One Give A Day

Here's an inspiring and fascinating twist on charitable giving: A man who doesn't have a lot decided to give a little bit to a different charity every day for a year, and he set up a Web site to encourage others to give to his featured charities.

Who is he? Carlo Lorenzo Garcia, a Chicago-based actor who decided to launch his mission - Living Philanthropic - after ruminating on what it would take to give to charity every day.

He started in April 2010 DATE with a $50 donation to the Mary-Arrchie Theater Company with which he performs in Chicago. Since then, Carlo has donated amounts ranging from $1 to $40 to a huge range of organizations, from Autism Speaks and Noah's Wish to Habitat for Humanity and Harlem RBI.

As of Feb. 24, Carlo has given $3,683, and donations from his followers have totaled $9,070. He calls himself a "regular joe" who grew up on the south side of Chicago. "I don't come from money. I don't have a lot of money. Growing up, my family would scrape by, yet somehow us kids were always fed and clothed with a roof over our heads. So, I dedicate this journey to my mom for showing me that you can do so much even when you have very little." He adds that "we as youth generations" need to lead a new philanthropy movement. "Lead by example and become the change you wish to see in the world," Carlo says. To which we respond: Very, very cool!

To afford his donations, Carlo says he gave up his daily coffee purchases and cut back on "indulgent spending" - which he labels small sacrifices for the causes he supports. He also acknowledges that giving to one charity only would make more sense from an impact standpoint, but that he wanted to highlight as many groups as he could in one year.

So, who's up for launching their own daily giving program? Share your thoughts on Carlo's mission here!