My fellow Blogger Michelle Hankes has a post on her blog about how we parents love it when our children look up to us, when they see us doing something that matters.

It reminded me of my two boys -- now all-grown-up -- and our days when they were young and my husband I were involved in "civic" clubs.

We would drag our boys with us to Senior Citizens Bingo Parties, Car Seat Safety checks, and Take-a-Breaks to give free coffee to weary travelers on holidays. They watched us organize charity donation drives and listened as we called businesses asking for donations and neighbors asking for sweat-equity.

They loved-it-hated-it, but they learned that not everyone in the world is like them or like the people in the homogenized school they attended.

The pay-off? Now they are adults -- well, sort-of -- and when someone is needed to organize "Donate and Wear Jeans to Work Day" or "Children's Miracle Network phone bank" or even Zoofari, they have no hesitation about stepping up and being leaders in helping. (Ok, maybe the Zoofari was because the committee was all 23-year-old female co-workers who wanted to go to the party, but the others they did selflessly.)

They do it because it's natural for them. They have seen their parents give, volunteer and advocate. It's on their lists of "The Right Thing To Do."

We can teach our children many things. We can tell our children many things. In the end, it's what we model that makes a difference.

As usual, United Way can do what others fear to try. Sherri Gardner Howell is a blogger. News Sentinel couldn't do it. Blount Today couldn't do it. My older son couldn't do it. Even beloved Nephew No. 3 couldn't do it. It's not that I'm anti-blogging, anti-web or anti-computers. Honest. I gave up my IBM Selectric months ago. And I am on FaceBook AND Linked up, thank-you-very-much. It's a time thing. I have none. But, while others begged, cajoled, reasoned and outlined the benefits, all Aaron Killian had to say was, 'Hey, will you? For United Way?' So, I'm blogging. And this is my first one! (Hehehe.... that was pretty sneaky, don't you think?) By the way, does this thing have Spell-Check? If not, I'm TOAST…