When elementary school students Carter and Olivia Ries came home from school one day in April 2010 and watched the news of the Gulf oil spill, the images of affected birds and turtles moved them to tears.  And as children often do, they asked their parents, "What can we do to fix it?"

With help from their mom and dad, they contacted the country's largest animal rescue organizations and put together a list of much-needed supplies, which they immediately set about gathering from local churches and schools.  After personally delivering the supplies to the Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Rescue Center, one thing led to another and the Ries family founded their own non-profit organization.  Aptly called One More Generation (or "OMG"), they're working to ensure that all endangered species survive at least that long.  And now, they've launched a letter writing campaign to South African President Zuma in an effort to save the Rhinos -- a Big 5 endangered species that's experienced a spike in brutal poaching in recent years. Offering sweet coloring pages and children's stories, OMG's website breaks down the issue in terms kids can understand; it even offers a letter-writing template so they can reach out to President Zuma on their own.

While we adults focus on the presidential election here at home, our kids can reach out to world leaders and make their voices heard too.  An important first step in becoming an active, involved citizen of the world... what a great lesson for a day like today.