My Uneventful 3rd Blogiversary

I was hoping to say that I have blogged every day for three years as of today, but sadly, and very frustratingly, the past couple of days I have been otherwise occupied. So here I am, on the third anniversary of Animal Person, asking for advice that has nothing to do with veganism or animal rights (and I've tweeted about this so some of you already know what's coming). And I cannot say I haven't missed a day for three years.

I'm in the position of having to build a website for a child welfare organization. From scratch. And this isn't really my area but I'm willing to take it on (because our quoted price was $500 for the template and $249 for hosting, and that sounds like a lot to me, particularly considering we'd be doing all of the content and updates--not them).

A simple design with room for video, secure donations, a blog, capturing e-mail addresses, a twitterfall or something like it, social networking buttons, pdf newsletters, a calendar of events, volunteer information, lots of pictures and lots of space. Luckily, we have a logo.

Joomla, WordPress and GoDaddy were suggested so far.

Remember that this isn't a blog, but might include one.

Anyone have suggestions or advice? Any guidance is appreciated.

Thanks.

And on a down note, Gray Momma of Project Treadstone was hit by a car and euthanized a couple of days ago. It was heartbreaking for the women at the site.

Also, there are three kittens, who are the only kittens since Project Treadstone began, so that's not so bad. The women are doing their best to keep tabs on them and their mom so they can trap them.

The good news is that, including the kittens' mom, there are only four cats remaining at the site who need to be sterilized! In about four months, the entire site of about 30 cats is almost done! Of course some of the original inhabitants migrated across the street to an abandoned building, and that's next. But we have made progress, and that's good news to me.

I started this blog for Barbaro, and this third anniversary post is for Gray Momma.

And to you, thanks for reading and writing.

Comments

[Deb]

So sorry to hear about gray momma, but that is great news about there being only 4 left to sterilize!

[Alex C.]

I tried to post this comment earlier in the day, but I think it got lost in the ether somewhere.

Joomla is not for the faint of heart. I would stay away from it. Wordpress is a little easier, but my recommendation is Squarespace: http://www.squarespace.com/ . I tested it a few months ago, and I came away very impressed. It's easy to use and looks sharp.

[Mike Grieco]

Happy anniversary, Animal Person!!!:)...The only advice I can give you, Mary, is: continue to be the beautiful human being that you are!

Sorry to hear about Gray Momma and thanks for your wonderful work with PT.

And thanks as always for being here....*Shine-On*

[Mary Martin]

* Alex-Squarespace looks fantastic!

*Mike-thanks, as always.

*Deb-All I could think about was that she spent over a day all crushed from the car, and the suffering she experienced. . . . I'll stop now.

[Morganna]

I don't recommend Godaddy -- had a bad experience there a couple years ago -- posting to the free account is only allowed a few, very limited, ways.

[Beaelliott]

Not uneventful at all... You were a witness for Barbaro and for countless victims since. You made their voices heard, and shared their stories; even the sad ones about Gray Momma.

Good luck on your project regarding children's issues...

[ari]

I'd avoid GoDaddy if I were you - I've had bad experiences with their customer service and they're quite right-wing, too. You might want to go with a green and/or worker-owned host. Here are some good ones:
http://delicious.com/shirari/hosting

Wordpress sounds like a good choice for software. It's pretty easy to set up and use - and I think Joomla might be a bit too intense for this project. Here are some other options you could consider:
http://delicious.com/shirari/cms

Email me if you want more tips / ideas! Good luck...

Poor Gray Momma. :(

[Adam Kochanowicz]

Even though I'm the ass who suggested godaddy, they're an extremely sexist company to boot.