August 2010: Eenie Meenie Miny Mo

Sunday, August 1st, 2010

With so many charities operating in the Fraser Valley, how do you choose which one to support?  What percentage of your income do you contribute yearly?  Do you volunteer your time anywhere?  If so, how much?

Everyone wants to contribute something to a non-profit, the tough part is choosing which one.  The summer holidays are a perfect time to evaluate your charitable giving and make a plan for the coming year.  Here are a few things to consider when you select an organization to support.

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July 2010: Elizabeth’s Wildlife Center

Friday, July 2nd, 2010

Mahatma Ghandi once said that The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.  The Fraser Valley then, can rest assured that our moral progress is quite far along when a place like Elizabeth’s Wildlife Center exists. Elizabeth and her volunteers work tirelessly to save and rehabilitate small animals that many of us may not think twice about.  We can all be grateful that she has followed her calling and created a haven for these defenseless creatures in our community.

Elizabeth is a Registered Nurse with a love for animals and a heart for the hurt and abandoned.  

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June 2010: Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep

Tuesday, June 1st, 2010

Most of us either know someone, have a friend of a friend, or have actually experienced the loss of a newborn baby.  It’s an incredibly heart-wrenching to go through, or to watch a loved one go through.  It’s especially hard to talk about after the fact.  A few months ago I had the privilege of attending a fundraiser in Aldergrove benefiting Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep, aka NILMDTS.  I had no idea what I was in for.  From the moment the lights were dimmed and the multi-media presentation was shown to explain the purpose and mission of NILMDTS, I was crying my eyes out.

NILMDTS works with parents all over the continent who have lost their precious babies.  When it’s too late to do anything else, the photographers from NILMDTS come to the hospital to take keepsake photos of the child either alone, with the parents, or both.  

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May 2010: Swan Charities

Tuesday, May 4th, 2010

Now that Spring is in full fling, many of you are either riding motorcycles, or wishing you were riding motorcycles.  Whichever category you find yourself in, you can get the season started right by supporting a group of Fraser Valley motorcycle enthusiasts who raise money for burn victims.  Swan Charities started in 2007 with 4 young and energetic founders: Lee, Dallas, Lori and Stephen.  Inspired by the Flying Swan Hot Chicks and the motorcycle community that has given them all so much support and camaraderie, the four decided to start giving back in the form of fundraising for burn victims.  Other groups do charity rides to raise money, but these four wanted to make something more lasting; a motorcycle calendar with pictures of mostly ladies on bikes.  The pictures are tasteful and have proven to be a big hit within the motorcycle community.  The models are all licensed motorcycle riders and the buyers were 70% female the first year out. Swan Charities continues to grow, with a goal this year of $20,000 to help send kids to burn camp.

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April 2010: Clothes2U

Thursday, April 1st, 2010

With so much need in the world, I find myself wondering sometimes how I can possibly make a difference and then I meet someone like Ernie Jantzen.  Ernie is a can-do kind of guy and he inspires action in other people.  He’s the Founder of Clothes2U, an organization that collects not only clothes, but household goods, personal items…basically anything he can fit in his minivan, to distribute to low income individuals and families.

Seeing a need among single parent families, Ernie started collecting clothes in 2002 to distribute on his own.  Soon enough, the need far outweighed his time and resources as an individual and he started looking for venues to host events where he could give away lots of clothing and goods at once.

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March 2010: Childcare Worldwide

Thursday, March 4th, 2010

Every day over 5,760 more children become orphans.  Every single day.

I sat down with Dan Bue, Executive Director of Childcare Worldwide based in Surrey, to ask what differentiates his organization from other child relief agencies.  “We focus on children, but we also help them as they become adults to get trained for careers to support themselves.  We don’t just drop them when they turn 18, like some other organizations will.”  He went on to talk about the trade school they’ve built for former orphans, and how CW has managed to employ many kids formerly supported by donors to work making clothes for current orphans.  

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February 2010: Women’s Resource Society of the Fraser Valley

Monday, February 1st, 2010

Did you know that 15% of all violence reported to the police in Canada is within a family? That is an awful statistic.

I recently sat down with Pamela Willis, Executive Director of the Women’s Resource Society of the Fraser Valley. The organization’s head office is in Mission, in a cozy-looking brick building up on the hill. Pamela has a soft voice and unimposing demeanour, but her passion for helping women is powerful. She begins by giving me a brief history of WRSFV, and I’m amazed to learn that the idea of women’s shelters is very new.

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January 2010 – WorldServe Ministries

Monday, December 28th, 2009

Most people don’t know what they really, truly want in life. I know this because I ask whenever I get the chance.  It’s easy to see, though.  Whatever you spend the most time on, be it work, relationships, fitness, a cause, that is what’s most important to you, and that’s what you want. It’s not what you say… it’s what you DO.

So with that thought in mind, I’m writing this monthly Fraser Valley Charity Spotlight with the goal to inform and make relevant practical ways to impact the world around us. Because we can’t find important what we don’t know yet.  

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