I forgot to mention - the music for the Hurricane PSA is “Not Alone” by Rob Costlow, via the Podsafe Music Network. I can’t think of a more aptly-titled song.

Please feel free to download this MP3 and play it, distribute it, and get it heard as far and wide as you can.

Hurricane MP3

Text of Promo:

This is Chris from the Financial Aid Podcast with a message about Hurricane Katrina. Thousands of people need your help right now and in the months to come as the Gulf Coast recovers from this storm. There are plenty of ways you can help. If you can spare money, frequent flyer miles, company stocks, or volunteer time, there are organizations who will make the most of your generosity such as:

The American Red Cross. Accepting money, frequent flyer miles, and stock. www.RedCross.org or 1-800-HELP-NOW.

The Salvation Army. Accepting money and volunteers. www.SalvationArmyUSA.org or 1-888-SAL-ARMY.

Second Harvest. Accepting money, stock, mutual funds, and monthly giving plans. If you are financially able to, setting up a long term fund is a wonderful way to continue giving in the months to come. www.SecondHarvest.org or 1-800-771-2303.

Habitat for Humanity. Accepting money and volunteers. www.Habitat.org

No matter which avenue you choose, please give generously, even after the media has moved onto the next big story. Your gifts will help rebuild lives. Thank you.

You know… after 9/11, I remember there being a huge, immediate response online to the crisis and offers of assistance. Amazon, Apple, all kinds of sites reacted immediately to get people mobilized. By the time all is said and done in the Gulf states, the casualty list may well exceed 9/11. Certainly the long term economic damage is just as bad, if not worse - and you’ll feel it this winter for sure.

Where is the response? It’s business as usual today (August 31) at Amazon. Apple has nothing. All quiet on eBay, Staples, etc. A few sites - Google, Microsoft, Yahoo - are linked up, and kudos to them.

Let’s get everyone else on board. The recovery from this event will take a lot longer than 9/11 just because of the scope and size of the area affected. If you run a web site, please help out and link up to the Red Cross, Salvation Army, etc. - RedCross.org and 1-800-HELP-NOW.

To our competitors - hey, how about an industry-wide response? Yes, you - SallieMae.com, NextStudent.com, FinancialAid.com, help out, link up. Because at the end of the day, we’re all in this together, as a country, as a world.

Student Financial Aid News
+ Financial Aid Podcast listeners have raised $372.51 towards Hurricane Katrina relief! Thank you!
+ Nevada Millennium Scholarship is toughening requirements
+ Last minute loan? Act Education Loans - 866-299-8900, ActEducationLoans.com
+ Make sure your loans have no early repayment penalties
+ Take out a quick loan for last minute expenses, then apply for scholarships and use funds to pay off loan

Scholarship Update
+ Seven Australian and New Zealand universities offering scholarships to UK students
+ StudyOptions.com

Podsafe Music
+ The Reverse Engineers, Mercury in Retrograde
+ Via the Podsafe Music Network
+ Incidentally, if you want more info on astrology & astronomy, check out BadAstronomy.com
+ Bianca Aguiar, Fin Essa Cancao Pra Voce

Promos
+ Lake County Podcast
+ C.C. Chapman Accident Hash PSA for Hurricane Relief

Direct file download: MP3 file

To the subscribers of the Financial Aid News mailing list, wherever you may be:

I’d like to take a moment to ask for your help. What I am asking is simply this: if each person subscribed to this mailing list could contribute at least $2.51 to the Red Cross Hurricane Katrina victims fund.

How to donate: call 1-800-HELP-NOW or visit http://www.RedCross.org

Be sure when you call or donate online that you want your donation to go specifically for Hurricane Katrina victims.

If you can spare more, that would be great, but if each of you could at least spare the price of a burger and fries or a Starbucks coffee, then the Financial Aid Newsletter could raise $1,000,000 in funds for the Red Cross to help victims of the hurricane - and that’s our goal.

How to donate: call 1-800-HELP-NOW or visit http://www.RedCross.org

Once you’ve contributed, send me an email at financialaidpodcast@gmail.com and let me know that you’ve donated and how much you donated so I can publish a page of Financial Aid News & Financial Aid Podcast contributors. If you’d like your name mentioned, let me know, otherwise I will just post it as “Anonymous Donor”. Donors who give more than $25 will get a nod on the air on the Financial Aid Podcast.

Helping to fund the cost of education is important to us here at the Student Loan Network, but helping to save lives is vastly more important. Thank you in advance for all your support.

How to donate: call 1-800-HELP-NOW or visit http://www.RedCross.org

Best regards,

Christopher S. Penn
Editor in Chief, the Financial Aid Newsletter
Producer, the Financial Aid Podcast
A Service of the Student Loan Network

As predicted yesterday - and whether it’s due to supply chain or not, gas prices along the way to work were up an average of 6 cents only 1 day after Katrina. It’s going to get really ugly over the next 4 - 6 months as energy suppliers try to figure out how to make up for lost production and refining capacity. If you are thinking about alternative fuels for your home, now is the time to do it - and you might want to start thinking about wood.

Yes, wood. If you have a fireplace or you have the ability to have a wood stove put in, catalytic wood stoves can generate a tremendous amount of heat and don’t require the babysitting that previous generations of wood stoves needed.

News
+ How to help Hurricane Katrina victims
+ RedCross.org
+ 1-800-HELP-NOW
+ BEWARE of SCAMMERS! After 9/11 and the tsunami, there were a ton of scammers
+ Stick to reputable agencies like the Red Cross, Salvation Army, etc. to avoid fraud
+ Article in the Tartan about financial aid and interest rates
+ Rates are set by the market, not by the government
+ T-bill relationship to the economy

Promos
+ Working Podcast
+ Eclectic Mix

Mail Call
+ What to do if financial aid has been scaled back
+ How aid is determined
+ Stafford Loans: StaffordLoan.com
+ PLUS Loans: PLUSLoan.net
+ Alternative Loans: ActEducationLoans.com

Scholarship Update
+ A new magic keyphrase to use in searching for scholarships
+ No, I’m not going to post it in the show notes - you have to tune in!
+ Download our guide by subscribing to the Podcast (it’s all free)
+ Paid scholarship searches are okay, too
+ GotScholarships.com

Podsafe Music
+ From the Podsafe Music Network
+ Bianca Aguiar, a Brazilian artist
+ Tentei de Esquecer
+ One Day You’ll Be There

Direct file download: MP3 file

The Red Cross is soliciting assistance for victims of Katrina. Visit RedCross.org or call 1-800-HELP-NOW.

One other tip - if you can do so safely, consider buying as much gasoline as you can store. Obviously, don’t store it in or around a residential building or any place where there is danger of fire or explosion. But if you can, fill up now - prices are going to spike pretty badly after this storm is done with. At the very least, keep filling up your tank often until you see prices move a lot - that way you get as much value as you can out of the gas you’ve bought.

The September Financial Aid Newsletter is on the way - this will be the free stuff issue, an issue you do not want to miss! Stay tuned…