In one of the rooms in our new Reading Center we're showcasing inspirational and motivational quotes in a mural. As I read the quotes I realize the words are as much for me as they are for the teens. Maybe you'll agree -- we'd be moving mountains much faster if we all believed these words...

Our Literacy Program's goal is focused on lifelong learning and upon making a positive impact on the growth of our student readers. To this end we're making plans to fill our space with thousands of children pre-K through teenagers.

When Des Aronson was adopted from Ethiopia, he was old enough to recognize that his feelings were often times confounding. Des, one of 153 million ...

Feeling connected to the children we serve is so important to all of us. In every box of pajamas and books we send to group homes and shelters we include a sheet called Pajama Program's Kids Blog sheet.

Pajama Program began 12 years ago with a simple purpose: to give children in need a book to read at bedtime and new pajamas to comfort them through the night.

A sad lesson we have learned over our 11 years is that too often, children in foster care have little that they can call their own. We have been working to help change that sad fact, even just a little.

Our hearts will embrace our children forever. Every day their faces give us the strength to move forward to help them together.

Ama Ghar, which means "motherly home," houses 46 orphaned children ranging in age from four to 18, and accepts new children on a rolling basis.

Letters and notes from the children we serve have guided me to five answers, especially where our teens are concerned: Listen. Don't judge. Hear their call for help. Take a step toward, not away, from them. Never forget them.

When travelers to Cambodia ask me "Well, which orphanage is good that I could visit today?" my answer is "Any orphanage that will let you walk in off the street and subjects children to a revolving door of visiting volunteers is not one you want to support."

Thanksgiving is around the corner and I believe its sentiment has arrived early.

Sometimes I am sure I see a spark in a child's eye when he's on line with his classmates to put his gifts on the bus that tells me he gets it -- it's about helping someone else, not just once, but in the days and years to come.

There are those jarring moments in life when reality sets in. Moments like the realization that not everyone is lining up to take in every little boy.

I no longer yearn for those pot of gold gifts I wanted when I was younger - a jaguar to drive and a fancy house to live in. I am grateful for my pajamas and books just as much as the little boy in the letter is. And I know giving is the real gift.

We're sending wishes for them to find friendship with other children, acceptance among adults and recognition in our world.

I wondered for the first time on this morning, did they wait on the weekend when we did not visit the orphanage, and if so, did those diminutive faces wonder if we would ever come back?

When we pack up each box we never know who will wear the sweet mermaid nightgown or exciting spiderman pajamas or who will go to sleep holding a new, bright yellow Curious George book.

It's very easy for us to give a check or start a nonprofit without ever trying to understand the problem or the community in which we place our money and time. In spite of our good intentions, we have to realize that we can harm people.