The feature below is brought to you by Safe Haven Transitional, Inc., an organization that is in the running to receive a See Beautiful Grant. For more information about all of our giving initiatives, please click here.  Safe Haven Transitional Inc. offers SAFE dwelling Transitional Housing for abused single women and women with children living in the Atlanta Metropolitan area. Our program provides a variety of supportive services with the necessary tools that will strengthen and equip the women as they re-enter society as healthy independent people. One of our goals is to transform the abused from being Victims to living Victoriously as we educate, empower and raise awareness of the various types of abuse and crimes in the home and in our communities. The Transformers Youth Intervention Program focuses on breaking the inter-generational cycle of abuse and decreasing children’s use of aggressive and internalizing behaviors and the negative effects that domestic violence has on children. The second component of the Transformers Youth Intervention Program is the Haven Girlz and Haven Boyz Program, entitled “No More Pain No More Drama”! This entails regular meetings/sessions for teens in a therapeutic environment that addresses the effects of dysfunctional and unhealthy friendships and relationships such as peer pressure, bullying, abuse, teen pregnancies, self-hatred, sexual molestation, neglect, and abandonment. Please visit our website for more information please visit www.safehaventransitional.org Remember: NO ONE HAS THE RIGHT TO BE ABUSED and ABUSE OF ANY KIND IS UNACCEPTABLE! Written by Mary Winfrey, Executive Director of Safe Haven Transitional, Inc.Edited by Rachel McLeroy for See Beautiful
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The feature below is brought to you by helloHope, an organization that is in the running to receive a See Beautiful Grant. For more information about all of our giving initiatives, please click here. Hi, See Beautiful community! Thank you for the invitation to write a guest post today! It is a joy to share about our organization, and we are tremendously grateful for the opportunity to be considered for this grant. The journey for helloHOPE began seven years ago this month. Just after our oldest daughter celebrated her first birthday, she began exhibiting alarming symptoms and started to lose weight. In our search for answers, the next several months held visits to specialists, numerous medical procedures, and lots of fear surrounding what our daughter’s future held. During this season, we were immersed into the world of medical adversity. We discovered that it can take months to get an appointment with a specialist. Every waiting room we sat in was full of parents wearing brave faces as they waited for answers for their sons or daughters. Isolation and fear came easily. And an overwhelming amount of clinical words and information pointed more toward what was “wrong” with children than what was to be celebrated in them. In the winter of 2012, our daughter was diagnosed with EoE, a chronic GI disease that occurs when white blood cells attack the lining of the esophagus. In his wisdom, our doctor advised us not to Google the diagnosis, but we were anxious to learn everything we could about what life was going to be like with this disease. Every website or story that we found pointed to either worst-case scenario stories or, at best, perpetuated the fear and questions in our hearts. We finally stepped away from the computer, looked at our daughter, and with the help of our community and prayer, we decided that it was time to turn off this stream of negative information. We carefully followed all of her doctor’s instructions, but our focus shifted. Rather than obsessing over all that was wrong, we started paying attention to the things that made our daughter’s face light up. The things that made her come alive. Exploring outside or running through the grass with her infectious giggle.  As we watched her grow and gradually come to a place of healing, we knew that we wanted to steward the story we had been given. A little bit of research uncovered that 1 in 5 children in America face special healthcare needs. That explained the full waiting rooms. And the place those parents are turning to for more information? The Internet. We began dreaming together about creating a community built on hope for families walking through a diagnosis with their child. Families could share how they navigated through their journey with hope and faith. We could share resources that provided truth and encouragement for parents who are feeling overwhelmed or alone. In July of 2015, helloHOPE was born with a mission of providing hope-filled stories and resources to families facing medical adversity. It has been a privilege to share 21 real, honest, stories of families who have walked through a childhood diagnosis with hope. Additionally, more than 100 resource articles have been published, providing parents with much-needed support and encouragement. The feedback that comes through our website continues to both humble us and propel us forward in our mission.  Based in Atlanta, helloHOPE has also had the unique opportunity to serve families at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta through in-person events. Our team has partnered with the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at the Egleston campus to support patient families in various ways, including serving dinner to patient families in the PICU waiting room several times a year. We have expanded our program offerings at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta to reach even more families by introducing Free Parking Day. The last two summers, we have surprised more than 2,000 patient families by paying for their parking, and the response is phenomenal every time. From tears of relief and gratitude to cheerful smiles, each family is reminded that they are not alone. Here’s a glimpse into this year’s Free Parking Day for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, powered by helloHOPE: We have applied for See Beautiful’s grant in order to lay an important foundation for our next Free Parking Day. The fundraising model for next year’s event is through corporate sponsorships, and See Beautiful’s grant opportunity would allow them to join us in spreading hope to more than a thousand families at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta next year. A diagnosis isn’t everything. You are not alone. Your story matters. helloHOPE. https://www.hellohope.com Find us on Facebook and Instagram! Writte by Mary Beth Thomas, Co-founder of helloHopeThe feature below is brought to you by Helping Mamas, an organization that is in the running to receive a See Beautiful Grant. For more information about all of our giving initiatives, please click here.  Helping Mamas began as a labor of love by two social workers and moms. After 15 years in the social service field, we noticed a huge gap in services. This gap was preventing families from being able to move out of poverty, feel confident in their parenting skills and provide the most basic needs for their children. Prior to Helping Mamas there was no coordinated effort to collect and distribute essential infant and children items. Diapers, wipes, car seats, and cribs are critical to the health and safety of children and are often the most expensive items to purchase. These items cannot be purchased through Public Assistance Programs like WIC and SNAP (formerly Food Stamps). 1 in 3 moms in the United States has to choose between diapers and food for her children. Without an adequate supply of diapers, children can’t attend early childhood education programs. Without childcare, parents can’t work. This gap in services was keeping families stuck in the diaper gap and unable to see the beautiful of being a parent. If you are constantly worried about providing for your child’s most basic needs, you can’t stop and feel the joy of parenting. Helping Mamas was formed to provide these essential basic needs for families who need them the most. At Helping Mamas our mission is to connect helping mamas to mamas needing help. We collect and distribute essential infant and child items to organizations that serve women and children in need. We are the baby supply bank of metro Atlanta. In 2017 we distributed over 500,000 essential items to over 15,000 children living in poverty in Atlanta. We collect and distribute diapers, wipes, clothes, bottles, car seats, cribs, strollers and so much more. We are able to serve children birth to age 12 with our services. We currently partner with over 95 agencies throughout the state of Georgia to provide these items.  Our team was thrilled to learn of the See Beautiful grant! One of our biggest and most effective program to help others see beautiful is our Volunteer Program. We have over 200 volunteers that donate over 2000 hours a year in service to our mission. Helping Mamas is requesting funding to support creating a space in our new building that is solely dedicated to our volunteers. In this space we will have a wall of recognition of our volunteers and a break area that is specifically for them to rest and recharge. The funds from See Beautiful will also help us create more user-friendly work spaces for our volunteers. Our organization is 90% volunteer run. Without their help, the 15,000 children we serve every year wouldn’t get near the amount of items they need to be successful. Our volunteers sort and organize our warehouse, fill wish lists for the families we serve and volunteer at our play date events. Our volunteers help the parents we serve see the beautiful in parenting again. They pack the wish lists with so much love and kindness! Our volunteers help us see beautiful through their service every day. Without them, our work wouldn’t be possible. We want to create an efficient and comfortable work space for them while they are here. We want Helping Mamas to be the place to volunteer in Atlanta. When we encourage others to give back, they are then able to see the beautiful in themselves as well! This funding will also help us create a special place for children to come and volunteer. We love having two generations of volunteers impacting two generations of poverty. This funding will allow us to create a space where kids want to come and give back. They will have tables their size, projects they can complete to help other children and art to go out with each of our wish lists. Engaging children in service is critical in helping us to promote beautiful in every generation. This space will allow for individuals, families, children, and groups to come and help families living in poverty see the beautiful in the world. For more information on how to volunteer with Helping Mamas, please visit their volunteer page of their website, here. Written by Jamie Lackey, CEO and Founder of Helping MamasEdited by Rachel McLeroy for See Beautiful The feature below is brought to you by Kids Boost, an organization that is in the running to receive a See Beautiful Grant. For more information about all of our giving initiatives, please click here.  Kids Boost and See Beautiful Partnership Can you imagine a world where children could sign up to make the world a better place just as easily as sign up for soccer or guitar lessons? Kids want to make a difference. They want to help others. They just need a little help. They need the opportunity. This is where Kids Boost comes in. Kids Boost is a non-profit organization designed to empower kids to give back to the world. Kids Boost helps children (ages 8-14) use their gifts, talents and passions to raise money for a charity of their choice. Every Kids Boost participant receives $100 start-up funds, a one-on-one coach and resources to help them with their project. Throughout the project, the child will become a philanthropist and social entrepreneur, while learning important lessons in money management, civil engagement and communication. And don’t forget the best part… all of this is done in way that’s fun for the child. Once the Kids Booster has completed the project, he or she will get the honor of presenting a check to the organization of their choice. 80% of the total funds raised goes directly to the charity of choice while 20% goes back to Kids Boost to allow another child to start their Kids Boost project. So as you can see, Kids Boost is a cycle of giving that allows kids to learn the power of giving back at an early age. In just a few years, Kids Boosters have turned $6500 into more than $116,000 for 50 different non-profit organizations. They have done this by hosting events like dance parties, tennis tournaments, bake sales and dog washes. We are thrilled to tell you that there is not a shortage of kids who want to participate. We currently have more than 200 kids on a waiting list to get started on a Kids Boost project. Yep, that’s 200 kids who are actually waiting on their chance to make a difference in the world. Kids Boost applied for a See Beautiful Grant to help us reach these kids. $5,000 would help us provide one-on-one coaching, startup funds, and all materials to help kids through their projects. Six children will have the opportunity to create their “beautiful” in the world. These kids will also see the beautiful within themselves as our primary goal at Kids Boost is to enhance self-esteem and self-worth through giving back. In addition, nonprofits throughout the world will receive the funds they need to sustain and create more beauty in the world. On average, Kids Boosters turn $100 into more than $1500 for a nonprofit. So these six kids are likely to turn your $5000 grant into more than $9,000 for beautiful causes. So while this is a grant, it’s also an investment… an investment in non-profits and an investment in the life of a child. We think that’s a pretty beautiful thing! We would love your help and support in empowering kids to give. See Beautiful can help us create a world where signing up to make a difference is just as easy as signing up for baseball! Written by Kristen Witzel, Founder & Executive Director of Kids BoostThe feature below is brought to you by Little Lambs of Utah an organization that is in the running to receive a See Beautiful Grant. For more information about all of our giving initiatives, please click here.  Hello from everyone at Little Lambs Foundation for Kids! Our foundation is thrilled to be featured on the See Beautiful blog. We are honored to share our mission of love and service with you today. Little Lambs is a registered 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that provides diapers and baby supplies to low-income families and comfort kits to children who are placed in foster-care, entering emergency shelters and escaping domestic violence. This year Little Lambs added a new resource for our community, which we call the Little Lambs Diaper Bank. With 1 in 3 Mothers struggling to provide diapers for their babies here in the United States, and a 15% poverty rate in our county (higher than the national average), we recognized this unmet need in our community. We were truly inspired to further our reach and help struggling Mothers and families. Little Lambs is dedicated to providing basic necessities that no child should ever have to go without. Every Thursday, volunteers gather to prepare diapers and supplies for foster children and children in desperate need. Our community has an urgent need for diapers at this time. There are no other local resources for struggling families to receive diapers and therefore they rely on our foundation for support. We truly believe there is incredible value in being of service to others, especially children. We hope to send the message of hope and love to the children and families who need it the most. We hope you all see BEAUTIFUL in serving others. For more information on our foundation and how you can get involved visit our website at www.littlelambsofutah.org Written by Edward Chalfant, Executive Director of Little Lambs of UtahThe feature below is brought to you by Love Beyond Walls, an organization that is in the running to receive a See Beautiful Grant. For more information about all of our giving initiatives, please click here. To see the Voiceless Documentary, please click the link below: https://vimeo.com/222830083 To see the Voiceless Documentary Trailer, please click the link below: https://vimeo.com/186256582 To see the First Screening Recap, please click the link below. https://vimeo.com/231732059 Love Beyond Walls was created as a hopeful response to a society building higher and higher walls. We are an organization that focuses on telling the stories of and working with those wrestling with poverty and homelessness. As an organization, we believe that tangible love overcomes these barriers. Walls exist more than ever in our current society. We looked around and saw nations building higher and higher barriers between one another. These walls separated people in different classes, sexes, races, and everything in between. We are an organization that is not afraid to address these barriers and we are committed to breaking them down. We believe in action over words and making service a part of our daily lives. One of the most distinguishable characteristics about our organization is our focus on telling the stories of the unseen and building relationships with people as a way of walking with them to get out of poverty and homelessness. We are committed to people that the world passes by because we believe the people struggling with poverty and sleeping on the streets have lives and stories that are just as valuable as ours. We exist to provide dignity to the homeless and poor by providing a voice, visibility, shelter, community, and grooming and support services to achieve self-sufficiency. Since our beginning, we have been committed to telling stories in ways that are both empowering to those we serve and also educational for those who are unaware of what people dealing with poverty face day to day. Currently, our political and social climate has pointed to that fact that we need a moral centering and healing. More and more, we are starting to see issues and walls being formed surrounding the issues of race and poverty. We recently launched a campaign called MAP18 (March Against Poverty 2018) to bring attention to both poverty and racial injustice and reconciliation in our country. The 386 mile journey beginning March 3rd and ended on April 4th commemorates Dr. King’s legacy and brings awareness to the fight against systemic poverty and racial injustice. Before Dr. King was killed, he planned his next initiative, “The Poor People’s Campaign.” Dr. King believed that the next step towards equality was to eradicate a system that even today keeps members of society enslaved to poverty. This march was a testament to the legacy of Dr. King and to shed light on the millions of people across the nation from all walks of life and nationalities who experience the harsh realities of homelessness and poverty. My personal connection to the story starts with my desire to bridge the gap between groups that are divided. I am a social activist, and work with many race groups, and clearly see the distance between many different groups of people. Some people don't realize that racism still exists; through my journey from Atlanta to Memphis I experienced the good, the bad and the ugly. In fact, I wrote a blog on my journey to Memphis that documented the threats I received, number of times the police were called on me, and the encounters I had while attempting to advocate on behalf of the poor. Here are some of those words: “For instance, yesterday I was walking with my friends and had three experiences that made my flesh crawl and eyes water. The first experience was when a young guy threatened to hit my friend and I. Harvey and I were walking on the side of the road with a good shoulder between us and the actual road. We thought we were safe because we were not in the road. We were feeling good, and then I saw a car coming at us. Yes. A car intentionally coming at us.The driver was not texting and driving, and he was not distracted. I know this because he looked me dead in my eyes as he pointed the moving vehicle towards us. As he got closer, at the last minute he swerved the car and flipped us the finger and sped off. What would make this guy do that? Racism? Hate? I don’t know but it made me feel unwanted as I walked through a city where people were looking at us strange and dealing with tons of poverty. As soon as we got past that incident, we encountered another incident. I’ll never forget 10 minutes later two guys in a red pick up truck (with a confederate flag on the bumper) pulled up beside Harvey and I and stared us down and pulled off fast and yelled out the window, “Be safe out here.” After the second incident, I then noticed I wasn’t wanted in the city. But, I continued to walk. Why? Because although I was being treated wrong I still saw their poverty. I saw that many of people that were being mean towards us also were in poverty.” I applied for the See Beautiful grant for to create a film that will highlight our need to bring peace and healing to a nation divided racially and economically. This docs-series will explore conversations from many different people that will give insights into the tension, but also talk about ways in which the gap between groups can be closed through unity. It is our hope to create a film that not only creates conversation, but brings unity to different race groups. The name of the film is called, “Divided We Stand: A Docu-Series on Racial Justice & Reconciliation”. It has been said that a house divided against itself cannot stand. What, then, can be said of the racial tension in The United States of America? America has a deep and dark history with racial tension, and still continues to be divided amidst the current political and cultural climate. What happens if the country continues down a divided path? The house eventually crumbles. History reveals that oppression has always been the dividing force that still separates many today. The See Beautiful grant will help us with some special equipment and help us tell this story in a way that could possibly bring people together from all walks of life in love. In the same way that MLK Jr. dreamed about it while here. We are aiming to create more beautiful in the world. For me, I measure success through conversations, connectivity, and diverse community involvement. Since I lead an organization that leverages community service as a reconciler between races, I desire to see this film inspire more people to build intentional relationships with people opposite of them as a way of joining forces to do justice work in the community. We currently have a digital following of over 30K followers. We plan to use local media, the power of social media via Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube. Additionally, our last film (Voiceless) was aired on the AIB Network and they have a audience of 2 million people. Lastly, we plan on doing screenings. We completed over 52 screenings of our last film with an average audience of 300-400 people in attendance at each screening. Will you help us bring love into the world through truth, love, and conversation? Written by Terence Lester, Founder of Love Beyond WallsEdited by Rachel McLeroy for See Beautiful The feature below is brought to you by For Life an organization that is in the running to receive a See Beautiful Grant. For more information about all of our giving initiatives, please click here. We Do Beautiful They say to make a difference in this world, you must dream big. It started with the death of our founder’s father. Upon returning home, Madame Athena recognized that her birth home in Manchester, Jamaica had become plagued with hardship; increased crime rate, food shortage, an increase in diet related disorders, limited education for youth and adults, and lack of access to running water played out before her and she returned to the states with a yearning that penetrated her dreams and made its way into her everyday. On Christmas morning of 2011, she decided to put desire into action and wrote a letter to friends and family asking them to assist her in empowering her community. With donated funds in hand, she returned home in August 2012 and launched the Jamaica for Life project, the first of the For Life programs. Created from a place of passion and love, For Life Inc is a non-profit organization that houses education and wellness projects globally. Our projects are formulated to fit the needs of the local populous and are centered around empowerment rather than dependence. We assist individuals, families and communities in becoming healthier and self sufficient. Our mission is to increase access to education, raise health awareness, decrease the risk of obesity, malnutrition, and diet related disorders in underrepresented communities around the world. Presently, we have For Life projects in the United States, Jamaica and Cape Verde, West Africa. Our LA for Life project focuses on decreasing the obesity rate within Black and Latino communities. For Life classes are taught within schools and are formulated according to region, age and needs. Classes range from yoga to cooking. Through the Adopt a Family Program, high risk families work one on one with our Health and Wellness Coach and Personal Trainer to create healthy lifestyle changes. Believing that the way out of poverty is by lessening barriers to education, we adopted 4 schools in Cape Verde and Jamaica. Through the Jamaica for Life and Cape Verde for Life projects, we provide students with school supplies and book bags; we also assist in making healthy breakfast programs available at school sites. On an individual basis, we sponsor students and work closely with their families providing them with additional educational support and healthy food bag deliveries. The See Beautiful grant will assist For Life in providing uniforms to students with the greatest need in Cape Verde and Jamaica. The high cost of uniforms keeps many students at home due to the families’ inability to purchase them. With removing this barrier, we are able to increase attendance rates. With the money awarded, our goal is to supply 392 families with uniforms. With a team of volunteers and all monies raised going directly to the communities we serve, we create beautiful. We live beautiful. We do beautiful. To make a difference, we will continue to dream big eradicating barriers and always remembering the vision that became reality. Written by Madame Athena Chang, Founder and President of For LifeThe feature below is brought to you by LOTUS Legal Clinic, an organization that is in the running to receive a See Beautiful Grant. For more information about all of our giving initiatives, please click here.  Mending broken into BeautifulIntroducing LOTUS Legal Clinic! LOTUS was founded in 2013 to provide Legal Options for Trafficked and Under-served Survivors (LOTUS) in Wisconsin. Our mission is to serve victims of gender-based violence and human trafficking (labor and sex) through trauma informed legal advocacy, policy initiatives, education, and survivor empowerment. Gender Based violence is an ugly problem! Rape, sexual assault, sexual abuse, and sex trafficking are forms of gender- based violence that are not typically addressed in regular legal practice; LOTUS is fighting to change that. “Creating a beautiful life.. with what is left” LOTUS sees the inherent worth and humanity of every survivor. We give each client a beautiful quilt handmade by the Material Girls. The Material Girls is a group of 25 women in Baraboo, Wisconsin, who have provided LOTUS more than 200 quilts for survivors. These extraordinary quilts are gifts to lift up fellow women, girls, and boys who have been abused and trafficked. The quilts given to LOTUS’s clients remind them there is beautiful in the world and someone cares about them with no expectations- no strings attached. “Many of the fabrics are less than top-of-the line since quilters are a frugal bunch who often make do with what is left. Sort of like creating a beautiful life or a gift with what is left”  “This quilt reminds me every day that people care. Especially in times of self-doubt and difficulty, I like to wrap up and it makes me feel safe” Samantha’s Story LOTUS met Samantha, a fifteen-year old survivor of human sex trafficking, last year. While she was in “the life” everything had been controlled by her trafficker including food, clothes and possessions. When she left the exploitation and went into a state-sponsored care program, she had nothing to call her own. For Samantha, her inability to trust others made her sometimes feel like the state took the trafficker’s place in providing her physical necessities. She still had nothing to call her own. Despite her strong spirit and intelligence, her trauma made it hard to adjust and to sleep, get back on track with education, and form healthy relationships. In time, she came to LOTUS for legal assistance related to her victimization. After the first meeting, Samantha received a vivid handmade quilt from LOTUS’s executive director and staff attorney. This quilt was her very own. She helped pick the patterns and the colors that felt most like her “Soulmatch,” and said that it was something that belonged to her that no one could ever take back. LOTUS hopes for $3,500 in support from See Beautiful. The Material Girls intend to continue making quilts for survivors and even have plans to recruit other quilt guilds in Wisconsin to help. Although the Material Girls have an unlimited desire to help, they have limited resources to acquire the materials and make recruiting trips. Support from See Beautiful would offset some of these costs. The price of materials (fabric, batting, machine quilting) is about $200-$250 (minimum) per quilt. Additional costs for other supplies (e.g., thread, needles, fusible webbing, binding; cost of electricity; cost for trips to shop for supplies and deliver quilts to LOTUS) are extra. In addition to materials, a lot of time and talent are required to make the quilts. Volunteers contribute many hours to making this project successful (shopping for materials, design, sewing, machine quilting; washing, drying, cutting, and ironing fabric; piecing together the fabric; etc.). The volunteer commitment alone is estimated at between $14,500- $48,000! You can’t put a price on feeling valued and respected for who you really are, “as is”; there’s nothing you can buy that says Made From the Heart like the work of human hands who put love in every stitch. LOTUS knows this project changes lives. Written by Madeline Monien for LOTUS LegalEdited by Rachel McLeroy for See Beautiful The feature below is brought to you by Aidan Cares, an organization that is in the running to receive a See Beautiful Grant. For more information about all of our giving initiatives, please click here. Aidan Cares is what we call our awareness initiative; we are in our tenth year now with the single mission of imparting the joy and necessity of giving to all. It started with four year old Aidan Anderson (now 17) declaring he would not wait until he was 18 to become a difference maker. As his Mom, I was a bit taken aback, but decided to take it literally and we embarked on a road to give and serve. A few years later, at age 7, he made $80 while playing his toy harmonica outside restrooms in a fancy restaurant in Vinings, Georgia. He planned many ways to spend his new found wealth, but ultimately, just an hour later, he decided to send it to a charity serving those suffering with parasites in Africa. He remembered it from a newsletter we read together. A few weeks later he was asked to share his story downtown and raised several thousand dollars to buy more medication. Then we just kept going. This has been about a child and his mother saying yes to serving, sharing, and most of all, modeling giving to others. Along the way, Aidan became a speaker and has given 4 TEDx Talks, spoken at Leadercast and shared his unique and wise perspective that if we aren’t giving from our God given giftings and passions, then we cannot have wellbeing. Aidan wants to activate as many givers as possible by encouraging them to follow their hearts into their paths of giving. Aidan has now served thousands of hours and has been a part of raising millions of dollars in donations for over 500 charities and individuals in need since our journey began. We serve by sharing our message in each city we visit. Pediatric cancer patients, VA hospitals, shelters, and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America are especially dear to us. Aidan is now a singer songwriter, blues musician and guitar player; his passions of music and helping people come together when he plays his music and shares his message. He hopes to continue sharing, singing, speaking, mentoring and reaching out for the rest of his life. This is our most inspiring hopeful summer yet, as we have recently created a Youth Giving Initiative Pilot Program that began with middle school students in Savannah and will expand to high school students in the coming school year. We are providing dozens of giving opportunities to youth of all economic backgrounds so they may serve people, animals or environmental efforts- their choice. We have been asked to extend the program through the fall semester and help facilitate school leaders, non-profits, partners (we hope) and students to take it forward year round. We are living in Savannah during this launch and working with our young volunteers to create art, play music, read to little ones, clean the beach, participate in etiquette-that-matters classes, music lessons for toddlers at low income daycares, and make art pieces for pediatric cancer patients, hospice patients and veterans at the VA hospitals. We are also working with Boys and Girls Clubs of America’s youth so they can serve too. This is the platform we want to take forward. We launch July 9, 2018. The most amazing thing is that children from all walks of life learn that their hearts and time matter. That touching fewer screens and more lives really really does makes a difference. Our project goes beyond just giving, it’s about creating relationships no matter how different the initial approach may seem. We plan to, for a brief moment, stop the world from spinning long enough to truly connect and see what we can all learn from each other. We are creating more beautiful by the sense of wellbeing that replaces doubt, entitlement, and lack of connection. This truth that will shine forth. We aren’t that different after all, and giving feels so good. We want these children to know that when you have purpose your life changes forever. You can see Aidan speak and learn more at www.aidancares.org Our Mission To inspire people of all generations and economic backgrounds to share in the joy and necessity of giving, partnering with non-profits, communities and individuals to magnify the good they want to see in the world. Our Vision A world where the power of gratitude is unleashed, where the measure of generosity is not a size but a sacrifice, and where all children grow into giving adults through a lifelong culture of compassion. Written by Toren Anderson, Director of Aidan CaresEdited by Rachel McLeroy for See Beautiful The feature below is brought to you by Foster Care Alliance, an organization that is in the running to receive a See Beautiful Grant. For more information about all of our giving initiatives, please click here. The best way for us to introduce to you the work that we do is to share with you a story of one of our moms and her daughter. To see the beautiful in the faces of moms who want second chances and precious children who are always ready with pure forgiveness. A precious 3 year old girl, so excited to see her mommy, came in from the car. I walked them through our building, offering fresh coffee on the way down. And then we walked into the visitation room, a giant wooden playhouse in the middle with a bright blue slide caught her attention. She ran straight to the slide, then to the coloring books, then the fishing poles with magnetic fish, then the kiddie kitchen and so on. So many toys, so many windows with the sun shining in on the beautiful mural! Val: "She is in heaven! This is the most beautiful visitation center I have ever seen! Can we do visits here every week?" Chelsea: "I am so glad you all love it. Make yourself at home. And yes, we would love to have you every week!" Kate arrives 15 minutes later. A friend had dropped her off. She walked in the front door. Kate: "Hi I'm Kate. Is my baby here?" Kate's daughter hadn't seen her mom in several months. But, it was as if no time had passed. She heard her mom's voice as we walked down the stairs and you heard her sweet voice get super quiet. Then she said, "Is that my mommy?" She squealed with excitement and hugged her momma's neck. // Isn't it amazing how much we can learn from children? The ability to forgive and forget.The ability to love with no strings attached. And the ability to always give second, third, and fiftieth chances! // They played and laughed. My heart was glad. After their visit, Kate and I met. Our time was sweet. Her story was typical. No family, so support, no education, and no resources. So, where does she start? We talked through the Reunification Readiness Process at the Foster Care Alliance: - Initial Reunification Readiness Assessment (Reassessed for progress every 3 months) - Weekly Birth Parent Coaching Group - 2 hours/ week - Employment Coaching - Weekly Visitation with her daughter - 2 hours/ week CONSISTENT AND MOTIVATED ATTITUDE FOR 1 MONTH - Place in an apartment. - Write reports and attend court hearings to document progress. - Reunification with children (DFCS lead). CONTINUE IN THE PROGRAM TO COMPLETE 12 MONTH I told her that we are not a service provider, but a community program. Kate: "What does that mean?" Chelsea: "That means we don't check boxes and send you on your way. We are your community, your safe place. You don't have a mom, or a person to ask questions? We can stand in that gap and be that for you." Kate: "Really? I want all of that!" She signed the program agreement and signed up. She wanted to better herself. She wanted to get her GED. She wanted help, but no one had offered before.... UNTIL NOW We have asked for this grant to help pay the fees for mothers like this one to be able to participate in our program and become healthy parents for their children. Written By Chelsea Sabo, Executive Director of Foster Care AllianceEdited by Rachel McLeroy for See Beautiful |
See beautiful in yourself.
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