Loved this thank you letter from the New York City Anti-Violence Project, featuring impact, a terrific close (“With gratitude for all you do,”) and a personal touch (click to read).
When I recently sponsored a child with Appleseed Ministries, I didn’t receive the standard slick package I was used to from sponsorship organizations. 
Instead I received a box containing photographs, this delightful hand-written letter from the young woman I am sponsoring, and an actual starfish, along with this story:
An old man had a habit of early morning walks on the beach. One day, after a storm, he saw a human figure in the distance moving like a dancer. As he came closer he saw that it was a young woman and she was not dancing, but was reaching down to the sand, picking up starfish and gently throwing them into the ocean.
“Young lady,” he asked, “Why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?”
“The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I do not throw them in, they will die.”
“But young lady, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and millions of starfish all along the way? You cannot possibly make any difference.”
The young woman listened politely, paused, then bent down and picked up another starfish and threw it into the sea, past the breaking waves. She said, “well it made a difference to that one.”
The old man looked at the young woman inquisitively and thought about what she had done. Inspired, he decided to join her and began throwing starfish back into the sea. Soon others joined in, and eventually all of the starfish were saved.
I cried.
I’m a monthly donor to Living Yoga, a nonprofit with the inspiring mission of bringing “the healing power of yoga to youth and adults in prisons and drug and alcohol rehabilitation centers, helping to create positive change from the inside out.”
I liked this recent simple thank you card, written by a client.
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View Pamela Grow's profile
I can’t wait to meet with you personally.
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