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If you have ideas for a particular cause or organization you'd like to see featured one month, please post them here. Remember, these challenges run monthly, so your organization may not be featured right away!
If you can post a website link or email address for a contact person, please do. If the email needs to remain private, feel free to pm it to me.
What a fantastic idea. I know a few people involved with the Down Syndrome Association so I'll ask around if it's something they'd like to be involved in. It would be great to find a group in need of some thank you cards to use.
Looking forward to lots of good ideas here.
__________________ Victoria
~Made of awesome
~My 6th Avon 39
I've been involved with the Sacramento Children's Home as a board member for about 1 year now. It is a fantastic organization and does a world of good
in our community and surrounding communities. They serve everyone from
babies (Crisis Nursery) to young teens up to 18 and even have a program called birth and beyond to do pre-natal care etc. I have been very impressed with the staff and the programs they do to help.
They also have some great "success stories" where they get a young man or woman that spent a few years at the Home as a troubled youth and then went on to become very successful and they come back to tell their stories.
Anyway, here's a link. I imagine some of the young mommy's to be would LOVE cards. They have done showers for them. The kids living on site in the cottages would probably love them too.
I made a whole set of cards a few months back as part of a staff recognition luncheon.
The Crisis Nursery is one of my particular favorite programs although all of them are very good.
How about Autism Awareness....This has become an epidemic affecting 1 out of every 150 children.....I think that is pretty devestating to our future generations.....
I think every cause listed here is such a great idea - I wish I had more hours in the day (and paper in my stash) to just make cards for all these worthy reasons!
In the end, if I am choosing, I have to go with Autism Awareness.
I'm the Mom of a son with a form of Autism known as Asperger's Syndrome, and I am all too aware of the statistic of 1 out of every 150 children having some form of Autism. They have FINALLY figured out WHAT, but no one has yet figured out WHY, HOW or what to do to help.
Soooo...having said that, Autism needs both Awareness and Support to help
I noticed that Gina K. Stamps has a GREAT Autism Awareness stamp set with part of the proceeds going to that cause. (if anyone knows of any others, please let me know!)
Let's keep up the ideas for good causes!
__________________ ~Tara~ my blog:www.inthesquirlsnest.blogspot.com
I would like to add in curesearch.com who raises money to fight childhood cancers as well. Or the Rosemary A. Hockney Memorial Foundation who helps families affected by childhood cancer. This past Feb. they paid the entire funeral costs for our little friend who passed after battling cancer
Another great place that I'm sure would welcome cards is University of Michigan Dance Marathon who raises money to help support pediatric rehab. programs at Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak and at CS Mott in Ann Arbor. My family is very involved with this group of great college kids and have only been able to give our kids the therapy programs they needed because of their support of programs (which makes them affordable or no cost)
Battered women. I'd love to see a cause providing cards to battered women. No one needs to let their loved ones know how they are than those who have suffered the abuse of another loved one.
I am starting a club that will make cards to send to soldiers at Walter Reed. My husband is in the military and in Iraq again. Troops overseas receive cards and sometime the soldiers at Walter Reed are forgotten. Contact me if you are interested.
__________________ Muriel
"You have to be lost in order to find the things that can't be found."
One close to my heart is Spinal Cord research. My husband was injured and wheelchair bound for life, so that is something I would like to help support and shed some light on.
Here is the National Spinal Cord website. http://www.spinalcord.org/ Not sure what can be done but stampers are a kind hearted bunch.
Oh, my goodness. I was just thinking of writing a post asking for card donations for Meals on Wheels in Northwest Arkansas. This is a service where seniors recieve a warm, healthy meal at lunchtime during the week at no cost to them. Some get meals every weekday while others get meals 2-3 times a week. Funding has been cut for this program and many seniors who would greatly benefit from this service are turned down! I personally know two families that have been denied this service just because there is simply not enough funding!
I have been doing a stamping class at the Senior Activity Center where Meals on Wheels is based. We make cards to "sell" in order to raise money for this program. We have two locations so far that "sell" our cards and plan to have more locations as we get more cards to make available. Fortunately, there is a good demand for our cards and we have made $50 within our first two weeks. The only problem is that our group of seniors is small (and with varying degrees of physical abilities) and we can only make so many! I have supplemented with my stash of cards I keep on hand and I have asked my local stamping friends if they would like to donate too. A friend of mine gave me quite a few of her "old" card samples that she either didn't like or wouldn't use. On some of the more simple ones, I added either jewels or ribbon and they have sold well!
We would love to get any kind of cards. . .old or new, simple or elaborate!! Even card fronts (demonstrator's old samples of retired sets for instance) would be great!!! We could make them into full cards.
It would be wonderful if no senior was ever turned away for this much-needed service!!! I would greatly appreciate if Meals on Wheels was considered for Splitcoast's Cards for a Cause. It would truly make a difference!!!
Thank you so much for your consideration and whether or not Meals on Wheels is chosen, this is a super fantastic idea!!! We all love to stamp and what could make it better but to help others in the process!!
Thank you so much!!!! Splitcoast is the best!
Donna Hardcastle
HugsAndHope.org Make cards for children who are hospitalized or who have serious, sometimes terminal, illnesses. There is a profile for each child so you can see what they child likes and when their birthday is. Wonderful way to make a child feel special!!
Similar to the last post, earlier this year I discovered MACS (Make a Child Smile). This organization has cards and small gifts sent to children who suffer from chronic or life-threatening illnesses and those children's siblings (who sometimes feel left out if their sick sibling is getting all the attention). The profile for each child lists birthdays and family members. They have 3 featured children per month and those that need "urgent mail" because of a change in their medical status. The website suggests to first send to the featured kids, then to urgent kids, and finally, mail can be sent to any "current" child listed on the website. Sounds like a wonderful organization.
The Mission of The Lydia Project is to serve women facing cancer by providing hand-crafted tote bags, prayer and ongoing support. On their website, they specifically list notecards on their "needs" list:
I currently make cards for the Norris Cotton Cancer Center North. It is a center that treats patients in Northern New Hampshire. A few friends and I regularly make cards of encouragements for the patients and Sympathy cards for the family. We leave them blank, donate them to the Center and let the Doctors, Nurses, Secretaries, and volunteers who know and love them fill them out and mail them. They have had such wonderful feedback. Each card is sent with a note saying that someone who was thinking of them handmade the card specially for them. Apparently I can't direct you to their website because this is my first post... Sorry! I look forward to hearing from you!
In reading the ideas of previous posters, I would say there are many causes which could USE cards we could donate......as a personal preference, I would like card donations to be USED to bring joy to others rather than SOLD. I truly believe the cards can bring a smile to the face of a recipient.....much more valuable than its financial value. People to people......IYKWIM....
I agree with some of the other members that we should use our cards to bring happiness to those who are in a rough place. It would mean so much more to send them a card than to send them cards to sell.
I would love to suggest sending cards to people who foster animals. I would also like to send cards to the injured soilders. Here in San Antonio there is a program where people bring dogs and cats to the injured soilders to help with physical therapy. It is called Penny's from Heaven. Of course I would send a card to anyone in need of a little pick me up.
I think with the number of cards that are being donated, we almost have to choose organizations that will use the cards. I don't think most organizations are going to want to take on the task of trying to sell cards. That would be a huge undertaking. So many of these organizations are stretched thin to add more work for them by giving them hundreds of cards to sell just seems a bit crazy.
__________________ Martha
"When you recover or discover something that nourishes your soul and brings joy, care enough about yourself to make room for it in your life." Jean Shinoda Bolen
I agree completely regarding donating versus selling of the cards. It is indeed a big commitment for the organizations to utilize what we send them but I know in my experiences with NCCCN it makes the staff feel like they are lessening the burden on their patients with a pleasant "thinking of you" card or a "we are sharing your grief and loss" card.
On a side note I am so glad my friend directed me to your site! What a great group of talented people! Take Care!
Location: Just west of Spokane, WA, on the rim of a lake with a beautiful view
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How about Make A Wish Foundation? This is a group who bring wishes alive for serious or terminally ill children mostly. I also like the idea of the Ronald McDonald houses.
I have a bunch of cards that I would like to donate and they need a loving charity to go to. The cards have no envelopes as I have run out of A-2s I don't have any ideas on where to send them so if you could help it would be much appreciated.
There are 30 cards total. A bunch of them have glitter and I had read on the cards for Heroes website that you should avoid glitter as it is visible in night-vision goggles.
I was not sure where to post this so forgive me if I posted in the wrong place.;) If anyone has suggestions your input would be most appreciated. Please post here or send me a PM.
Hi, Stormie!
I just checked out your cards and they are beautiful!
I posted earlier... A few friends and I make cards regularly
for the Norris Cotton Cancer Center in St. Johnsbury, VT.
I am not sure how this all works but I would be more than willing
to take them off your hands, put envelopes with them, and donate them
to the Cancer center where they will be put to good use!
I look forward to hearing from you!
Michelle
I get this magainze called Card Marker I found this really great organization called City light Home. Here is the website for the organization www.boisrm.org/facilities-citylight.asp. Just an idea that I thought would be good for cards or a cause.
In reading the ideas of previous posters, I would say there are many causes which could USE cards we could donate......as a personal preference, I would like card donations to be USED to bring joy to others rather than SOLD. I truly believe the cards can bring a smile to the face of a recipient.....much more valuable than its financial value. People to people......IYKWIM....
I make an effort to choose organizations who will be using the cards themselves. As far as I know we have not donated any cards to be sold. I don't plan to pick any that want to do that I always contact an organization and let them know what we'd like to do, and get their permission before I pot it here.
I hope that helps to allay some concerns y'all might be having!
One of the girls on the Bible thread does a lot of work for C.O.L.E.'s Foundation. This is a foundation for helping families with children who are battling cancer. I know Caterina (caterinafmig) heads up the cards to send to the kids and their families. I know she has a difficult time sometimes meeting number of cards they feel led to send out.
I'm the Executive Director of a nonprofit that is aptly named Cards for a Cause. I'm new to SCS and imagine my surprise when I found this thread! We'd love to be your cause one month, and invite you to check out our brand new website at www.cardsforacause.org
I would love to see a cause be for people with Multiple Sclerosis My cousin just passed away last week at age 49. She had multiple sclerosis for 20 years. She was very involved in multiple sclerosis society. She was in a wheelchair but she didn't let that stop her. She always had a smile and postive attitude. Allways ready to help anyone. She was the life to the party and would have you rolling in the floor from laughing. I rode MS150 a few times to sponsor this cure. I have also done walks. This is a weblink for the chapter in Houston. http://www.nationalmssociety.org/cha...TXH/index.aspx.
How about cards for care givers of Alzheimer's patients. My FIL was afflicted by Alzheimer's and I know how isolated my MIL felt. Will check to see if a local or state association has a way of doing this.
How about a cause that would make cards for families (spouses, children, parents, etc.) of soldiers serving overseas. Often the soldiers get cards, but what about the Heroes at Home who are carrying the burden of keeping everything together while their loved ones are away.
As a wife of a husband overseas (non-military related), I know how hard it can be to keep it together and get everything done by myself. A little bit of encouragement can really go a long way.
I know a lot has been done for the troops, but can you do too much? The DFW airport welcomes every soldier returning from Iraq, and a big percentage of them come through DFW on their way home. This group--StarBrite Outreach Program--continues to do little things to welcome them home--painting murals to hang in the area where they return and having school children make simple cards for them. My classes have participated in this. They set up themes for each month and have deadlines. There is a website, but they seem to be transitioning to a new website right now. Here is the email address: [email protected]
Another great cause I send cards to HUGS & HOPE. We send cards to the children that are terminally ill or have life long illnesses/disabilities and their siblings.
Ideas for Causes - Post them here!
