"to those whom much is given, much is expected." - john f. kennedy

i was blessed to have been born to parents that were big on giving back. really big. they didn't just talk the talk, they walked the walk. they were true philanthropists and from an early age it was impressed on my brothers and me that giving from the heart was of utmost importance. my parents' altruistic nature shaped me in a way words alone could not and i'm eternally grateful for the life lesson.
we at kai are proud of and take our charitable efforts very seriously. over the years we have donated our time, energy and dollars to more charities than you can imagine, hoping to make a difference. and though i'd like to think we have, it's been pretty piecemeal with our "some for this and some for that" endeavors. discussions with friends as well as those "in the know" from some of these charitable organizations made it clear that our dollars could see a much bigger impact were we to focus our efforts on one or two foundations. that being said, it took us a minute to find a charity that we feel passionately about and it turns out it was right under our nose all along as for years we've donated kai product to the jimmy miller memorial foundation's annual "benefiesta".
the jmmf is a non-profit organization and adaptive surfing program used to assist individuals coping with mental and physical illness in accessing the ocean environment. the purpose of the program is to increase self-efficacy in their participants, through engagement in physical activity in the ocean environment, specifically, the activity of surfing. ocean therapy surf sessions can be a one-time activity or ideally, an ongoing program where growth and healing can be seen and measured. in the past fifteen years, the jmmf ocean therapy program has touched hundreds of children and adults, including at-risk kids, wounded warriors and veterans, often with life changing results.
kai is thrilled to announce we are partnering with the jimmy miller memorial foundation through donating a portion of all sales from kaifragrance.com to the foundation. as well, we are terribly excited to roll up our sleeves and get our feet wet (literally!) by participating in volunteer and fundraising events throughout the year.

from the foundation: "jimmy miller was 'living the dream'. now, through the jimmy miller memorial foundation, we are dedicated to keeping one of his most important dreams alive--helping others learn to love, heal and feel joy from the power of the ocean and the power of loving friends."

the old adage of "it's better to give than to receive" couldn't be more fitting.

xo,
gaye.