Greater Milwaukee Men

Seeing a hero like Spider-Man outside your window can really make your day when you are sick. To me the definition of a hero is no only one who helps, but inspires, and this is especially true of superheroes. In the world of comics, there are superpowered characters - ones that can do things we normal people can't , and heroes - the 'good-guys' who give an example of how to act even in the middle of conflict whether from an enemy or just regular life. It seems rarer these days for the two to intersect with antiheroes, vigilantes, being more popular it seems. I get it, the tales of  Dudley Do-Right type can never be as interesting  as those of darker characters, but there is always a place for them, especially when it comes to children. That is why I am so happy to see the involvement of characters we traditionally see as straight up superheroes in making the lives of sick children a little brighter. Just today I saw two stories of superheroes being used to cheer up ch...

We previously reported on a program by DC Comics called   We Can Be Heroes  to help the people of the Horn of Africa. Since then the fans of DC have stepped up in a big way, donating over $85,000 through an Indiegogo crowdfund of for the same program. Considering the initial goal of the fund was $50,000 that is a huge achievement. All those that have donated and pushed the program above and beyond the expectations do even DC can consider themselves heroes alongside their comic book icons. The We Can Be Heroes program seeks to raise awareness and funds for three  humanitarian aid partners  who are delivering aid where it is needed most. Everything they do goes to support the life-saving work of Save the Children, International Rescue Committee and Mercy Corps. Since it's start, those who desire to help could donate directly to the fund, or even shop for DC and program-related gear  with a portion of the purchase price going to the program, but with the add...

For the second year in a row, President Obama has declared January as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month . There are a lot of ways to support it, but when you are a guy there may be one that tops any other. Kevin Smith - creator of Jay & Silent Bob and many other man-friendly flicks and fanboy supreme of comic books - co-founded The Wayne Foundation  to spread awareness of CSEC (Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children) and building a rehabilitation facility for victims DMST (Domestic Minor Sexual Trafficking). Yes it is named to give a nod to Batman, and their logo even looks like the Gotham skyline with a certain hero's signal.

The throngs of geeks, nerds, and dorks - of whom I am proud to consider myself - keep impressing me with various ways they find to fit philanthropy into their lifestyle. Another great example of this is that DC Entertainment - creators of American icons like Batman and Superman - is utilizing a program called We Can Be Heroes  to help the people of the Horn of Africa. In an area where they are experiencing the worst hunger crisis in 60 years, DC is matching donations to their partners  in the efforts to solve the problem: Save The Children, The International Rescue Committee, and Mercy Corps. Examples of donation amounts and what they can do for the people in need are:

The Pentagon has created a new program to help troops returning from active duty deal with their experiences by having them create graphic novels or comics. The program has a typical government/military convoluted name: “ Online Graphic Novel/Sequential Art Authoring Tools for Therapeutic Storytelling ". Art therapy is an interesting process where, per the American Art Therapy Association , therapists "use the creative process to help people of all ages improve their emotional well-being". Basically by creating art that can display emotions, the artists can release and explore those emotions. What makes comics or their longer versions - graphic novels - especially effective is that the artists not only make works of art but also use narrative to write a story. So it is in essence a dual outlet - they can put into words via another character how they felt and are feeling in addition to the visual elements. Wired Magazine has a full article  detailing one soldier...