November Wish: Thanksgiving Outreach Resources

Are you looking for ways to give back to your community this Thanksgiving? Here are a few volunteer ideas to help you if you are in the Cleveland, Ohio or Houston, Texas areas. Feel free to forward to all who may be interested.





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HOUSTON, TX
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Nursing Home Volunteers Needed (Houston, TX)
A happy thanksgiving will be had when you share the joy of that day with institutional shut-ins. Team up with other volunteers to visit one of a number of scheduled nursing homes.
Contact: Donna Martin
Ph: (281) 463-9001
Web: http://www.gracecarecypress.com/
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HEB Holiday Parade (Houston International Festival Foundation)
Fun and fanfare await you as a volunteer at the annual Thanksgiving Day Parade to be held in downtown Houston. Assignments that morning will include helping with concessions, tending a reserved seating area, escorting VIPs, ticket-taking, etc. Breakfast and a commemorative tee shirt will be provided. Volunteers ages16 and up are welcome.
Contact: Cheri Hinkle
Ph: 713-654-8808, ext. 290
Web: http://www.ifest.org/volunteers/
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Star of Hope: 1,900 Thanksgiving Meals . . . $1.63 each!
Your donation of $1.63/per meal to Star of Hope Mission Center means more than a home-cooked Thanksgiving dinner for an individual or family; it may be the turning point for someone to find hope! Decide how many meals you want to provide, and prepare to celebrate this holiday season with the knowledge that the blessings you share will touch many lives with God’s love! Go to: https://www.sohmission.org/netcommunity/sslpage.aspx?pid=424
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The Houston Food Bank
Donate food, money, or time this Thanksgiving!
Connect to: http://www.houstonfoodbank.org/donate_food.aspx
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Hospice Volunteers Needed for Thanksgiving
The need for hospice care volunteers in Houston and surrounding areas is at an all-time high and growing daily. Hospice is a comprehensive program of medical care designed to address the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of patients with life-limiting illnesses.
Contact: Adrienne Harris, Volunteer Coordinator
Ph: (281) 469-3697
Web: http://www.vistacare.com
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CLEVELAND, OHIO
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The Cleveland Food Bank
Donate food, money, or time this Thanksgiving!
Connect to: http://www.clevelandfoodbank.org
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Marc’s Stores
Join Marc’s Stores in the fight against hunger.
Connect to: http://www.marcs.com/
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St. Augustine Church
Ph: 216-781-5530
Web: staugustine-west14.org
Helpers are still collecting food for Thanksgiving at the Tremont church, which serves 200 to 300 meals three times a day, every day. Thanksgiving dinner is one of the busiest meals of the year. Last year, the church served close to 10,000 dinners on-site and at other charities. Requested foods include frozen turkeys, boxed mashed potatoes and stuffing. They are always in need of soup, beans and canned fruits and vegetables. There are also volunteer opportunities for Thanksgiving -- and any day. Food or cash donations can be made at the church from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily.
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Cleveland Salvation Army
Web: salvationarmycleveland.org
No need to go to a mall this year to donate to a Salvation Army Red Kettle, a holiday tradition since 1891. The army is going high tech. Not only can you donate on its website, you can also donate via text message (see site for details), follow the army on Twitter and host your own online Red Kettle on your blog or website. Go to onlineredkettle.org to donate, and invite your friends to do so as well. All money collected stays local to help with the army's food, shelter, counseling, recreation, clothing and other programs.
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Catholic Hunger & Shelter Network
Accepting volunteers and donations for Thanksgiving.
Ph: (216) 781-5530
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THANKSGIVING DAY MEALS SERVED IN CLEVELAND, OHIO
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St. Augustine’s Church Halls – 2486 West 14th St.
St. Andrew Kim Catholic Church – 2310 West 14th St.
St. Luke Episcopal Church – 1349 West 75th at Lake Ave.
Franklin Circle – 1688 Franklin Rd., corner of W. 28th
House of God – 12306 Soika Ave., off E. 116th
King Kennedy CMHA Estates – North Building – 2501 East 59th St., off Woodland Ave.
Fifth Christian Church – 14109 Benwood Ave.
Rockhill Ministries – 11739 Kinsman Rd. at Rockhill Church
St. Monica Church – 13623 Rockside Rd., Garfield Hts.
Lorain Catholic Charities Family Center – 203 Eighth St., off Broadway Ave. and Reid Lorain, Ohio
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Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family! God Bless!

OCTOBER WISH: Giving Elizebeth a Voice

Six year old Elizebeth is a fun loving child who always makes those around her smile. She is full of excitement and energy! She was born with a chromosome abnormality called 18q- which has rendered her hearing and speech impaired.

Because of this impairment, her family and friends have trouble understanding Elizebeth when she speaks. Her mind is full of all the right words, phrases and vocabulary; but the challenge lies in communicating her thoughts intelligibly. Also, if she were to get lost, she would not be able to communicate in a way that people would understand.

THE NEED: Turning Views (www.turningviews.org), a non profit organization, is looking to raise $1000 by October 31 to provide Elizebeth with an iPod Touch or iPad and the Proloquo2Go AAC Application (or similar). These devices provide speech impaired children with the technology and training to enhance communication.

THE INSTRUCTIONS: Would you like to help Elizebeth? Do you know of resources that could help her? Do you have an iPad or iPod Touch that you would like to donate? Can you forward this email to a group that would like to help? Do you have information that Elizebeth could benefit from?

If you would like to make an online donation to Elizebeth through Turning Views, please visit www.turningviews.org. If you would like to send information, a check or iTunes, Apple or an Amazon gift card (as this is where items for Elizebeth will be purchased), you can mail to:

Turning Views Foundation, For ELIZEBETH, PO Box 19812, Reno, NV 89511.

For further information, contact Camilla@turningviews.org or dawn@dawnsangelwishnetwork.

THE REWARD: Let's improve the quality of life for Elizebeth by giving her a voice and a modern way to communicate with family and friends.

September Wish: A Visit to the Holy Land

SEPTEMBER WISH: Miriam Acosta, a hard-working woman in Chicago, lost her youngest brother in late July to a tragic swimming accident and lost her oldest brother a few weeks ago to Cancer. She has been the primary caretaker for her entire family through these tragedies, including her 80-year old mother, her four other siblings, her deceased siblings' children and her own children, one of whom is mentally ill and in a hospital.

"Miriam is a beautiful, spiritual woman who is providing strength for her mother, her siblings, and her brothers' kids through these back-to-back tragedies. She turned her life over to God five years ago when her life was nearly over - due to drug and alcohol addiction. She became sober and found a community in her church, a deep faith in God and all people on earth. She has been the key point of contact for her family through all of these tragedies, planning funerals, acting as power-of-attorney, taking care of family meals and family members - all while working."

THE NEED: Miriam could use some time away to visit the birthplace of her faith and rejuvenate! Her church is going to Israel in November to tour the Holy Land. The cost of the trip is $3K. She has raised about $500 to date. Would you like to donate to help her meet the cost of the trip? Anything you could give would be a huge help.

THE INSTRUCTIONS: If you would like to give to this cause, please click here to DONATE TO MIRIAM. Donations are not tax deductible. Please make your donation by October 31, 2010.

THE REWARD: The gift of your love and generosity will always return to you!