SUMMERTIME! How is your summer going? Mine is already flying by! Mark and I had a wonderful opportunity to visit Italy for a couple of weeks - it is our "happy place!" We had a fantastico time, filled with magnifico food and bellissimo sights. |
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If you ever get a chance to go - GO!!! : ) |
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Before we meet our July Good Egg, here's what's new: |
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In June we EGGED Jaime's Kids. This organization was founded by grandparents Tom & Debbie Wencel, who tragically lost their daughter and adopted her five children. Starting over and raising five children as |
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grandparents is no easy task, but they are determined to give them a loving home. They have started a remodel of their existing home in order to accommodate all of their needs. We were able to provide a brand new six-drawer dresser for the girls when their new bedroom is complete. Having some stability and a place to call home is first priority for the Wencels. |
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WHAT ARE THE EGGS UP TO THIS MONTH? (Book 1, Chapter 11) July - Confidence In Chapter 11, summer is in full swing, and with the help of Benedict’s exuberance, the Eggs decide to join a Fun Run competition in Albumen. As the Eggs train, Benedict struggles to run a mile and quickly loses confidence in his ability. Along with the mile each of them had to run, they also needed to |
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raise money for the Albumen Children’s Hospital. The Eggs raised lots of money through a community car wash and through the help of donations from their parents. When it came time for the Fun Run, all of the Eggs were confident, except Benedict. Seggourney and the other Eggs kept encouraging Benedict, trying to increase his confidence. He regained his confidence when he saw a little Egg in a wheelchair cheering him on. It changed his perspective on his abilities, and increased his confidence. After the race, Peggy agreed to read an acceptance speech but the wind blew her paper away. She needed a lot of confidence to speak by heart, but with the help of her friends, she found it and did a fantastic job! |
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Now let's meet our July Good Egg! |
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"Lift Up a Child is dedicated to assisting foster children transitioning into adulthood with self-sufficient capabilities. Our Community Healthcare Workers will advocate for the best resource based on your circumstance." The resources they help with are housing, transportation, training, skilled trades, employment, health, and social services. |
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I was inspired by being a part of a broken system which I had no control over as a child. I asked myself if I couldn’t change this broken system. Then as I grew into an adult, being a foster child was still always on my mind. |
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I continually asked myself "what could I do to make a change for other foster children?" My heart would always tell me to serve them when needed and try to make it easy for them by providing clothing, food, education, self-development and housing. I knew I had to be a beacon of light in their lives. So, I was inspired to start the nonprofit Lift Up A Child. |
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As I mentioned in the beginning statement, we support with many resources from finding summer jobs through Michigan works (Young Professionals) and mentoring with a team that comes in for biweekly sessions. |
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We also offer skill building resources and financial literacy, as well as skilled trades resources and housing food banks. If an individual has not succeeded in high school, we try to find resources to help them complete their GED. We like to restore not only a part of the child, but the whole child. Lift Up A Child is committed to supporting and finding as many resources we can find to sustain he or she as an individual. |
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As a grassroots nonprofit, we find things very challenging in the areas of grant writing and fundraising. There are so many barriers trying to do this on our own. But, we found a bright spot. |
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What we found out is that through collaboration and building relationships, we could succeed in those challenges, while never forgetting our mission. Finding resources and learning how to write grants has been a challenge but also helped us gain experience to prepare for our next phase of creating an annual fundraiser, annual events and person-to-person relationships. We must remember that we're not alone; there are many nonprofits out there. The hours are long and the days are short, but keep in mind that there's someone depending on you to serve and rescue them from hardship. We'll never stop working and we'll never give up on the challenges. There's a better day and there's a great tomorrow so we try not to worry about the challenges of today. |
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Well I'm glad you asked! We just received an award from Cincinnati hospital! One of the resources we provided to our young mothers was equipping them with car seats and training them how to secure them to keep their children safe. |
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We've been working with the Cincinnati hospital for over 9 years and they're just now cranking back up due to COVID. When we got the notification that we would be receiving more car seats from them (because in Michigan there's a shortage of car seats) showed us that God works in mysterious ways. We got that notification just in time for our Eastpointe Community Baby Shower. |
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Our future is bright very bright! I see many years long after I'm gone and moved on. We will be around a long time building this legacy with great stability. Reach one, build one and teach one is our model. |
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Even though we do see unicorns from time to time, we also see the silver lining at the end of the tunnel, as well as bright eyes from a two or three-year old saying you promised to help me and you did. That's what the future looks like for Lift Up A Child. Thank you for asking! |
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Yes, we do! We have our first annual Eastpointe Community Baby Shower approaching, where we'll be providing all the resources and needs for mom and the newborn baby, and for those zero to 18 months as well. |
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We're very excited! Planning and putting this together takes a lot of effort. This event will take place on July 22, 2023. People can email me at revrroscoe@gmail.com if they have any items to donate or want to help in any way. Thank you! |
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Thank you, Reverend Roscoe, for changing the lives of kids through the tons of community support your organization provides. You truly know the meaning of giving back! I hope you enjoyed reading about Lift Up A Child You can find more information on their website. And if you want to donate to their baby shower, be sure to email: revrroscoe@gmail.com Next month's interview will feature a woman bringing awareness and screening to the underserved for larynx cancer. |
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Enjoy your 4th! See you in August and thanks for being a Good Egg! Kindly, Sandy Sandy (Ciaramitaro) Mals Founder and President The Good Eggs Foundation |
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"Children re-invent your world for you.” – Susan Sarandon |
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