U.S. retailers are extending deals into Cyber Monday and beyond to try to sustain a 13 percent gain in Thanksgiving weekend sales.
“Year over year, Black Friday sales were strong and margins should have also been strong,” said a Bloomberg Industries analyst.
The National Retail Federation said yesterday it predicts holiday sales, including online, will rise 4.1 percent to about $586.1 billion this year, compared with a 5.6 percent gain in 2011.
A large painting by a 14-year-old Asian elephant has sold on eBay for £360.
A buyer from Northamptonshire purchased the “abstract style” picture, which took about 20 minutes to create, and was sold to raise money for conservation projects.
Karishma started painting at the Bedfordshire zoo in England 2011.
Code for America is a new kind of public service. Volunteer teams have developed apps that have trimmed Boston’s costs for digging out fire hydrants after snowstorms and have made Philadelphia city services more accessible.
The ‘Peace Corps for geeks’ is on the leading edge of nonprofits looking to make government more efficient. Technologists and app designers can dedicate a year, a few months, or just a few minutes — time well-spent for the good of society.
For the past 46 years, Joe Lueken has been a successful Minnesota grocer and come January 1st, staying true to his philosophy of giving back to the community, he is transferring ownership of his three supermarkets to his employees.
The 71-year-old could have sold the business to the highest bidder, but instead he leaves a lasting legacy.
Jumping in a huge pile of leaves is the BEST DAY EVER for this Siberian husky.
A program run by the Veterans Administration has successfully placed elderly U.S. vets with families who receive stipends for providing room and board.
1500 veterans are now living with families who want to thank the men for their service and keep them in loving homes instead of hospitals or nursing homes.
(WATCH the video below from NBC News)
A program run by the Veterans Administration has successfully placed elderly U.S. vets with families who receive stipends for providing room and board.
1500 veterans are now living with families who want to thank the men for their service and keep them in loving homes instead of hospitals or nursing homes.
He cheers a group of cancer patients running in a race, calling himself the captain of “Team Tumor.”
The 38-year-old father of two small children with stage-4 cancer has logged hundreds of hours of chemotherapy. But instead of living with defeat and humiliation, this Utah dad spends his time trying to give a laugh to others with cancer.
He cheers a group of cancer patients running in a race, calling himself the captain of “Team Tumor.”
The 38-year-old father of two small children with stage-4 cancer has logged hundreds of hours of chemotherapy. But instead of living with defeat and humiliation, this Utah dad spends his time trying to give a laugh to others with cancer.
A disabled dachshund, adopted by a family when no one else wanted him, alerted the household to the raging fire.
The blind and deaf dog with only three legs earned his family’s gratitude this week after their log home in Oklahoma was destroyed.
The couple escaped in time with their new baby and faithful pet.
Even those hit hard financially by the devastation of Hurricane Sandy themselves, were reaching out to help families in Queens, N.Y., who are still in need 17 days later.
One businessman who lost $160,000 in inventory still thought to use his Thanksgiving as a time to serve those worse off.
He was one of many who organized inspiring waves of giving around the city, as warm communal meals were served with love.
(WATCH the NBC Making a Difference video below)
Which comes first, happiness or money? Much scholarly head tapping has been devoted to examining whether richer people are happier and if so, how much richer? Nobel prize-winners have even looked into it.
But a new study suggests that the question could perhaps be looked at the other way around. Happier teenagers, this study suggests, grow up to be richer adults.
A group devoted to creating alternative energy jobs in Central Appalachia is building a first for West Virginia’s southern coalfields region this week – a set of rooftop solar panels, assembled by unemployed and underemployed coal miners and contractors.
Matthew Petronis sat in his dorm room on Oct. 29, watching TV in horror as “my childhood burned down.”
Petronis had spent the first 19 years of his life learning how to walk, read, swim and throw a baseball in the idyllic Queens, N.Y., neighborhood of Breezy Point.
He felt helpless that night — but not for long. Only a few hours later, Petronis set up the first fundraiser to help the neighborhood.
In just hours, he’d raised a few thousand dollars, but that was only the beginning.
Within two weeks he topped $140,000, according to WTOP News.
Young people who are down on their luck in Los Angeles gave thanks yesterday for My Friend’s Place, a privately funded center that has become a haven where homeless youth can nurture fragile dreams.
It gives them what food it can afford. It gives them clothes, clean underwear and socks, toilet paper, toiletries and hot showers.
If and when they are ready, it gently helps them head toward self-sufficient lives off the street.
(READ the story from the LA Times)
Professional basketball players are out in the neighborhoods this week giving back to the community. From taking families shopping for holiday gifts, to handing out hundreds of grocery bags with everything they need for a Thanksgiving feast, these players enjoy meeting their fans and stepping up.
“We understand that this time of year is difficult for a lot of people,” said David West of the Indiana Pacers. “We want to make sure that we impact their life, giving them an opportunity for joy at the holidays.”
Professional basketball players are out in the neighborhoods this week giving back to the community. From taking families shopping for holiday gifts, to handing out hundreds of grocery bags with everything they need for a Thanksgiving feast, these players enjoy meeting their fans and stepping up.
“We understand that this time of year is difficult for a lot of people,” said David West of the Indiana Pacers. “We want to make sure that we impact their life, giving them an opportunity for joy at the holidays.”
A group of prisoners at New York City’s Rikers Island jail were let out for a day so they could deliver 700 Thanksgiving meals to the needy.
The men cooked up the hundreds of turkey dinners in a jail kitchen for delivery to two churches, according to an AP report.
That’s not the only example this month of Riker’s prison helping New Yorkers in need. A New York Times story today tells how, after Hurricane Sandy tore through nearby neighborhoods, the island inmates did 6,600 pounds of laundry for people in emergency shelters.
The jail also came to the rescue of neighborhoods in the dark, supplying generators and the fuel needed to run them.
“There are plenty of unsung heroes in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, but the story of how those at New York’s least desirable address lent their muscle and might is perhaps among the most compelling.”
The Thanksgiving chefs this week are Riker’s men who participate in the Osborne Association Fresh Start program – a program that trains convicts in culinary arts, computer literacy and life skills. The food trainees prepared the 700 Thanksgiving meals in an industrial sized kitchen at Rikers Island on Tuesday. The men said it has been “an honor” and “a really good feeling” to cook for those who are in need.
The Osborne Association designed Fresh Start as a holistic approach to re-entry that focuses on the family as a key ingredient of long-term success. Incarcerated men receive training and guidance – not just in culinary arts – but in several areas like parenting, goal setting, and relapse prevention that help motivate participants to positively reconnect with their families and the community when they return home. They also receive follow-up support for a full year following their release from jail. Graduates use their new skills to become prep cooks, catering assistants, and counselors at substance abuse programs. These opportunities eliminate the feelings of hopelessness that too frequently arise once individuals return home from prison or jail. (www.osborneny.org)
(READ the full NY Times story: Jailed and Jailers Pitched In Help After Storm)
A group of prisoners at New York City’s Rikers Island jail were let out for a day so they could deliver 700 Thanksgiving meals to the needy.
The men cooked up the hundreds of turkey dinners in a jail kitchen for delivery to two churches, according to an AP report.
That’s not the only example this month of Riker’s prison helping New Yorkers in need. A New York Times story today tells how, after Hurricane Sandy tore through nearby neighborhoods, the island inmates did 6,600 pounds of laundry for people in emergency shelters.
BREAKING: The Egyptian government announced that Israel and Palestinian leaders in the Gaza strip have agreed to halt hostilities after eight days of Israeli bombardment of the enclave and hundreds of rocket strikes inside Israel.
Standing alongside Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who engaged in intensive shuttle diplomacy aimed at ending the conflict, Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Amr told a news conference that the cease-fire would begin at 9 p.m. local time (2 p.m. in Washington).
