from staff
As our community continues to face a tight economy and shrinking budgets, the Daily Record has established this page that will each week chronicle the efforts of local nonprofit organizations. Bailey Publishing & Communications invites all members of the local nonprofit community to submit news, announcements, success stories and any other information they feel would be of interest to our readers. E-mail to: [email protected].
We also encourage our readers to become more aware of the needs of these worthy organizations as they try to continue to provide valuable services with reduced resources.
Dreams Come True
The diagnosis of a serious illness at any age is devastating, but the news seems overwhelmingly intensified when the patient is a child. Children’s days are to be filled with playing games, laughing and an endless supply of hope. But when a child is diagnosed with cancer, cardiac disease, renal failure or other serious, life-threatening illnesses all of this seems to be traded for fear, pain, a feeling of helplessness and an uncertain future.
While all of these feelings are real, they can, if only for a time, be swept aside, and once again replaced with laughter, joy and optimism.
For 25 years, Dreams Come True has been dedicated to fulfilling the dreams of more than 2,400 children who are faced with life-threatening illnesses. They are children in North Florida and South Georgia with cancer, leukemia, cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy, AIDS, cardiac disease, renal dysfunction and neurological disorders that so greatly affect children’s lives, all share a common bond: dreams.
“Dreams Come True is an organization that gives hope to children in serious situations. You allow children to focus on something else other than their illnesses. Thank you for all that you have done for my son and all the other children and families going through such a devastating time,” said Alice, a dream child’s mother.
A dream gives the magic of hope and strength that these courageous children and their families so desperately need when they need it most. Whether it is hugging a beloved celebrity, surfing beaches in picturesque islands, swimming with the dolphins, shopping at favorite stores, sailing the high seas aboard cruise ships or meeting sports heroes, each child’s dream is extraordinarily special. Here are two testimonials received by Dreams Come True:
“The shopping spree day meant so much to Kendriel because it gave her the opportunity to do something for her self-esteem. She had been down and discouraged about losing her hair, and this dream cheered her up and gave her a boost. This is something we could never have done for her. I can’t even put into words how appreciated it was to the entire family. The dream allowed her to see beyond what she was actually going through and know that better days are coming. It brought so much joy to our daughter’s life.”
– Danielle, Kendriel’s mother
“You cannot imagine how much you made Cody’s dreams come true. The trip was wonderful, and everything was perfect! It’s hard to say that about vacations sometimes, it seems something always doesn’t live up to your expectations. But everything exceeded anything we could have dreamed of. We can never forget the look on Cody’s face when Lighting McQueen and Mater pulled up, and they were full size real cars! That is the happiest he has ever been in his four years.”
– Valerie, Cody’s mother
Visit www.dreamscometrue.org or call 296-3030 for more information.
State Farm honors volunteer
Karen Giddens has been selected by State Farm as their Outstanding Community Volunteer of Year. Giddens received the honor based on her volunteer hours and overall volunteer participation in 2008. State Farm sponsors meals at the Sulzbacher Center and the company’s employees participate by volunteering to cook and serve meals for homeless men, women and children who live at the center, as well as hungry residents from the surrounding neighborhood. Giddens not only volunteers in the kitchen preparing meals, but she also recruits, coordinates, and energizes her fellow employees to volunteer at the Sulzbacher Center. She has led State Farm’s meal program at the Sulzbacher Center since 2002 and is involved in other volunteer efforts as well
Each year State Farm recognizes outstanding agent and employee volunteers around the U.S. and Canada through the State Farm Outstanding Community Volunteer award. In recognition of Giddens’ commitment to making a difference in our community and being there to help others recover from the unexpected, State Farm has made a $500 donation to the charity of Giddens’ choice, the Sulzbacher Center. The donation will provide 500 meals to hungry and homeless people in the Jacksonville community.
Community foundation receives 4-star rating
The Community Foundation in Jacksonville has been awarded its fourth consecutive 4-star rating for sound fiscal management by Charity Navigator, one of the nation’s premier charity evaluation services.
This places The Community Foundation in the top 7 percent of charities evaluated by Charity Navigator, the company reported. Achieving a 4-star rating for four years indicates “that The Community Foundation in Jacksonville consistently executes its mission in a fiscally responsible way, and outperforms most other charities in America,” the company said.
“Just as we seek to build a better community, we are always striving to build a better foundation,” said Grace Sacerdote, executive vice president of the Foundation. “It is gratifying to see our hard work recognized by such as well-respected organization.”
Charity Navigator evaluates U.S.-based charities that are classified as 501(c )(3) organizations under the U.S. tax code and that have $500,000 or more in public support during the year. Charity Navigator’s metrics seek to assess how effectively the organization performs in its day-to-day operations, and how well the organization has positioned itself to sustain its operations over time. Charity Navigator accepts no funding from organizations that it reviews and charges no fees for access to its data.
The Community Foundation in Jacksonville works to stimulate philanthropy in order to build a better community. The oldest community foundation in Florida, it has assets of $119 million.
Jacksonville volunteer organization ranked top in the nation
HandsOn Jacksonville has been selected as the winner of the 2009 Points of Light & HandsOn Network Affiliate Leadership Award.
Dr. Judith A.M. Smith, President and CEO of HandsOn Jacksonville commented, “It is exciting, gratifying, and extremely humbling to be singled out from over 250 peer HandsOn action centers that are doing important and amazing work across the nation and in six countries around the world. We focus our HandsOn volunteer projects on restoring schools as centers of the community, alleviating poverty, and preserving the environment. This significant award is clear testimony of our value in this community and our leadership across our industry.”
Robert F. Spohrer, board president of HandsOn Jacksonville said, “We board members know how hard the officers and staff at HandsOn Jacksonville work, but it is wonderful to have it acknowledged through this national award. Our organization is an on-ramp to volunteering and service, empowering people to create change where change is most needed. During this challenging time of economic turmoil and funding cuts coming from every direction, I remain optimistic for HandsOn Jacksonville. We are doing work that matters, and we are doing it well.”
Amy Smith, President of the HandsOn Network, remarked, “HandsOn Jacksonville has shown itself to be one of the best in the volunteer field and we are honored that they are a part of the HandsOn Network. HandsOn Jacksonville’s leadership in the area of full brand adoption and the HandsOn modality of inspiring, equipping and mobilizing people to change our world is inspiring to Action Centers across the network. HandsOn Jacksonville has always championed the power of a strong, unified network.”
Points of Light Institute was created by the merger of the Points of Light Foundation and HandsOn Network in August 2007. The result is a powerful, integrated national organization with a global focus to redefine volunteerism and civic engagement for the 21st century putting people at the center of community problem solving. The vision is that one day every person will discover their power to make a difference, creating healthy communities in vibrant democracies around the world.
HandsOn Network, the volunteer-focused arm of Points of Light Institute, leads people from impulse to action, turning ideas for change into real projects. HandsOn Network provides a national platform for action. Through their 250 Action Centers (affiliates) they reach 83 percent of the American population and engage more than 70,000 nonprofits, government agencies, faith based organizations and companies.
In 2007 alone the network delivered more than 30 million hours of service. The Action Centers focus on helping people plug into volunteer opportunities in their local community; helping nonprofits manage volunteer resources and developing volunteer leaders. These affiliates act as community hubs — places where people can get connected, get involved and make change happen in their communities.
HandsOn Jacksonville inspires, equips, and mobilizes people to take action that changes the world. The organization collaborates with local nonprofit agencies to help solve serious problems that face the community today using the HandsOn Network model.
To learn more visit www.handsonjacksonville.org .