Community

February Give Where You Live: Charlottesville’s Salvation Army Shoe Drive

January 30, 2010 by Sasha Farmer · Leave a Comment 

This month’s “Give Where You Live” focuses on the Salvation Army Shoe Drive.

U.Va’s Office of Community Relations and the Salvation Army are running a shoe drive!

This is a great chance to donate your used, but usable men’s, women’s and children’s shoes to those in need.

Monday Feb. 1 – Friday Feb. 5!

Drop Off Points:

• Fontaine Research Park (1st Floor Kitchen)
• Piedmont Center
• Health System Development (2410 Old Ivy Road)

Additionally, volunteers are needed for shoe sorting!

• February 12 @ 4:00P
• February 13 @ 12:00P

Click here for more information!

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Every month, I will post a segment called “Give Where You Live,” which will be focused on Charlottesville and the surrounding counties, reminding us of little things we can do to make our community a better place. There are tons of incredible non-profits and charities around the area, and hopefully these segments will help residents become more familiar with some of the different needs in the community and maybe even inspire some giving!   

I will try to post about a variety of needs and programs, from big to small, so if you know of a great local cause that is running a donation-based or volunteer campaign, please feel free to send the details my way and I will make an effort to include them in an upcoming “Give Where You Live”!

Charlottesville Chamber of Commerce Summarizes some of Charlottesville’s Recent Rankings

January 30, 2010 by Sasha Farmer · Leave a Comment 

Thanks to the Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce for this nice summary of recent rankings for the City of Charlottesville! I’ve elaborated on many of these and tried to catalogue them here already on the Charlottesville Rankings page, but I definitely missed a few along the way and will be adding more to the page soon!

It’s hard to debate it- Charlottesville is a great place to live!

From the January 21 Charlottesville Chamber of Commerce ChamberBits Newsletter;

Recent other acknowledgements for the City of Charlottesville include:

• 4th Best Place to Live in the Country - Kiplinger’s Magazine 2009
• Best Place to Launch a Business – Fortune Magazine 2009
• 11th Best Town to Find a Job - Forbes Magazine 2009
• One of the 30 Coolest Neighborhoods, Belmont - Men’s Health Magazine 2009
• 18th Safest Mid-Sized Cities in the Country (populations between 150,000 and 500,000), Farmers Insurance 2009
• AARP, Top 10 Healthiest Places to Retire, 2008
• Best Places to Retire, Black Enterprise Magazine, 2nd in 2008
• Best City for Living and Launching a Business by Fortune and Money Magazines – 18th Place in 2008.
• Best Small Market for Business by Forbes Magazine - 9th Place in 2008.

Building Goodness Foundation Accepting Proposals for Local Fall Building Projects

January 9, 2010 by Sasha Farmer · Leave a Comment 

The Building Goodness Foundation is a Charlottesville non-profit that focuses on construction improvements and renovations for communities and families in need. Their projects span the globe, from right here in Charlottesville to Mississippi, Guatemala, and Haiti. They are currently taking proposals for their upcoming Fall Building Project (which occurs in Charlottesville) and I would encourage anyone who is aware of a community or civic center, school, or library that is in need of some structural repair and renovation to submit a proposal to BGF!

From their monthly newsletter;

We are now accepting proposals for our third annual Local Fall Building Project. In partnership with local nonprofit agencies, BGF volunteers will donate hundreds of hours of skilled labor to consult, design, build or renovate a building that serves a community need in the Charlottesville/Albemarle area. Renovations or additions to existing buildings such as clinics, schools or community centers are examples of likely candidates. The Local Fall Building Project will not accept proposals for individual housing improvements.

Proposal applications for the Local Fall Building Project will be accepted until 5:00pm on Friday, February 26, 2010. A pdf version of the form is available here for download and also on our website. If you have questions, please contact Ethan by email or call the office at 434.973.0993.

Download the Request for Proposal here (aka the RFP pdf for BGF’s LFBP)

I hope you will consider submitting a proposal or perhaps volunteering with the Building Goodness Foundation!

Give Where You Live: December: Charlottesville SPCA Blanket Drive

December 29, 2009 by Sasha C. Farmer Realtor · Leave a Comment 

The December “Give Where You Live” focuses on the Charlottesville Albemarle SPCA (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals). They are currently partnered up with the City of Charlottesville for their 4th Annual Blanket Drive.   

There is no better time than now to support this drive, as I’m sure we are all mindful of the bitter temperatures Charlottesville has been experiencing! While we are all trying to keep warm from the bitter cold this winter, many of the SPCA animals are housed in outdoor runs and kennels and can use any extra warmth that we might be able to spare! If you have old blankets that won’t hold up in your home much longer, make sure to drop them off at the Albemarle SPCA (Berkmar Drive) or Charlottesville City Hall in Downtown Charlottesville!

[From 4th Annual SPCA Blanket Drive - NBC29]

Charlottesville is teaming up with the SPCA for the 4th Annual Blanket Drive to make sure man’s best friend isn’t left out in the cold.

The shelter houses dozens of animals, and while a lot of the kennels are indoors, several have an outdoor component as well. Last year, the drive brought in 600 blankets. This year the city is hoping for 750.

Susanne Kogut of the Charlottesville – Albemarle SPCA said, “It’s really incredible, I mean during the winter it gets pretty cold. We have the outdoor runs and it gets pretty cold no matter what you do so having the dogs have the blankets, it’s really awesome.”

If you would like to help, you can drop off your donation in the front lobby at Charlottesville City Hall or the Charlottesville – Albemarle SPCA on Berkmar Drive.

For more information, call 434-970-3129.

[Photo Credit: Charlottesville Albemarle SPCA]

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Every month, I will post a segment called “Give Where You Live,” which will be focused on Charlottesville and the surrounding counties, reminding us of little things we can do to make our community a better place. There are tons of incredible non-profits and charities around the area, and hopefully these segments will help residents become more familiar with some of the different needs in the community and maybe even inspire some giving!   

I will try to post about a variety of needs and programs, from big to small, so if you know of a great local cause that is running a donation-based or volunteer campaign, please feel free to send the details my way and I will make an effort to include them in an upcoming “Give Where You Live”!

Charlottesville is extremely lucky to have been the home of Dave Matthews!

December 24, 2009 by Sasha C. Farmer Realtor · Leave a Comment 

$222,000 lucky, in fact! Dave Matthews has again given out another set of grants to Charlottesville non-profits, totaling $222,000 in grants, and benefitting 39 grateful (and deserving!) non-profit organizations here in town. Evidently BAMA Works holds a competitive grant application process and selects the groups most in need of their funds every year (side note- this is very similar to the United Way’s Program Review and Funding Committee, that determines the allocation of the United Way’s grant monies each year.) We are blessed to have such strong supporters of our non-profits here in Charlottesville! Take a look at some of the grants, and what they are going to be used for.   

If any of the projects sounds interesting, I’d venture to say that many of these non-profits are likely looking for volunteers to help carry them out!

The following is a complete list (Credit to Newsplex.com):

1. Albemarle County Schools (Monticello High School) – $3,000 for school supplies, books, field trips, glasses, and clothing to financially needy Monticello High School students.

2. Albemarle County Schools (Stony Point Elementary School) – $1,000 stipend to a professional songwriter who will teach music literary to students in Pre-K classes.

3. Albemarle Pipes and Drums Band, Inc. – $1,500 for musical instruments for the volunteer Celtic band at various community functions.

4. Charlottesville Abundant Life Ministries – $5,000 to support a dance instruction curriculum to enhance the 5th-8th grade tutoring program at Walker Upper Elementary and Buford Middle School.

5. Charlottesville Area Dental Access – $10,000 to support the Community Children’s Dental Center that provides full service pediatric dental care for low-income children in Central Virginia.

6. Charlottesville City Public Schools (Adult Education Program) – $2,000 to help fund a one-day Festival of Cultures in Lee Park in the spring of 2010.

7. Charlottesville Jazz Society – $3,000 to fund educational program by which jazz artists teach local students.

8. Charlottesville Police Department Foundation – $10,000 to support police/community activities, including the Cops4Kids program that provides positive engagement with disadvantaged youth.

9. Children, Youth & Family Services – $8,000 to support the STAR Kids program that teaches positive social and decision-making skills to low-income preschoolers.

10. Covesville Child Development Center – $5,000 for scholarships to financially disadvantaged preschoolers from Albemarle and Nelson counties.

11. Fluvanna County Habitat for Humanity – $10,000 to help build one of five Earthcraft-certified homes for deserving Fluvanna County residents as a part of a new rural conservation cluster subdivision design.

12. Fluvanna County Schools (Fluvanna County High School) – $1,500 to help fund the Fluvanna County High School Blue and Gold monthly newspaper.

13. Habitat for Humanity of Greater Charlottesville – $10,000 to help complete critical electrical work at Southwood Mobile Park.

14. Hope Foundation, Inc. – $10,000 to support the Hope Community Center’s afterschool program for elementary and middle school children in the Tenth and Page neighborhood.

15. International Rescue Committee – $10,000 to create an emergency fund for medical and dental assistance to Charlottesville refugees whose health insurance programs do not meet their health needs.

16. James River Association – $5,000 to support education efforts of the Upper James Riverkeeper program.

17. Monticello Area Community Action Agency (MACAA) – $10,000 to fund the Hope House transitional housing facility for homeless families.

18. Meals on Wheels of Charlottesville-Albemarle – $9,000 to provide hot meals for seven homebound disabled clients for one year.

19. North Branch School – $5,000 for the Naomi Scherr Memorial Scholarship to provide tuition assistance to needy students attending the North Branch School in Nelson County.

20. People and Congregations Engaged in Ministry (PACEM ) – $8,000 to fund the salary of the Guest Advocate position to assist shelter guests by creating a relationship of trust and to provide information about jobs, housing, and identification documents.

21. Piedmont CASA, Inc .- $5,000 to support a part-time teen specialist position to increase the effectiveness of advocacy for teens (13 to18) who are victims of abuse and neglect.

22. Quest Institute, Inc. – $2,500 for the Books Behind Bars program that collects and provides books without charge to incarcerated individuals in Virginia prisons.

23. QuickStart Tennis of Central Virginia – $5,000 to introduce children throughout the CACF service area to the game of tennis.

24. Second Street Gallery – $2,000 to support Family Art Day and the Public Art Project which provide art education for the Charlottesville community.

25. Senior Center, Inc. – $5,000 to support arts and humanities programs to enrich the lives of area seniors.

26. Service Dogs of Virginia – $7,000 to provide a Service Dog Scholarship to support advanced training and placement of one diabetic alert service dog.

27. Spay/Neuter All Pets, Inc. (SNAP) – $2,500 to provide low-cost spay/neuter services to low-income residents of Louisa County.

28. Special Olympics Virginia – $7,500 to support a tennis tournament for individuals with intellectual disabilities in Charlottesville with participants from across the country.

29. Thomas Jefferson Area Coalition for the Homeless – $8,000 for supplies for the community kitchen at “The Haven at First and Market” (formerly known as the First Street Church Project) that provides daily meals and a food service job training program.

30. Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission/Jefferson Area Disability Services Board (DSB) – $3,500 to develop a home modification network for people with disabilities in the planning district.

31. Town of Mineral – $6,000 to modernize and expand Walton Park utilizing a plan by the Virginia Tech Design Group to attract more performing arts activities to Louisa County.

32. University Montessori School – $3,000 to complete construction of an outdoor classroom for environmental education classes.

33. UVA Rector and Visitors (UVA Children’s Hospital) – $3,000 to provide helmets to third grade children in Charlottesville and Albemarle, to be distributed through the Bike Helmet program.

34. Urban Vision – $8,000 to help start an incentive program for Friendship Court families with the goal to make families more self-sufficient.

35. Virginia Foundation for the Humanities and Public Policy – $3,000 for travel, lodging and honoraria for 10 authors/storytellers/illustrators to give presentations fostering the love of reading and literacy skills to local schools, youth and community organizations during the Virginia Festival of the Book March 17-21, 2010.

36. Virginia Organization of Consumers Asserting Leadership (VOCAL) – $5,000 to support Firewalkers: Changing the Story of Mental Health, a book and outreach project to educate the Charlottesville community about mental illness and to improve mental health services.

37. Wildlife Center of Virginia – $8,000 for environmental outreach programs for area elementary schools.

38. Wintergreen Adaptive Sports – $8,000 to support an ongoing sports program for wounded servicemen and women.

39. Writer House, Inc. – $3,000 for scholarship funds for disadvantaged youth to develop creative writing skills.

[From Dave Matthews Band Gives Back to Hometown]

[Photo Credit: http://wknc.org/blog/post/wp-content/uploads/dmb.gif]

Charlottesville's Big Warm Up: Donate Your Gently Used Coats for a Good Cause!

November 15, 2009 by Sasha C. Farmer Realtor · Leave a Comment 

[From Marnie Allen, community partner with MACAA- Monticello Area Action Agency]

I am excited to let you know about a collaborative effort that MACAA is participating in with The Boys and Girls Club, The Junior League, The National Coalition to End Homelessness, Sears and Land’s End. Once the coats are collected I will be in touch with area service providers to get a list of families in need and the coats will be distributed through the service providers.

You can get more information at the website www.bigwarmupcville.com