Join Sweet for a weekend in Vegas, a cruise in the Hawaiian Islands, a rafting trip down the Salmon River or a fab inclusive resort on Cozumel. Details inside.

In the heart of Nairobi’s second largest slum, St. Lazarus School rises from the rubbish strewn streets. We begin our steep and bumpy ascent into Kibera. It’s rush hour and people by the hundreds stream toward downtown Nairobi on foot. Vendors along the road set out their wares, mostly fried bean cakes and vegetables, to sell to the commuters.

MODERN MEETS MALNOURISHED
A woman and child sleeping alongside the road wake and begin to stir. Behind them an advertisement asks, “How are your stocks doing?” It’s the contrast that strikes you, the juxtaposition of Wall Street, the Ying-Yang Twins, cell phone companies, churches, mortuaries and malnourishment. The air is muggy and thick. Heavy clouds loom with the promise of much-needed rain. As we crest the hill, you can see the vastness of the slum. It’s overwhelming.

The total area of Kibera comprises less than one percent of Nairobi, but it holds 25 percent of Nairobi’s population or about 1 million people. Row after row of ten-by-ten-foot corrugated steel, dung and wood houses are crammed together. It’s not uncommon for a family of eight to ten to share the 100 square foot space.

The streets are lined with goats, dogs and unidentifiable refuse. Narrow and slick, the road would not be considered passable by American standards. At times, it seems we’re certain to slide into one of the irrigation ditches on either side of us. They appear uniquely designed to swallow our tires. I close my eyes, putting my faith in Daniel, our driver from Gamewatchers. His nerves never falter.

GRATITUDE IS PLENTIFUL
Madame Rachel meets us at the entrance of the school, an alley way and corrugated steel building indistinguishable from its neighbors, save the sounds of children reciting their lessons in unison. Our group of nine crowds into Madame Rachel’s five-by-ten foot office where she explains how the school works. Each morning begins in prayer, the children express their gratitude for another day and another opportunity to learn.

Gratitude is everywhere at St. Lazarus. The children, some as young as 2, know how lucky they are to be in school. St. Lazarus is able to provide the kids with a glass of juice to start their day and a high-protein lunch. It’s often the only thing the kids eat. In the kitchen, the chef counts out the day’s lunch one bean at a time. She’s going to cook lunch for 150 children in one pot over a fire in a barrel.

The children take great pride in learning, proudly singing us songs in Swahili and English. The classrooms are tiny, approximately 300 square feet each, and hold about 50 kids. The children don’t have their own desks. They barely have enough space to put their own elbows down on the tables in front of them. They embrace the closeness, wrapping their arms around each other or jostling each other playfully.

Yes, Madame Rachel wants the kids to learn, but she also loves that school keeps them off the streets. That’s why she starts school at 8am and ends it at 4pm. Homework is important, too, she says. Keep them busy and out of trouble is her philosophy. Her great hope is that her students will go to college and return to Kibera with the skills, ideas and motivation to improve conditions for everyone.

LIVING WITH DEATH
Many of these children are being raised by grandparents or extended family as they lost their mothers and fathers to AIDS. While HIV educational materials are everywhere, shockingly frank educational materials, the disease continues to devastate an entire generation.

The children of St. Lazarus live with death each day. It’s at their doorstep. Literally. The slum is surrounded by funeral superstores, the likes of which I’ve never seen. Think Costco for caskets. Additionally, there are many small shops selling coffins, many in children’s sizes, throughout Kibera. It appears to me that coffins are more plentiful than food.

St. Lazarus School is aptly named as it turns death into life each day, devastation into hope and children into the future of Kenya. It’s a testament to the courage and dedication of Madame Rachel and her staff that gratitude grows in a place where nothing else will.

Guests on our Sweet Kenya Safari delivered school supplies, clothing and hygiene supplies to the school, in addition to donating $300 to help complete a general assembly room for the school. A traveler on our Sweet Caribbean Cruise and mortgage broker Crista Luedtke has pledged $500 to the St. Lazarus School for each Sweet referred mortgage or refinance that closes. Learn more about how you can get a great rate on a home loan and help the kids at St. Lazarus.

TWO FAB EVENTS, ONE WONDERFUL WEEKEND
Sweet poolside cocktail party at boon hotel + spa
Saturday, May 22, 2010
4 – 8 pm
Hang poolside in this Redwood-studded oasis with the hottest DJ’s, coolest cocktails, tastiest apps and prettiest women. Raffle prizes include a one night stay at boon hotel +spa as well as Sweet stuff and other surprises.
Tickets: $12 (includes one drink ticket and raffle entry)
RSVP on Facebook.

Sweet mimosa brunch and pool party at boon hotel + spa
Sunday, May 23, 2010
10 am – 1 pm
Brunch, brunch, baby. Join us for a delicious brunch hosted and catered by boon eat + drink with poolside mimosas and freshly squeezed sunshine.
Tickets: $15 (includes brunch plus a mimosa)
** Additional cash bar with mimosas, bloodies, beer and wine.
RSVP on Facebook.
Everyone is welcome.

Make your reservations at boon today!
boon hotel + spa
14711 Armstrong Woods Road
Guerneville CA 95446
707.869.2721

It’s easy to have values when times are good. It’s when times are tough that people demonstrate their true natures. Enter Sweet traveler Crista Luedtke (yeah, call her Crista).

Among other things, Crista is a mortgage broker. While the whole mortgage market is collapsing, Crista’s business is growing. Why? She’s got the key ingredient to weathering any storm: Integrity.

She believes that you should “do something you love, do it differently, have fun and give back.” The other day Crista called me with an idea: Partner with Sweet to help the projects we’re working on all over the world. Of course, I said YES!

Crista’s approach to mortgage is simple. “I focus on education and empowerment,” she said. “I want my clients to have the information to make well informed decisions on their financial choices and to be part of the process with me. In buying a home, it is important to be both properly advised on the choices available to you and have the trusted guidance of an adviser who works with each person’s unique needs. I am happy to offer free consultation where you can be assured the most honest approach to lending.”

Here’s the deal: For every mortgage referred to Crista by Sweet that closes, Crista is going to donate $500 to the charity of Sweet’s choice. Each month, we’ll choose a new beneficiary. It’s that simple. When you need a mortgage or refi, call Crista, she’ll find you the best deal available (seriously, she rocks at this) and we’ll make the world a better place. That’s totally Sweet.

Our first beneficiary is the St. Lazurus school in Kibera, Nairobi’s largest slum. Sweet visited the school during our Kenya safari (Read all about it). That such hope can shine through such poverty is an inspiration. It’s a place where so much is done with so little. The tiny school, less than 3,000 square feet, educates about 150 children from 2 to 14 years old. Most of that space is not used at present because a lack of funds has halted development of a cafeteria / general assembly building, which can be finished for 1,000 US dollars.

If you are thinking of making your dreams of owning or upgrading your home a reality, contact Crista. Email her at crista@fcgmortgage.com or call her at 415.609.7227.

Let’s save the world, one mortgage at a time.

Crista and her partner Jill own boon hotel + spa and boon eat + drink in the sweet, little gay mecca of Guerneville. If you’re in the area, it’s an eco-rific oasis in the redwoods. And seriously, you can’t beat breakfast in bed or getting to take your dog on vacation with you.

Matchmaker, Matchmaker,
Make me a match,
Find me a find,
catch me a catch
Matchmaker, Matchmaker
Look through your book,
And make me a perfect match.
— Fiddler on the Roof

Whoo hoo. Single ladies rejoice! Lesbian matchmaker extraordinaire Dr. Frankie Bashan joins Sweet for our Cozumel Palace Resort and our Vegas Sweet Vegas Weekend as our singles guru.

Whether you’re looking for a date or want to make new friends, Frankie has an amazing program in store for you. Think singles mixers, game nights, excursions, meals, happy hours, karaoke, speed dating, personalized matchmaking and more.

A natural connector, Frankie excels at helping people feel comfortable in new situations. She has a gift for getting people talking. As an added bonus, Sweet singles have the option of registering for free at her site, LittleGayBook.com, before our vacations. Frankie is offering free matchmaking consultations by phone at your request. If she sees a good fit, she’ll arrange a date for you during our vacation.

Not looking for love? There’s no pressure. Frankie is on hand to make sure you have a great time with the other solo travelers as you enjoy a fantastic lesbian vacation. It’s all about the fun.

Register now at LittleGayBook.com now. Enter SWEET VEGAS or SWEET COZUMEL in the “How did you hear about my services?” field.

The Gala is one of the most anticipated events on the LGBT community calendar in addition to being Mautner Project’s largest fundraising event. Enjoy our famous live and silent auctions, reception and a delicious dinner followed by the Perfect Vision Dance Party! The Gala has been nominated several years in a row by the Washington Blade as one of the best places to meet women!

So what are you waiting for? Buy your ticket today.

Like Chicken Little, since the late-80s I’ve been running around telling people, “The sky is falling.” When I saw “An Inconvenient Truth” in 2006, it was a profound visualization of that very thing. Watching polar bears drown, I felt powerless. The problem was so big. What could one little chicken do? It was overwhelming.

I hate feeling powerless. It pisses me off. If we’re going to solve these huge global problems, we need to feel empowered, inspired and energized. That’s how Sweet co-founder Jen Rainin and I struck upon the idea for Sweet. We asked ourselves: How can we make solving these problems fun? How can we get more people involved? Voila! Let’s travel the world and do simple community service projects where we can see a difference in a few hours.

In November 2009, we did that on our Sweet Caribbean Cruise. The feeling was phenomenal (see for yourself). Our voluntourista army replanted wetlands destroyed by Hurricanes Katrina and Hugo, refurbished a city park and installed a recycling program, pulled hundreds of bags of trash off beaches in Mexico, donated over 1,000 children’s books and a copier to a school in Belize, painted classrooms and dedicated a children’s library, donated computers to a children’s e-learning center in Honduras and brightened a dismal children’s hospital ward by painting vibrant cartoon characters on the walls in Belize. We did that with 300 people who gave 4 or 5 hours each. Along the way, we connected with the community in an amazing way. We learned about them. They learned about us. We opened a dialogue about lesbians and gays in places where we’re essentially invisible. We also connected with each other.

Our voluntouristas came home from our cruise motivated to continue spreading that goodwill. Denise Johnson from Chicago started the Roatan Computer Project and collected enough money to send seven more computers to Roatan’s E-Learning Centers. A teacher in Florida collected more school supplies to send to our school in Belize City. Two more Sweeties opted to do a book drive for the children of Belize rather than a gift exchange at their holiday party. And on and on. The Sweet Ripples from our first cruise continue to spread.

Newton’s first law says that an object in motion will stay in motion (well, it says something more complicated — F=Ma — but that’s the gist of it). That’s the formula for Live Sweet (fun = mission x action). Our mission is to get more people in motion and create a ripple effect of positive action all over the world. Think of it as lesbians (and our pals) giving the world a giant hug.

The Live Sweet Voluntour 2010 aims to start as many ripples in as many cities in the United States as we can reach this year. That means, I’m traveling to different cities to lead community service projects, gather Sweeties for fun and fundraising fitness events and host parties to celebrate our lives. We’re also spreading lesbian visibility in the United States, where it seems like every day people are voting on whether we deserve equal rights. The more we connect with people in our own backyard, the less likely they will be to vote against us.

No matter who you are, how much you make or where you live, we each only get 24 hours (1,440 minutes / 86,400 seconds) in each day. Your time is precious. Your attention priceless. Together, your time and attention can make a huge difference in the world. We’ve created a new site at Live-Sweet.com for our tour. Check the upcoming events calendar for Live Sweet Voluntour stops near you. Currently, I’m heading to Orlando, Florida (April 16-18), New York City and New Jersey (April 23-25) and Denver (April 30-May 2). Want Sweet to come to your city? Suggest a project!

Let’s change the world with our love, laughter and unbridled glee.

Hug the world,

When I met DJ Trina Johnson in February 2009, I knew Sweet would be working with her a lot. She’s dynamic, driven and compassionate. In addition to keeping 2,000 women dancing all night long at Babes Around Denver’s phenomenal First Friday event each month, she’s an accomplished business woman who loves music and making people’s bodies move.

What really struck me about Trina was her heart. She leads with it. All the proceeds from her DJ career go toward her No. 1 passion: Taking care of stray dogs. That’s why she’s totally Sweet.

One of the most popular DJs on our maiden voyage in November, Trina is looking forward to filling our Cozumel resort with music and organizing a community service project to help dogs on the island this September. We’re so proud to have her on our Sweet team. Brava, Trina.

Here’s her story in her own words:

Everyone has their “thing”
While walking home from school one day I noticed a little black dog tied up to the porch post inside a neighboring yard. I quietly walked over to him, untied the rope from the post and brought him home with me. I remember thinking it was the most inhumane, cruel thing I had ever seen. I was only five years old. I snuck him in to the house. He and I lived in my closet for about a week.

I fed him, gave him water, took him outside (even in the middle of the night), played with him, slept in the closet with him. Life was perfect, until my parents found him. I first told my parents that I found him, then I told them he had no home, then I resorted to “his owners were really mean to him and kept him tied up outside and starved him and didn’t want him.”

My mom didn’t fall for it. She looked at the dogtag and called the owner. They came and took him away that day. I really missed him and every time I walked by his house, he was inside. I guess I made things worse for my little buddy.

In the years to come, I must have brought home at least a dozen stray dogs I had found on the streets. They always seem to find me, when they are lost that is. Some I was able to keep, others we had to take to “The Pound” or the owners somehow mysteriously knew we had their dog. Thanks, mom!

Before College, trying to figure out what it was I wanted to do when I grew up, I thought about Veterinarian School. I was at the hospital one day while my sister was having a baby and fainted. I realized that the site of blood and guts floored me, literally. Not a desirable trait in a vet.

For while, I adopted dogs. In 1997, I went to Mexico for the first time. There were dogs running around everywhere. Some with mange, most of them pregnant. I remember my first vision was looking out the window on to the beach, seeing a momma dog walking with 9 or 10 puppies following her. It broke my heart. I went to the grocery store and bought as much dog food as I could carry. Every day, I fed the dogs. I went back every year to Mexico and did the same thing. Eventually, I connected with a Humane Society in Puerto Vallarta. I donated money every year and took flea collars down when I went.

Everyone seems to have a “thing,” like human rights, abortion, hunger, children, etc. I have always donated to local Humane Societies and sponsored animal events in Alaska. After I closed my nightclub in Denver, I didn’t have an outlet to be able to raise awareness or money for the animals down there. It was shortly afterward that I began DJing for Babes Around Denver that I came up with the idea to donate all of my fees to various shelters around the country. I thought, if I could get my name out there, I could raise a lot of money for various shelters. In 2008, I donated $8,000 to various animal charities. In 2009, I donated $12,000. I can’t wait to hit the $20,000 mark.

My reward for it all? With music in my soul and animals in my heart, I get to do two things I love the most. There is no greater feeling in the world than knowing what you do makes a difference, no matter how big or small.

Follow DJ Trina’s adventures in animal rescue.