In a show of strength, mother Michelle Dosso spoke out Sunday at her Church in Southwest Philadelphia, urging everyone to get smoke detectors. An effort to prevent more deaths. Just this Friday her three children (ages 8, 6, and 1) were killed in a fire at their home. “Get some smoke detectors, get some fire extinguishers. The fire houses is willing to give these items for free, so get it done!" Dosso said. – Kristen Welker, NBCPhiladelphia.com, December 29, 2008
Written by Dianne Cox, M.S., Teacher On Special Assignment
Wednesday, 15 April 2009 11:57
Hallie Botkin and her husband are fighting a serious battle with cancer. Hallie works in the Special Education Department here at Chaparral High School. She teaches students with moderate disabilities community and functional life skills. She has been teaching for 12 years and has been in the Temecula Unified School District for 8 years. Her husband, Eric, is a Riverside City Firefighter / Paramedic diagnosed with brain cancer. Eric started his dream of becoming a firefighter by first working for the Orange County Fire Authority as a Paid-Call firefighter. His first career firefighter job was for the Marine Corps Air Station in El Toro. In 1998, he was hired by the Riverside City Fire Department. During his career with RFD he served as a firefighter, a firefighter/medic and an arson investigator. He worked for the RFD for 10 years, and then in 2007 he was diagnosed with brain cancer and had to medically retire in October of 2008. They have been together for 23 years, have been married for 16 and have a nine year old son.
In an effort to rally the entire Chaparral family and Temecula community behind them, I am organizing a Faculty Follies Fundraiser. It is scheduled for Thursday April 16th at 6:30 pm in the gym. We have some very talented teachers eager to showcase their skills for a very worthy cause. Tickets are $5. To avoid the long line, you may purchase tickets in advance at the book keeper’s office.
We will also have a silent auction that night. You can help by donating goods and services for the silent auction. No amount is too small or too big. Cash donations are welcomed too. Make your checks out to Chaparral High School Education Foundation. Please note that CHSEF is a non-profit, tax-exempt, 501 (c3) organization. Your contribution may be tax deductible. The CHSEF tax identification number is 33-0800705.
Thank you in advance for your support and commitment to this worthy cause.
For more information: Dianne Cox, M.S., Teacher On Special Assignment Administrative Designee, Special Education Department
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
951-695-4200 ext. 427
Last Updated on Thursday, 16 April 2009 13:38
Millard Fuller's "Theology of Enough"
Written by David Waters for the Washington Post
Wednesday, 04 February 2009 12:22
Millard Fuller, discusses his inspiration for founding Habitat for Humanity.
To learn more about Habitat for Humanity, click here.
To get involved in your local community, click here.
Millard Fuller, the Habitat for Humanity founder who died late Monday at age 74, once told me that a person needs about 500 square feet of living space. Meaning, the average American family of four needs about 2,000 square feet of house.
The fact that American home sizes have more than doubled since the 1950s, and that the average U.S. home today is just under 2,500 square feet, was evidence to Fuller that the American dream had become distorted and destructive. He said as much last September 11, when he gave his analysis of the nation's housing market crisis.
"We have confused, as a society, wants and needs, and a lot of people have raised up their wants way above their needs and way above their abilities to support all those wants," Fuller said at the University of Arkansas Clinton School for Public Service. "What we have got to do is get back to the basics in difficult economic times like this and explain to people that you will not wither up and die if you don't have that wide-screen TV."
Fuller's understanding of needs and wants -- what he called the "Theology of Enough" -- was grounded in his Christian faith. "God's oder of things holds no place for hoarding and greed," he wrote. "There are sufficient resources in the world for the needs of everybody, but not enough for the greed of even a significant minority."
Fuller's life story is a parable. After he graduated from the University of Alabama law school in 1960, he went into the marketing business with his friend Morris Dees, who later founded the Southern Poverty Law Center. Fuller made and spent a lot of money. At one point he owned 2,000 acres and was worth $1 million. But as his business prospered, his personal life suffered.
Fuller and his wife said their personal and spiritual crisis led them to Koinonia Farm, a Christian community in rural Georgia, founded by farmer and New Testament scholar Clarence Jordan, famous for his "Cotton Patch" renderings of the New Testament. "A big part of my motivation is that, through Clarence Jordan, I came to understand that the mandate of Christ is to minister to the poor in his name. http://www.christianethicstoday.com/Issue/004/An%20Interview%20With%20Millard%20Fuller_004_6_.htm
Fuller gave up his business and wealth and developed a non-profit housing ministry for the poor, which in 1976 became Habitat for Humanity International. Habitat, made famous by Fuller's friend, former President Jimmy Carter, relies on volunteer labor and donated or subsidized materials (often provided by church groups) to build modest, affordable houses for low-income families. Habitat groups have built more than 300,000 houses around the world. In 1996, President Bill Clinton gave Fuller the Presidential Medal of Freedom and called Habitat "the most successful continuous community service project in the history of the United States."
Fuller and Habitat's board clashed in 2004 over a number of issues, including an allegation that Fuller sexually harassed a female colleague. The board decided there was no evidence to support that allegation, but they fired Fuller in January 2005 for his "divisive and disruptive comments." Fuller then started another ministry called the Fuller Center for Housing in Americus.
In recent years, critics have said that Habitat's low-income homeowners are vulnerable to predatory lenders and its house-by-house approach fails to address broader, underlying causes of poverty and neighborhood deterioration. Before he was fired, Fuller himself questioned Habitat's "creeping affluence."
But while Fuller's methods were open to debate, few questioned his religious motivation. "Faith must be incarnated," said the man who spent most of his life putting his faith to work for others. "Faith must become more than a verbal proclamation or an intellectual assent. True faith must be acted out."
Last Updated on Thursday, 05 February 2009 07:22
Food Pantries and Soup Kitchens Struggle To Meet Needs of Hungry Americans
Written by Administrator
Thursday, 08 January 2009 08:27
Food banks across America are reporting a 30 percent increase in requests for emergency food assistance, according to a new survey conducted by Feeding America, the nation’s largest hunger relief organization. At the same time, a new public opinion poll released today by the organization finds that many Americans are unable to provide adequate amounts of nutritious food to their families, due to the current economic crisis.
“The economy is affecting all Americans, but it is low-income Americans who are suffering the most,” said Vicki Escarra, president and CEO of Feeding America. “Skyrocketing unemployment rates, increasing food costs and high fuel prices for the majority of this year have put an unprecedented level of need on our food banks. Unemployment projections indicate that the situation is likely to get worse in the near future. Low-income Americans need increases in food stamps and our network needs more food from the federal government to ensure that we can keep feeding the millions of people turning to us for help.”
More than 90 percent of food banks respondents cited increases in food prices and unemployment as the primary factors contributing to the increase in requests for emergency food assistance. More than 60 percent cited fuel, and 52 percent cited the inadequacy of food stamp benefits.
Seventy-two percent of food banks reported that they are not able to adequately meet the needs of their communities without adjusting the amount of food distributed – offering smaller amounts of food and groceries to those in need – or their operations.
“We are in a national crisis,” said Escarra. “We have some food banks reporting as high as a 65 percent increase in need. There are record numbers of new men, women and children, who never thought they would need food assistance. Some of those seeking help are so unfamiliar with available emergency food assistance that they are having difficulties navigating how to access food.”
Many low-income Americans, who are living just above the income eligibility threshold for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly named the Food Stamp Program), are experiencing food insecurity for the first time. In the public opinion poll, 63 percent of respondents reported that in the past year, their food didn’t last and they could not afford to buy more. Forty percent ate less than they felt they should, and 36 percent cut the size of meals or skipped meals because there wasn’t enough money for food. Forty percent reported that they have had to choose between paying for food and utilities in the past year. One in three food stamp recipients reported that their benefits only lasted for two weeks or less.
To locate a food bank near you use the food bank locator at www.FeedingAmerica.org
For more information about hunger in america, watch this video by Bill Moyers which aired April 2008.
Last Updated on Wednesday, 21 January 2009 14:05
HELP with Earthquake Relief in Peru
Written by Administrator
Tuesday, 06 January 2009 11:44
Pisco Sin Fronteras is a brand new, non-profit organisation which started in August 2008 on the first year anniversary of the massive earthquake which devastated the city. We are giving assistance to the people who most need it by helping to build houses, schools, sanitation units and helping with other community-based projects. It’s been over one year since the disaster and there are still a huge amount of people without housing and adequate sanitation.
Harold our director, spent twelve months volunteering with Hands on Disaster Relief and Burners Without Borders, two organisations which preceded PSF, and is passionate about PSF and helping his local community to rebuild. We are still small but are looking to grow and need hard working volunteers who are happy to work for a newly formed organisation and come with patience, enthusiasm, an open mind, flexibility and the willingness to get stuck in and get their hands dirty.
We do not charge a huge participation fee like many other volunteer organisations and this is a great opportunity for volunteers to not only help with construction projects but also to see how an organisation works from the inside and for those with leadership skills to really make a difference. As a volunteer organisation you are the organisation, it’s volunteers that make a difference.
We are inviting volunteers to be a part of this city’s reconstruction and, with your support, help people to get their lives back on track.
Last Updated on Saturday, 14 February 2009 14:19
Join AmeriCorps
Written by Administrator
Tuesday, 06 January 2009 13:13
AmeriCorps is an opportunity to make a big difference in your life and in the lives of those around you. It’s a chance to apply your skills and ideals toward helping others and meeting critical needs in the community.
Each year, AmeriCorps offers 75,000 opportunities for adults of all ages and backgrounds to serve through a network of partnerships with local and national nonprofit groups. Whether your service makes a community safer, gives a child a second chance, or helps protect the environment, you’ll be getting things done through AmeriCorps!
AmeriCorps members address critical needs in communities all across America. As an AmeriCorps member, you can:
Tutor and mentor disadvantaged youth
Fight illiteracy
Improve health services
Build affordable housing
Teach computer skills
Clean parks and streams
Manage or operate after-school programs
Help communities respond to disasters
Build organizational capacity
Benefits of Service
As an AmeriCorps member, you’ll gain new skills and experiences—and you’ll also find the tremendous satisfaction that comes from helping others. In addition, full-time members who complete their service earn a Segal AmeriCorps Education Award of $4,725 to pay for college, graduate school, or to pay back qualified student loans; members who serve part-time receive a partial Award. Some AmeriCorps members may also receive a modest living allowance during their term of service.
There are thousands of opportunities to serve in AmeriCorps. Each one provides an incredible opportunity to make a difference in your life and in the lives of those around you. To search for an AmeriCorps national service opportunity that fits your interests and desired location, click here. Applications for any position can also be submitted online – all you have to do is create a user profile.
If you need additional assistance, please:
Call 1-800-942-2677
E-mail
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.
Corporation for National and Community Service
AmeriCorps is a program of the Corporation for National and Community Service, an independent federal agency whose mission is to improve lives, strengthen communities, and foster civic engagement through service and volunteering. In addition to AmeriCorps, the Corporation also administers Senior Corps and Learn and Serve America. Together these programs engage more than 2 million Americans of all ages and backgrounds in service each year.
