A Helping Hand

The Beatles said it best, "You get by with a little help from your friends".  (If you are too young to know who the Beatles are, I forgive you- just make sure that you visit me in the nursing home one day).  Not only have my friends been amazing through my cancer journey, but friends- new and old, are making every day working on Little Pink Houses of Hope more enjoyable.

I want to highlight two people in this blog-not because they are the only two, and not because of what they are doing, but because they represent the journey of Little Pink Houses of Hope.

I have a beautiful, talented, compassionate, and dear friend, Melissa who from the very beginning has been by my side with Little Pink Houses of Hope.  She has taken on amazing responsibilities as my partner, board member, and go-to girl.  Why highlight her?  (besides any brownie points that I may score)...Well, she is a great example of how the spirit, mission, and values of my dream of Little Pink Houses of Hope can move people to action and commitment.  Over the next few months, Little Pink Houses will need more people to heed that call and take action.    Little Pink Houses is lucky to have her as an integral person who is helping to make my dream a reality. 

So, as you know, LPHOH started as an idea and a facebook group.  We have grown exponentially and have followers as far away as Australia, India, and Nigeria!  We have recently realized the need to fully utilize the social media marketing platforms that are out there.  I put together a description for a volunteer and sent it to the Elon Service Center.  And voila!  Liz!  A young, energetic 19 year old who is studying digital media and has a wealth of information that she is willing to share as a volunteer.  Why highlight her?  She is a great example of a person who realized her niche- her passion for online marketing and communication and reached out to help complete strangers.  I am truly enjoying getting to know her and am positive that she will be a wonderful assett to our team.  But the important thing is- she was a stranger a couple of weeks ago and now she is part of the LPHOH team- all because she was in tune with her gifts. 

As always, we need your help.  We are currently looking for people who are interested in volunteering and becoming part of our team.  Here are just a few examples of skills and people that we are looking for:

1. Assistant Volunteer Coordinator- we need someone to help us take the goodness of the people that want to volunteer and channel that energy into specific tasks.  If you are organized and like meeting and talking to new people- this is right up your alley.
2. Pink Games Organizer- we need people who like organizing events, sports, and helping to create a buzz!  This person would be responsible for helping to design and implement Pink Game fundraisers for college and high school sports (basketball for the winter season).  If you are a go-getter that wants to help bring our cause to organized school groups, I have a Pink t-shirt with your name on it!
3. Development- we are looking for a few people to take on creating some imaginative fundraising ideas.  All different types of skills are needed for this task- so there is a place for lots of different personalities. If you can dream big, come on!
4. Application Administrator- we are getting ready in December to start taking applications for retreat attendees and then soon after, volunteers.  If you are a person who understands the administrative side of a big project like this, you are just who we are looking for!
5. Retreat Week Assistant- for every week that we conduct a retreat, there are 8 houses, 10 volunteers, 21 meals, rentals that need to be made, property securing that has to happen- you name it and we have to do it.  If you are interested in being the point person for one of the 7 weeks, we would love to talk to you!  Be a part of the planning!

And then of course, 25 other things as well.  The bottom line is this- if you have a desire to help, I am asking for your help and can use your talents!  Don't delay, lend a helping had today!

An AMAZING month!

Have you ever seen the movie "The Fast and the Furious"?  Laced with action, speed, drama, intrigue, and something new around every corner, the title of that movie sums up the month of September for Little Pink Houses of Hope.  Are you ready?  Take a deep breath and get ready for a thrill ride of action and drama over the past thirty days:

•  Voting began on September 1st!  If you voted, you know how exciting it was everyday to see how we were doing in the standings and to see us do so well during our first month.  We were like David fighting the Goliath projects who have been doing this for months.
• Our facebook group grew from 348 people on September 1 to 728 people on September 30th! 
• We found ourselves on the big screen at St. Mark's, WFMY News 2, ABC 11, and Fox8!
• We had great opportunities for people to read about LPHOH in The Coastal Journal, Womenhealth.gov and be heard on the radio on G105!
• These media segments allowed for the message, mission, and service of Little Pink Houses of Hope to reach thousands of people.
• We have had 4 individuals interested in donating their beach houses after seeing the interview segments!
• I had a teacher who won a Educator of the Year award donate his check to Little Pink Houses, showing the joy of Paying It Forward.
• My alma mater, Saint Louis University, heard about LPHOH and is doing a Pink Field Hockey game on Oct 15th versus the Richmond Spiders.  They are donating their proceeds to LPHOH.  Go Billikens!!!
• In finding businesses to help advertise for the Pepsi Project, we have created wonderful connections that will last a long time. 
• We were honored to receive memorium donations on behalf of two special individuals who passed away.
• We were contacted by numerous survivors about attending a retreat or to share their story.  The stories and hope keep me more focused than ever on LPHOH.
• We are working with Elon and NCstate volunteers
• The president of  a fabric company offered to donate the fabric when we secure permanent housing one day.
• Many high school and middle school students are participating to actively change the world
• We have Paypal available on the website now to take online donation
• Finishing 58th qualifies us to roll over for voting for next month.  Keep up the voting and spread the word.
• I have had a chance to meet wonderful people at survivor meetings
• Certain local businesses have decided to do fundraising events during October to help raise funds for LPHOH.  The first one will be held on Saturday, October 9th at West End Studio in Burlington 7-9 pm!

Whew!  I warned you to take a deep breath.  The Pepsi Project has given us the opportunity to continue to create a culture where people can actively participant to help make a difference.  It has been easy to ask people for something simple, like their vote, and look at all of the amazing things that have happened.  I feel so lucky to have the support of our group and to know that you are each working on behalf of LPHOH.  I can only imagine what October will bring.

PS.  Did I mention that October is Breast Cancer Awareness month?  Make sure to do a self breast exam!