Charlie Sheen Offering Large Charitable Contribution to USO

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By JohnPosted In: Charity Activity, MilitaryTagged: , , ,

It’s nice to see that even crazy celebrities can make a difference. Charlie Sheen, who just recently made news when he turned off his Twitter account with millions of followers, is now in the headlines for a good reason. He has pledged to give at least $1 million to military charity United Services Organization program that help hurt and sick soldiers and their families.

It’s hard to believe that this amount is only 1% of the profits he gets from his new show Anger Management. He reports that, should the show be a great hit, the USO may receive even more. At the moment, he’s given the charity an initial donation of $250,000.

In a statement Sheen said,

“It’s an honor for me to be able to give back to these men and women of the military who have done so much for all of us. They put their lives on the line for us every day, and I’m just happy that my work on Anger Management can bring a little bit of relief to the troops and their families.”

The spokesman for USO agrees. As he said, “the way we lift the spirits of the families and troops is through generous donations from the American public. It is heart-warming to me to see how the American people support the troops whether it’s 25 cents or $25 or $250,000.”

5th Annual Fire Charity Fishing Tournament Supports Child Burn Victims

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By DouglasPosted In: HealthTagged: , , , ,

A Fire Charity Fishing Tournament was held in support of the Children’s Burn Camp several years ago in Bradenton, and has returned annually ever since.

Founder Erik Nicholson, an engineer for the East Manatee Fire District, makes sure that all of the event’s proceeds go to the charity, which supports child burn victims and allows them to forget about their appearances and form strong relationships with others like them. Since its inception, the tournament has raised more than $25,000.

He explained, “You spend most of your life trying to keep your head above water. For me, life was good and I wanted to do something to benefit others.

“It is so important for children who have been hurt by fires to have the opportunity to rebuild their lives and regain self-confidence. The burn camp provides those services and I’m proud our tournament provides money for their program.”

This year’s tournament caters to children as well, allowing supervised kids aged 5-12 to fish from the Bradenton Yacht Club seawall for only $10. The price also includes lunch on the scene from Chick-Fil-A, music, entertainment, free face paint, a bouncy house and arts and crafts. As for the tournament, “if it swims- it counts” and the biggest fish catcher gets a prize. All fish are released alive.

Committee Member Erin Craft explained the unique advantages of the event. “It’s an affordable way to promote outdoor activities and helping others,” she said. “We expect to see a lot of catfish, but any species is fun for the kids to reel in.”

Here are some highlights from last year’s event:

 

Topper’s Pizza Teams Up With SickKids Foundation

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By DouglasPosted In: FamilyTagged: , , , ,

Topper’s Pizza, a Foodservice and Hospitality Top 100 Company, recently announced its new partnership with the SickKids Foundation in an effort to support children’s health. According to Keith Toppazzini, president and CEO of the company, the new relationship fits into their corporate social responsibility program.

The new program will have several different branches, including in-store donations, corporate matching and promotions. In-store donations will be dedicated to family education resource AboutKidsHealth, while other campaigns will benefit the Possibility Fund for the Hospital for Sick Children.

“We’re proud to select SickKids Foundation as our corporate charity,” Keith said. “As a family-run business with strong family values, it makes perfect sense to support a charitable organization that does so much for so many families across our province, Canada, and around the world.”

Kelly Toppazzini, also of Topper’s, added: “By partnering with SickKids, we are making a considerable commitment to support children’s health and we couldn’t be happier to do it.

Adrian Horwood of SickKids Foundation also expressed excitement. “Topper’s Pizza has a wonderful, loyal following of families as customers and we’re looking forward to having them on board as one of our newest corporate partners to help promote awareness about children’s health, as well as to provide us with another way to raise critical funds,” he said.

Matthew’s Mission’s Easter Eggstravaganza

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By DouglasPosted In: FamilyTagged: , , , , ,

Yesterday morning, hundreds of children participated in the Easter Eggstravaganza, which benefits a charity called Matthew’s Mission. Held at the South Scranton’s Harmon Field, the event included 25,000 Easter eggs, prizes, treats, face paint, games and much more.

Matthew’s Mission is an organization that works to fund special needs programs in memory of Matthew James Newell, who die suddenly from a seizure at the age of 24. The young man had Down syndrome and was known for his generosity.

“My brother Matthew always donated his own money to, say, St. Joseph’s Center of the Friendship House,” explained his sister, Kathleen Haikes. “When he passed away unexpectedly we thought, we’ll keep his name going and do his work for him.”

Ms. Haikes added that the charity depends on the community’s help in order to continue with its mission. For example, the preparation for the Easter Eggstravaganza included an egg-filling party, where volunteers filled almost 20,000 eggs in two hours.

The prizes within the eggs included candy and small toys, while 125 tickets for giant stuffed animals were also among the items found.

Matthew’s Mission also donated additional gifts, including a service dog for 9-year-old Melanie Berardelli. The dog, named Buddy, is trained to sense and deal with seizures like those that plague Melanie.

Melanie’s mother Traci said: “The things that Matthew’s Mission does are just unbelievable.”

Missions International of America in Savanette, Haiti

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By DouglasPosted In: HealthTagged: , , , , , ,

Four or five times a year, Missions International of America brings a team of doctors and nurses from Ohio to treat the residents of Savanette, Haiti.

Over the course of the four-day visit, more than 350 people were seen and treated by Dr. Sue Leatherman and Dr. Barry Cash, while over one hundred patients were examined by the volunteer dentist Dr. Ted Barnett as well. The program has several volunteers, including Cathy Breen.

According to the volunteers, this year’s patients were much healthier then those seen on previous visits, and many believe this is directly related to the fresh, clean drinking water that is now provided in the area.

Founded by Dr. Jay and Mrs. Jan Nielsen in 2002, Missions International of America works to improve the quality of life of both children and adults in Savanette, Haiti. In addition to providing medical and dental care, the organization established and manages the Brad Reddick School. The program provides 300 children in K-6 with a free education.

Here is a video from the volunteer crew’s latest visit:

 

Famous Dave’s Rib Tasting Benefits Veteran Museum and Heritage Center

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By DouglasPosted In: MilitaryTagged: , , , , ,

Famous Dave’s BBQ has teamed up with the Northern California Veterans Museum and Heritage Center (NCVM) to launch a charity rib-tasting affair in Redding, California. The barbecue restaurant and caterer’s Rib Team has won awards in over 500 competitions throughout the United States.

The event, which was held in the Trader Joe’s shopping center, featured the barbecue’s famous hickory smoked St. Louis spare ribs, Texas beef brisket, Georgia Chopped Pork and numerous signature sauces and flavors from Famous Dave’s. There were also barbecue and country roasted chicken dishes, BBQ sandwiches, burgers, salads and side dishes.

The event began mid-afternoon and ended when the ribs ran out, which a five-bone limit per guest. Famous Dave’s requested a $1.00 donation for each rib, or a ‘Buck-a-Bone’, and all the proceeds were donated to the NCVM.

“We always look forward to hosting these events where we are able to talk to our guests face to face while they enjoy our slow-smoked and flame-kissed ribs,” Famous Dave’s Chris Hazeleur said before the event. “This is a great opportunity not only for us to get to know our guests better, but for our guests to have the chance to taste our signature barbecue. We invite everyone to get sauced!”

Redhead Celebrities Support the Sumatran Orangutan Society

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By JohnPosted In: Animals and NatureTagged: , , , , ,

Famous redheads are pooling their efforts to support the Sumatran Orangutan Society, an Oxford charity, by donating items to be auctioned at the Jungle VIP online auction.

Sumatran orangutans share 96.4% of their DNA with humans. They are severely endangered, and may become the first great ape to become extinct since the evolution of humans. The Sumatran Orangutan Society, or SOS, works alongside local communities in orangutan habitats to create a more sustainable future for the species and their forests.

Some celebrities participating in the project include Nicole Kidman, Chris Evans, Nicola Roberts, Geri Halliwell, Anne Robinson, and even the band Radiohead. Donated items include celebrity fashion, handwritten lyrics, memorabilia and photos.

Comedian Tim Minchin donated one of his shirts from the ‘Ready For This’ tour. He said: “I think it’s a huge pity that any species should become extinct. Species have become extinct for different reasons and have done throughout history, but orangutans are having their environment destroyed in a way that doesn’t need to happen.”

Celebrity Jane Asher donated a green dress and joked: “I didn’t feel especially close to them before being asked to help with this campaign, but all redheads share an unspoken bond.”

Chris Evans said “Anything that helps to protect a species’ natural environment, within reason, is worth doing,” and donated a stay for two at his pub, called The Mulberry Inn.

The Sutton Trust Launches Yale Summer School Program for Underprivileged Teens

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By DouglasPosted In: EducationTagged: , , , ,

Yale University is teaming up with the Sutton Trust to enable gifted but disadvantaged teens to get a real education in a new summer school program.

The project is similar to those already launched in the UK, and hopes to help 64 students within its first year. First priority goes to adolescents from homes with an income lower than $53, 550 a year. Recruiting begins on April 16th, and the classes will most likely be held in July.

The school, which is also in partnership with the Fulbright Commission, opens as U.S. college applications increase by the thousands. Harvard University has had a 45% increase in applications over the past couple of years. Still, according to the Sutton Trust, most applications come from private schools. 

Mr. Peter Lampl, chairman of the Sutton Trust, said “Studying at a US university is an appealing prospect to many UK state school students. The breadth of the four-year degree and the chance to experience another culture will make for an intellectually stimulating and fun time.

“With tuition fees increasing dramatically in England, and some generous financial aid packages in the U.S., it is also more attractive than before from a cost perspective.

“If successful, we intend to establish man more US summer schools next year and beyond- opening a pipeline for UK students to reap the benefits of higher education at leading US universities.”

The trust is proud to run seven leading university summer school programs. More than 1,000 students are affected each year, and three quarters end up at a leading selective university, Sutton Trust said.

Tesco and the RSPB Launch ‘Together for Trees’

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By DouglasPosted In: Animals and NatureTagged: , , , , , , ,

The RSPB, the biggest wildlife conservation organization in Europe, recently teamed up with Tesco in a project aimed at protecting rainforests across the globe, Together for Trees. The initiative aims to promote awareness and raise funds to support tropical rainforests as well as local conservation work in their areas.

As part of the new campaign, Tesco hopes to inspire donations from both customers and corporations. The RSPB and Tesco hope to raise more than one million euro for Together for Trees throughout 2012.

According to the project, soccer-field-sized patches of rainforest are cleared every four seconds. This is one of the largest causes of climate change, as more and more carbon dioxide is released into the earth’s atmosphere.

The planet’s rainforests are home to more than a third or earth’s wildlife (excluding marine animals, of course), while three-quarters of endangered bird species make their habitats there too. Over one billion of the world’s impoverished people rely on the rainforests for survival as well. The RSPB’s rainforest projects include Harapan Rainforest in Indonesia, West Africa’s Gola Rainforest and Centre Hills National Park.

Tesco shoppers will have the option of donating their green Clubcard points or Clubcard vouchers , as well as donating money directly to the RSPB. 75,000 euro will also be given to the organization from the sale of Together for Trees reusable bags, while funds raised through the Welsh carrier bag charge will also be donated to the RSPB efforts.

Tesco is also increasing its efforts to improve its environmental conscience, and highly recommends that other companies do the same. The retailer has pledged to continue “helping our customers make greener choices.”

Tesco’s Ruth Girardet said “Our aim is to create more sustainable ways of doing business and we have been working hard to reduce our own emissions. But as a leading retailer we also have a great opportunity to engage our customers to help protect our environment.”

Martin Harper of RSPB added “Rainforests are amazing places and saving them has never been more urgent- huge areas continue to disappear at an alarming rate. Current efforts to try and prevent the loss of these special places are not enough.”

 

Kinerase’s ‘Change Your Skin, Change Your Life’ Donates to HealthyWomen

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By DouglasPosted In: HealthTagged: , , , ,

Last year, skincare product company Kinerase launched a new “Change Your Skin, Change Your Life” campaign, which entails quarterly donations to four charities every year. Each quarter, 20% of sales proceeds from a specific Kinerase product are donated.

This year marks the company’s second campaign, and the first quarter’s contribution will go to HealthyWomen in recognition of American Heart Month. HealthyWomen’s organization works to promote awareness as well as empower women to make educated and practical health decisions. 20% of the proceeds from Kinerase C8 Peptide Intensive Treatment will be given to the program this month.

“’Change Your Skin, Change Your Life’ is not just about bringing the consumer closer to our brand but also drawing attention to the HealthyWomen campaign,” explained Jill Wittenberg of Valeant Pharmaceuticals, the parent company of Kinerase. “We chose HealthyWomen because it shares our goal of keeping women healthy from the inside out. While Kinerase helps protect the outside, HealthyWomen encourages women to protect the inside by giving them the necessary tools to lead healthy lifestyles. Starting with protecting their skin, a simple purchase enables consumers to help protect the lives of women.”

The three remaining charities for the campaign will be announced throughout the year.