many school plays and played football, basketball and track. Following graduation, he joined the Marines and was assigned to an information service office in Hawaii as a reporter. He was sent to Vietnam and served for almost a year with a variety of units in and around Chu Lai, adding battlefield reporting to his combat duties. A wound ended his military service.

Reynolds is deeply committed to charitable works such as the Ronald McDonald's House and touring with the USO. He has been to Cuba, the Mediterranean, Kuwait and Afghanistan to meet and show support for troops overseas. In 2007, Reynolds was honored by the Beverly Hills/ Hollywood NAACP Veteran Affairs and Armed Services Committee for his contributions to the Unites States Armed Forces.

Event Info: Let's Go Surfin' Now!

If you like to surf or just want to help out a great cause, check this out dude! (Do surfers even say that anymore? LOL)

WHO: Project Save Our Surf (S.O.S) was launched by actress Tanna Frederick and world renowned Shaun Tomson, both avid surfers concerned about the world's oceans. They were inspired to embrace the surfathon concept as a fun and rewarding family event, bringing together the legendary sport of surfing and beach lovers who want to make a difference. Project S.O.S. is collaborating with a number of generous local and national sponsors including: ZJ Boardinghouse, Quiksilver, Val Surf, Rocker Board Shop, Kreation Café and American Latino TV.

Surf participants will raise money by asking people to sponsor their commitment to surf non-stop during a six-hour shift. Other activities at the event include Tae Kwon Do demonstrations, live acoustic music, environmental guest speakers, face painting, team relay races, yoga sessions, free massages and raffle prizes. Event will be followed by a Celebrity Gala with a live band, cocktails, tapas, and a celebrity “blue” carpet. The live auction will be co-hosted by actor Noah Wyle (“ER”) and director Henry Jaglom. Celebrities such as Judd Nelson and Miss Universe 2002 Justine Pasek will be in attendance.

The Surfathon will be held on Saturday, April 5, 2009, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The Celebrity Gala Event and Auction will be held on Saturday, April 5, 2009, from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 pm. WHERE: Surfathon Celebrity Gala Event and Auction: Ocean Park Beach Shutters on the Beach, 2600 Barnard Way One Pico Boulevard, Santa Monica, CA Santa Monica, CA.

Project Save Our Surf is holding its first annual surfathon to raise money for the non-profit organization Oceana. Oceana is a non-profit organization that campaigns globally to protect and restore the world's oceans. Oceana seeks to make our oceans as rich, healthy and abundant as they were in the past. They look to a future in which dolphin sightings are common along any temperate coast; swordfish, marlin and tuna are abundant once again; whales and sea turtles thrive, cod are plentiful on both sides of the Atlantic, local fishing cultures evolve rather then decline and in which fish are a safe, growing and plentiful source of food around the world. For more information visit www.projectsaveoursurf.com.

Off-screen, Frederick has co-founded the Project Save Our Surf and was also behind the creation of the Iowa Film Festival, which debuted successfully two years ago and has since

tripled in size.

Happy 2009!

What a great year this is going to be. Barack Obama was sworn in just a few hours ago and we're heading toward a new direction!

So is this blog! LOL (Did you like that lead in???) I have a few interviews lined up for the next few weeks -- look for an interview with former NBA superstar Alonzo Mourning and with Survivor winner Ethan Zohn. I also should have an interview with former N'Syncer Chris Kirkpatrick. All of these men are working very hard for charity and awareness.

This year, I plan on bringing you more events and more interviews, possible contests, and even a bigger website!

So onward to a great year. I hope you're doing your part to help those less fortunate than you.

Omar Got His Transplant!

This what it's all about! A celebrity has such power to make change and you can now see what kind of an impact that had! It saved a little boy's life!

Zo’s Fund for Life has successfully helped Omar get the liver transplant he needed so badly--and now the public is needed for support to reach the entire goal necessary for post-transplant related medical expenses.Here's the update:

Alonzo Mourning, NBA All-Star and Founder of Zo’s Fund For Life, an organization Mourning launched shortly after he learned he would need an organ transplant, has been leading a campaign to quickly raise funds for a three-year-old boy named Omar Ferguson who was in desperate need of a liver transplant. Omar’s health began deteriorating rapidly last week and he was put on life support with only one effective treatment option: a liver transplant.

Zo’s Fund for Life raised the initial funds needed in order to place Omar on the transplant waiting list and doctors at the Holtz Children’s Hospital at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center campus in Miami, Florida quickly moved Omar to priority status. A donor liver became available on Saturday, December 13, 2008 and was flown in from California to Miami where doctors immediately performed a successful transplantation on little Omar who was clinging to life.

Just over 48 hours since the transplant surgery, Omar remains in intensive care and is being closely monitored by the pediatric transplant team. “The new liver is functioning well and has allowed Omar to be disconnected from the hemodialysis machine,” said Andreas G. Tzakis, M.D., Ph.D., Director of Liver/GI Transplant Surgery, Director of the Miami Transplant Institute, and Professor of Surgery at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital and Miami Transplant Institute. “He is still in critical condition but is making a very steady progress. The next few days will be very decisive for his outcome.”

The race to “Give Omar Life,” a campaign initiated by Zo’s Fund for Life who recognized the importance of giving Omar the chance to live, is not over yet. Omar will need ongoing post-transplant care and several immunosuppressant medications to help fight against organ rejection in addition to the current transplant-related expenses, which are all a part of the overall $300,000 goal to be raised. Omar’s mother took a leap of faith when she left their hometown in the Bahamas, whose hospital did not have adequate medical facilities to perform the necessary transplant, and came to the U.S. without health insurance.

Zo’s Fund for Life has donated $50,000 of the $300,000 needed to “Give Omar Life” and has raised a total of $142,000 to date. Donations have been streaming in from all over the country but there is still $158,000 to be raised. Zo’s Fund for Life continues to call on the public’s support in order to meet the goal needed for the entire cost of the transplant as well as post-transplant related medical expenses.

“It’s because of the support and heartfelt gratitude from folks in our community and around the nation that Omar received the greatest gift of all this holiday season: a chance at life,” said Mourning. “We’re nearly halfway to reaching our goal and need your help to successfully get there.”

In the spirit and season of giving, Mourning is urging the public to contribute to the “Give Omar Life” fund as soon as possible. Donations are tax-deductible and accepted by:

· Debit or credit card via PayPal at www.ZosFundForLife.org/Omar or by calling 1-888-520-ZFFL (9335).

· Mail a check payable to Zo’s Fund For Life (reference: Omar) at Zo’s Fund for Life, PO Box 330110, Miami, FL 33233.

· Drop off cash or overnight/courier a check to Alonzo Mourning Charities, Inc., c/o Zo's Fund For Life, 2901 Florida Avenue, Suite 806, Coconut Grove, Florida 33133.

· Wire transfer to Zo's Fund for Life, Regions Bank, 2800 Ponce de Leon Blvd., Coral Gables, FL, Account #: 9660220568, ABA/Routing #: 062000019.

For more information, visit www.ZosFundForLife.org, call 1-888-520-ZFFL (9335), or email Amanda@ZosFundForLife.org.