Business: Web networks transforming philanthropy | people, online, smith - Gazette.com

Business: Web networks transforming philanthropy | people, online, smith - Gazette.com: "Charities are able to reach a new pool of good Samaritans on the Internet By AMY HOAK MARKETWATCH December 3, 2007 - 10:44PM CHICAGO - GeorgeAnne Smith was one of the lucky ones. The San Diego resident and her family weren’t displaced by the wildfires that ravished the area in the fall. But the 42-year-old accountant wanted to help those who their lost homes, giving them comfort in the form of handmade blankets made by her and others throughout the country. She organized a drive for 8-inch squares that would be pieced together as blankets for people who lost everything in the fires. Requests were posted on Web sites including Ravelry.com, an online knit and crochet community, and the blog 25 Things for Charity (www.25thingsforcharity.blogspot. com). Smith is a member of both."