Sporting A Cause

Monthly Archives: December 2019

Here’s to a Hopeful New Year

For my final blog of 2019 I have listed the charities that have found their way into  sportingAcause.com. It is a long scroll, but I hope you will take the moment to roll it. You will see the massive national and international charities that tackle diseases like Alzheimer’s, breast cancer and autism, but also tiny ones you’ve likely never heard of. They operate under the radar easing the miseries of the hungry, homeless and troubled. They put back together the lives of children broken by sexual and domestic violence. This is quiet work. We don’t learn the names of the people helped, nor should we.

Please read the list to the bottom because I believe you will begin to understand the essence of what sportingAcause is about. Hope.

Police Activities League (Torrington)

NWCT YMCA

Regional Food Bank of NENY

Youth Mission Outreach (Poughkeepsie)

Brain Injury Association of MA

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (MA, NY CT)

Angels of Light (Hudson Valley)

Morris Elementary School PTO (MA)

Barkhamsted Elementary School

Arts Education at Olana Partnership

Bantam Lake Protective Association

Great Barrington Rotary Club

Berkshire Community College Nursing Program

Berkshire South Teen Outreach Nutrition Program

Alzheimer’s Association (MA, NY CT)

Litchfield Community Center

Bethlehem Fuel Bank

Berkshire County ARC

Camp Jewell YMCA

Burlington Community Fund

New Marlborough Cultural Council

Camphill Village

Action For Alex

Nick Biancucci Memorial Basketball Courts

Water or People

Cornwall Consolidated School

Berkshire County Kids Place

Connecticut Resource Conservation and Development

Lee High School Scholarship Fund

Dover Plains High School Scholarship Fund

United Way of Dutchess-Orange Counties

Upton Lake Christian School

Falls Village Volunteer Fire Dept.

St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital

People’s Pantry (Great Barrington)

Indian Mountain School

Housatonic Youth Service Bureau

Michael J. Fox Foundation

Northern Dutchess Hospital Foundation

Ferncliff Forest Preserve

Free To Run

Make a Friend Be a Friend

Gilbert School Athletics

Junior Women’s Club of Litchfield Hills

Glenholme School

Goshen CT charities

Gould Farm

Porchlight VNA

Panichi Family Center for Communications and Learning

Harlem Valley Rail Trail Association

American Legion Post 178

Millerton Fire/Rescue Squad

EXTRAS (Salisbury)

Salisbury Central School 8th Grade

Right to Dream

Amenia Fire/Rescue Squad

Wassaic Fire Dept

High Watch Recovery Center Scholarship Fund

Litchfield Area Veterans

Running for Rescues

Volunteers in Medicine, Berkshires

Upper Housatonic Heritage Area

Relay for Life- American Cancer Society (MA, NY, CT)

Harwinton Handicap-Accessible Trail Fund

Eagle Santa Toy Fund

Litchfield Parks and Recreation

Berkshire United Way

Kent Food Bank

Julia’s Wings

Special Olympics, MA

Lee, MA High School Cross Country Program

Lenox, MA High School Cross Country Booster Club

Lenox Dale Fire Co.

Litchfield Youth Athletics

Scholarships for Litchfield, Wamogo and Forman Schools

Hartford Marathon Foundation

CT Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (Trail Maintenance)

Making Strides, Litchfield County

Brain Injury Association, NY

Dana Faber Cancer Institute

Miles For Hope Breast Cancer Foundation

Camp Moe Scholarships

Millbrook Early Childhood Education Center

MTM Scholarship Fund

Norfolk Land Trust

Norfolk Volunteer Fire Dept.

Norfolk Rails to Trails

Great Mountain Forest

NWCT CROP

Matt Herring Foundation

Peach Hill Park

Berkshire Medical Center Programs

Brodie Park

Morris Recreation Dept.

The Little Guild of St Francis

Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation

United Nations Association Adopt-A- Future

Great Barrington Land Conservancy

Culinary Institute of America Scholarship Fund

Northwestern Regional School District 7

Sandy Beach Restoration Fund

Bethlehem Food Pantry

CJ First Candle

Sharon Daycare Center

Sharon Recreation Center

MediShare

Sparrow’s Nest

St Mary’s School

Pine Plains recreation

Moments House

Autism Connections

Torrington Trails Network

Cancer Care Fund of Litchfield Hills

United Way of Dutchess County

Boy Scout Troop 114, Valatie, NY

Ichabod Crane Central School BackPack Program

Family Services Domestic Violence (Poughkeepsie)

Camp Wa Wa Segowea Scholarships

Walk a Mile in Her Shoes, Berkshire and Litchfield Counties

Prime Time House

Torrington Area Parkinson’s Support Group

National MS Society, MA, NY and CT

Construct

ALS Association

Parks and Recreation Wamogo Scholarship Fund

Sandisfield Library and Community Center

Massachusetts Audubon

Berkshire Humane

Adopt- A – Family

Amenia Fire Co.

Amenia Lion’s Club Scholarship Fund

Ancrum Fire Co.

Susan B. Anthony Project

FISH of NWCT

Community Kitchen of Torrington

McCall Foundation

Open Door of Winsted

Canaan VFW Scholarship Fund

Taconic Scholarship Fund

Charlie Ormsby Children’s Golf Clinic

Coarc

Columbia-Greene Community Foundation

Sheffield Kiwanis Club

Fairview Hospital Med-Surg Unit

College Possible

Boy’s and Girl’s Club, Berkshires

Millbrook Community Pre-School

EPIC Youth Empowerment Program

Grace Latino Outreach Program

Food For Life Pantry

Church Alliance Senior Housing

Harwinton Youth Sports Association

Hearts of the Father Outreach

Immaculate Conception Church of St. Martin of Tours Parish

Isaiah Lamb Fund

Canaan Exchange Club Scholarship Fund

Kara Zinke Emergency Fund

Kent Volunteer Fire Dept.

Knights of Columbus Scholarship Fund

Food Pantries of Woodbury, Watertown and Salisbury

Litchfield Sports Booster Club

Canaan Fire Co.

Maplebrook School Scholarship Fund

Oliver Wolcott Technical High School Scholarship Fund

Help Hope Live Northeast Transplant Fund

Possum Queen Foundation

Salisbury Central School

Salisbury Winter Sports Association

Salisbury Youth Hockey

Sharon Fire Dept.

Region One Athletic Fund

Stockbridge and Lenox Libraries

Torrington Area Families for Autism

St. Anthony of Padau and Our Lady of Grace Churches Scholarship Fund

Litchfield Sports Booster Club

Great Barrington Rotary Club Scholarship Fund

Roeliff Jensen Community Library

Thomas J. Berlinghoff Memorial Fund

Torrington Lion’s Club Scholarship Fund

All Hands Volunteers

Pearson School Playground

Sabin Institute

Torrington Youth Service Bureau

Hurricane Relief, Virgin Islands

Tanzanian Children’s Fund

Mekele School for the Blind

Northwest United Way

Jane Lloyd Fund

Salisbury Volunteer Ambulance Service

American Cancer Society

Bantam Lake Projects

Helping Hands FILAM Fund

Norfolk Curling Club

Sunday in the County Food Drive

CT Children’s Medical Center

Habitat For Humanity, Dutchess County

NWCT Rod and Gun Club

St. Peter/St. Francis School

Accelerate Brain Cancer Research

CT Brain Cancer Alliance

Musella Foundation for Brain Tumor Research

Special Olympics, CT

Housatonic Valley Regional High School Basketball Programs

Kenneth Krom Scholarship Fund

Mt. Everett High School Booster Club

Sharon Parks and Recreation

Litchfield High School Senior Class

New Hartford Land Trust

Sharon Fire Dept.

John Rice Scholarship Fund

Keri Perotti Scholarship Fund

Hudson River Housing

Donate Life

Corner Food Pantry

Karen DuCotey Fund for Kids

Burlington Parks and Recreation

St Paul’s Children’s Center

Be As You Wear

ALS Therapy Development Institute

Playground Golf Foundation

HVRHS Golf Team

Ryan McElroy Foundation

Lustgarten Foundation (for pancreatic cancer research)

Villa Veritas Foundation

Goshen Stampede Foundation

Premier Cares Foundation

Cerebral Palsy of Ulster County

Local VFW’s and American Legions

Torrington Child Care Center

Friends of Moe

Cornwall Food and Fuel

Falls Village Day Care

Food Banks of Region 1 towns

Project Playground

Torrington Parks and Recreation

Berkshire Rattlers

Center for Compassion

Salisbury Association

Sheffield Volunteer Hose Company

Sharon Hospital Bike Rodeo for Kids

Christopher Unsworth Scholarship Foundation

Refugee and Immigration Center for Education and Legal Services

Servicenet

Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation

Guiding Eyes for the Blind

Louison House

Women’s Support Services

Lake Waramaug Task Force

Washington Volunteer Ambulance

Washington Volunteer Fire Co.

State Police Explorers Post (Litchfield)

Steep Rock Association

Families United in Newtown

Fidelco Guide Dogs

Hospital For Special Care

Bike New York

Bike Walk Connecticut

Community Development Corp of South Berkshire

Cornwall Food and Fuel

Lakeville Pony Club

Church World Service

Happy 2020!

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Ideas for Another Kind of Gift

 

Tis the giving season, is it not? If you’ve already completed your shopping list for the usual suspects and have a few bucks left over to spread additional cheer, here are some gift ideas of the non- profit kind.

Love animals? The Little Guild in West Cornwall, CT https://www.littleguild.org/ rescues homeless dogs and cats and finds loving homes for them. A donation of $25 will buy a one-day supply of food for all of their animals; $50 vaccinates one animal for a year or helps pay the cost to spay a cat ($150) or neuter a dog ($300). Or maybe adopt a pet…

Who isn’t moved by the notion of a child at risk? Berkshire County Kids Place https://www.kidsplaceonline.org/ in Pittsfield, MA picks up the pieces of children damaged by sexual and domestic violence and makes them whole. When a child comes in for a therapy session they get a snack first. $10 buys all of the kids snacks for a week. $50 covers most of a private therapy session for a child. Usually it takes 12 – 24 sessions per child.

Continuing the focus on children, Brooker Memorial https://www.brookermemorial.org/ in Torrington, CT provides early learning, child care, pediatric dental care and child therapy for youngsters in need. $25 will buy a week’s supply of healthy snacks for 10 kids or dental screening for one child. $50 will provide one month of art supplies for two classrooms or a dental cleaning for one child.

Adopt-a-Family in Millerton, NY cares about the young ones too. Headquartered at Moore & More Printing ( 518 789-4508), Stacey Moore and her large band of helpers provide clothing and toys (non-electronic) to some 300 kids up to age 13. Each child gets a winter coat, boots and three toys. A $50 or $100  donation will put a big dent in that per child cost.

Hunger may be our greatest scourge. Gratefully, there are many non- profits dedicated to feeding our residents-in-need. One of them is the Sunday In The Country Food Drive http://sundayinthecountryfooddrive.com/. They are based in Millerton, NY, but they serve 18 towns throughout the Tri-State area. They provide Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners to over 300 families. A $25 gift will provide a family of six with a complete holiday dinner including a 14-16 pound turkey.

Special Olympics is one of the most beloved of international charities. It allows children and adults with intellectual challenges to participate in and succeed in 26 different sports throughout the year. And the “United Sports” program partners challenged athletes with non-challenged high schoolers to compete together. Everyone wins. a $30 donation buys a basketball. If you care to give on the installment plan, $15 a month funds year round sports activities for three athletes. Each state manages its own programs. Connecticut https://www.soct.org/; Massachusetts https://www.specialolympicsma.org/ and New York https://www.specialolympics-ny.org/ .  A $65 donation will earn you a Special Olympics tree ornament.

Robin Hood Radio’s http://www.robinhoodradio.com/ home is in Sharon, CT, and it serves the Tri-State region. It is an NPR station providing local and national news and entertainment as well as providing  public service announcements about non-profit activities throughout the year. Robin Hood Radio is a non-profit that needs our support. A $25 or $50 donation would help pay for stringers who report local news or help support an emergency fund take care of equipment failures, among many other expenses.

The Jane Lloyd Fund https://www.thejanelloydfund.org/ provides financial help for cancer patients in the Northwest Corner by paying their living expenses while they concentrate on healing. A $50 donation could cover a tank of gas to drive to treatments, or pay for part of an electric bill or a piece of a mortgage payment. No donation is too small.

Housatonic Youth Service Bureau (HYSB) https://hysb.org/ . Counselors at HYSB offer free counseling to youngsters in Region 1 in Connecticut addressing a broad array of emotional needs from depression and anxiety to avoiding school, and support children and families coping with personal or economic crises, emotional or physical neglect, trauma, substance abuse and more. A $50 donation to HYSB will pay for one counseling session.

The Salisbury Winter Sports Association (SWSA) http://www.jumpfest.org/ in Salisbury Connecticut has been teaching youngsters to ski – cross country, downhill and jumping for 94 years. They provide skiing scholarships for four area grade school downhill programs and maintain  20, 30 and 70 meter jumps at their Satre Hill facilities as well as host the annual Eastern Ski Jumping Championships. A $50 donation to SWSA will fund two hours of landing hill snow grooming or travel expenses for a SWSA jumper to compete at other eastern hills.

These are just 10 of the 300 or so charities found on the pages of sportingAcause.com, all of which are doing heroic work to improve lives in our part of the world. Please remember them when gift-giving this holiday season.

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