Persuasive speech about saving money

Persuasive Speech: Save the Children Helen Borges

INTRODUCTION

1. Attention Getter: What can you do with $70? The answer to this question may vary depending on who you are. Many people may choose to buy a pretty dress, a pair of shoes, a game that just came out, a huge supply of McDonald’s food… But how many people you know can say that with only $70 they can provide education for a girl in Afghanistan for a whole year, school fees, uniforms and supplies included? Not many, right? Well, that’s a shame, because it’s true, and it is made possible thanks to the hard work of the people from Save the Children. 2. Audience Relevance: According to the 2012 Census, 21 percent of children in America live in poverty. That is 16 million children who understand all too well what it means to go without things that may seem so simple, but are critical in a child’s life, such as books, proper nutrition, and a place to play and learn. As Dr. Eugene Lewit explains in his article for The Future of the Children published in 1993, poor children encounter multiple problems during their childhood. They are more likely than their more affluent counterparts to go hungry, to be inadequately housed and clothed, and to receive inadequate medical care as well as insufficient social support. Save the Children’s mission is to turn those things around, and do whatever is possible to save the children, not only in the U.S. but all over the world. 3. Credibility: As a child, I knew all too well what it meant to “go without”. Growing up in a third world country, it wasn’t all that rare to see myself and my friends going without proper schooling, books, activities and even food. I know how important those simple things are, and I can say that I know that when you live in poverty, $50, $20 or even $10 can be the what defines whether you will go to bed hungry or not. 4. Thesis: After listening to this speech, you will have a better understanding of the amazing work that Saving the Children does and how a small donation can make a big impact in the life of an impoverished child. 5. Preview of Main Points: In this speech, I will first briefly talk about the history of Save the Children. Second, I will talk about their impact in the lives of children in present days. Then, I will talk about how even a small donation can make such a big difference in the lives of impoverished children not only in the U.S. but all over the world.

Main Point #1: Save the Children has a long history of helping children around the world when they need it most.

Sub-Point 1: Save the Children is a non-government organization that has a mission of protecting children’s rights and providing support for children in around 120 countries worldwide. According to Save the Children’s official website, last updated in 2014, the foundation was established in the United Kingdom in April of 1919, less than a year after the end of World War 1. More than 60 million military personnel were mobilized for the war efforts, and the casualty rates were staggering. With that, destruction was widespread throughout Europe, and many children became orphans of the war. When Save the Children was created, its goal

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was to provide basic needed resources, such as education, health care, and emergency aid for those affected by the war. Sub-Point 2: According to Save the Children’s official website, last updated in 2014, by 1921, only 2 years after it was created, they had raised over £1,000,000, and conditions for children in Central Europe were improving due to their efforts. The efforts of Save the Children would continue to change children’s lives throughout history. They were highly active in helping children in need during crisis such as the Russian Famine of 1921 when, as University of Nottingham senior lecturer James Muckle explains in his article for The Slavonic and East European Review, more than one hundred and twenty million meals were served to children and millions more to adults; working with refugee children and displaced people in former occupied Europe, including holocaust survivors after World War 2, helping children who were affected by the Korean War, as well as becoming active in previous colonies of the British empire after its decline.

Transition: Now that you’ve seen the amazing work Save the Children has done protecting children and defending their rights in several countries all throughout history, I would like to second discuss the impact Save the Children has had in recent times. Main Point #2: Save the Children continues to come to the rescue of children in need all around the world

Sub-Point 1: In 2010, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake hit Haiti, killing thousands of people and displacing millions. According to the Save the Children website, last updated in 2014, 1.6 million Haitians including 700,000 children were provided with shelter materials, food and water, health care, hygiene, and sanitation. With the Syrian civil war, thousands of children were killed and many more were displaced. Even in such dangerous conditions, Save the children was quick to respond, helping keep the children safe and providing basic needs such as food, shelter, and helping the children cope. Sub-Point 2: Save the Children has also come to the rescue of the American children when they needed the most. In 2005, the US Gulf Coast saw widespread devastation from hurricane Katrina, which displaced hundreds of thousands of children. In response, Save the Children set up schools, camps, child care and counseling center in order to provide help for those in need. In 2012, Hurricane Sandy devastated the East Coast. In response, Save the Children mobilized every available resource in order to protect the children affected by the disaster, providing protection through our Child Friendly Spaces in emergency shelters.

Transition: Now that you have a better idea of the amazing work Save the Children has done by providing quick response aiding the children in need, even in the most dangerous situations, we will finally talk about how you can be a part of this cause Main Point #3: When helping save the children in need, every dollar counts

Sub-Point 1: Many people share my great admiration with the great cause of charities like save the children, however, as Pia Rebello Britto from the Yale school of medicine explains in her book “Handbook of Early Childhood Development Research and its Impact on Global Policy” published in 2013, over one-third of children worldwide under five years of age still fail to achieve their full developmental potential due to malnutrition, poverty, disease, neglect, and lack of learning

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opportunities. Save the Children has done everything in their power to help children in need throughout history, but the only reason they have been able to do so is because of the great people who believe in their cause and donate. Many people say “Well, I don’t have a lot of money, my donation wouldn’t make a difference”, and to those people I say: When the cause is to save the children, every dollar makes a difference. Those children are our future lawyers, our future engineers, our future doctors, our future politicians. Without things such as proper education and proper health care, those children, our future generation, will be in big trouble. Sub-Point 2: As I said in the beginning, with only $70 dollars you can provide education to a child in Afghanistan, uniforms, supplies and school fees included, for a whole year. That is a tiny price for such a big impact in another person’s life. According to the World Health Organization website last updated in 2014, about 45% of all deaths of children under 5 are linked to malnutrition. Why wouldn’t you want to turn that around? You don’t have to donate that amount. You can donate any amount you want. $60, $50, $20, $10 dollars can make a huge difference. Wouldn’t you want to participate in such an amazing cause? Every donation, large or small, is a vital part of the work Save the Children does. For even a small amount of money, you can make a huge difference in a child’s life. Transition and signal closing: As I conclude this speech, I hope you have a better idea of how great is the influence of Save the Children in the lives of children around the world.

C. CONCLUSION

Restate Thesis: After listening to this speech, you hopefully gained a better understanding of the amazing work that Saving the Children does, and how a small donation can much a big impact in the life of an impoverished child. Review Main-Points: In this speech, I briefly talked about the history of Save the Children. Then, we discussed their impact in the lives of children in present days. Finally, we examined how even a small donation can make such a big difference in the lives of impoverished children not only in the U.S. but all over the world. Closure: Save the children has been doing amazing work providing care and protection for children in need throughout history. From World War 1, through the Russian Famine, through the Haitian earthquake and Hurricane Katrina, save the children has using every resource available to give children in the U.S. and around the world what they deserve – a healthy start, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. With a simple donation, you can be part of this amazing journey to save our future generation. Do you want to be a vital part of this amazing cause? Do you want to make a difference? Then donate, because every donation is valuable in helping children all over the world. Make a difference. Help save the children.

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References

Britto, P. R. Engle, P. L. Super , C. M. (Eds.). (2013). Handbook of early childhood development research and its impact on global policy. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Lewit, E. (1993). The Future of Children, Adoption, 3, 176-182.

Muckle, J. (1990). Saving the Russian children: Materials in the archive of Save the Children fund relating to Eastern Europe in 1920-1923. The Slavonic and East European Review, 68, 507-511.

Save the Children (2014) Save the Children Foundation. Retrieved fromhttp://www.savethechildren.org/site/c.8rKLIXMGIpI4E/b.6115947/k.8D6E/Offici al_Site.htm

U.S. Census Bureau (2012) Social, Economic, and Housing Statistics Division: Poverty. Retrieved from http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/poverty/data/

World Health Organization (2014) MDG 1: eradicate extreme poverty and hunger. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/topics/millennium_development_goals/hunger/en/

World Health Organization (2014) Children: Reducing Mortality. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs178/en/