SBWire

Over the past 12 months, staff and shoppers at St David's Dewi Sant in Cardiff have raised a staggering £14,287 for Marie Curie Cancer Care, the centre's Charity of the Year. Throughout the year, numerous fundraising events were held in the shopping centre, the highlight of which was the Great Daffodil Appeal, part of Marie Curie's nationwide scheme to get everyone wearing a daffodil in March in support of the charity's nurses. Managing Director of A Vision Network, a sales and marketing company based in Cardiff said, “For one Shopping Centre in Cardiff, raising over £14,000 is amazing, especially in 12 months.”

This week Pars Equality Center received the Persian New Year Proclamation from the City of San Francisco on behalf of the Bay Area Iranian American community.

The Santa Clara County Fires Safe Council has been selected as a State Farm Insurance Good Neighbor Citizenship grant recipient for 2012. The Council will receive a $5,000 grant in support of the organization’s wildfire prevention and loss mitigation programs.

The Santa Clara County FireSafe Council (SCFSC) has been selected for two federal grants to fund ongoing Wildfire Protection and Prevention programs in Santa Clara County. The total for these two federal grants is $229,811 with a matching funds requirement of $24,024.

Home, a nonprofit agency fighting poverty and homelessness in Wake County, will host “My Story, My Song,” an evening of entertainment with country music star Jimmy Wayne on Friday, April 13 from 7:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. at the Marriott Downtown Raleigh – State Ballroom, located at 500 Fayetteville St. During the event, Wayne will provide special music, as well as share his journey from homeless teen to country music success story. Wayne, a native of Kings Mountain, N.C., is a survivor of homelessness and a staunch advocate for homeless youth. To overcome his difficulties, he turned to music, and has now experienced success with several country hits, including the three-week #1 country hit “Do You Believe Me Now,” as well as “I Love You This Much” and his cover of the 1976 Hall and Oates classic, “Sara Smile.” He is also the author of a novella, Paper Angels.

The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR), the nation’s largest traditional grocery retailer with 16 stores throughout the Triangle and North Carolina, has partnered with the Muscular Dystrophy Association to sell shamrocks to raise money for MDA summer camps for children, along with helping to fund additional local health care services for children and adults affected by some 40 neuromuscular diseases. Through Saturday, March 17, customers can purchase a shamrock at three different levels: a green shamrock for $1, a gold shamrock for $5 or a platinum shamrock for $10. All donations made at area Kroger stores will benefit the children and adults served by MDA within the Raleigh district.

On March 16, 2012, Yehri Wi Cry, Inc. will launch their “Altruism Reflected Tangibly For Life” Campaign at The Lexington Social House (1718 Vine Street, Hollywood, California 90028). The mission of the “A.R.T. For Life” Campaign is to create an atmosphere of giving back through the hands of the “art lover.”

The leading singles organizations of the Bay Area are co-sponsoring the East Bay Singles Charity Ball, Saturday, March 24, 2012, 8pm-Midnight, at the Marriott Hotel Bishop Ranch, 2600 Bishop Ranch Drive, San Ramon CA 94583. 100% of the donations will go directly to the Sight Project of The Seva Foundation, located in Berkeley.

Topping the New York Times Best Sellers list is sure to put a chunk of cash in the back pocket of any author. One business writer aims to mirror the same success in the world of eBooks, but with one difference – he’ll bypass his back pocket and use the money to improve the lives of Mexican orphans.

The Alternating Hemiplegia of Childhood Foundation (http://www.ahckids.org), a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising awareness of and funds for Alternating Hemiplegia of Childhood (AHC), a rare but debilitating neurological disorder causing temporary bouts of paralysis, has announced that Jeff Wuchich, the organization’s president, has released a podcast on the disease and Rare Disease Day, which is Feb. 29. In the podcast, Wuchich discusses the effects of AHC; how the AHC Foundation is spearheading the push for research through fundraising efforts, including the “1 in a Million” campaign; the significance of Rare Disease Day; and his personal experience with the disease. Jeff’s son Matthew currently suffers from AHC, for which there is no known cure. To listen to the podcast, visit http://bit.ly/zyP5Ol.

ABC11 Eyewitness News has announced that anchor Barbara Gibbs will participate in the 2nd annual “Cooks For Books” fundraiser benefiting the Garner Educational Foundation, to be held on Tuesday, Jan. 31 from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Garner TV and Appliance, located at 875 US Highway 70 W. in Garner, N.C. The event pairs local TV personalities and chefs in a cook-off competition to raise money for the Garner Education Foundation’s literacy programs.

AAA Hellenic Marble & Tile, Inc. has chosen Northern Home for Children to be the recipient of a special promotion they are holding through the end of February. AAA Hellenic Marble & Tile, Inc, a remodeling marble and tile company serving the West Chester, PA area for over 30 years, has a current promotion of $250 off any $2500 or more service in which the $250 that the customers save will be donated to Northern Home for Children.

Philanthropic Arm Of The North Carolina Veterinary Medical Association Makes $750 Donation To Asheville Nonprofit

From a shortlist of 30 finalists, an annual report released today highlights 10 tourism destinations for their accomplishments in the areas of environmental protection, social welfare, and human rights.

Leigh Law Group hosts a free event for families and children with special needs on February 11, 2012 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Flood Building in San Francisco located at 870 Market Street. The event includes two floors of special education service providers including schools, therapists, special education attorney advocates and vendors specializing in helping families learn to care and to advocate for themselves. Because of the theme, "Learn, Love and Give" and the date being so close to Valentine's Day, raffle prizes ranging from discounted special education evaluations to Discovery Museum passes will be offered to a few lucky winners who attend. In addition, the event will include speakers Holly Seerley, MA, MFT and advocates from the Leigh Law Group discussing issues such as removing stress from the family dynamic with a focus on parents and caregivers.

Best selling author Sharon Lechter’s financial literacy organization, Pay Your Family First, has joined forces with the non-profit group, Choices Educational Empowerment to launch the first ThriveTime Scholarship Challenge at Estrella High School in Avondale on January 18, 2012.

Holiday Celebration Gives Southeast Raleigh Parents A Hand Up In Making Christmas Special For More Than 165 Children

While it’s always a good time to give back to the community, the year end is a great occasion to make that extra effort to reach out to those who need our help. This is the message communicated by Eton Institute, the UAE’s largest language training institute, as it launches the “Fill the Eton Bag” campaign to collect much needed items for the wish list of underprivileged individuals. The institute will be distributing bags for the public to fill with books, toys, sports shoes and personal and childcare items which will be donated to the Dubai Foundation for Women and Children (DFWAC), Dubai Centre for Special Needs (DCSN) and Adopt a Laborer.

Christian Services of Oklahoma is excited to announce the launch of our newly designed web page. This re-designed site is user friendly and designed to provide extensive information to potential clients, donors and volunteers. The site features extensive information on our program for birth mothers, adoptive parents and foster parents. Our website is often our entry point of contact for birth families considering placing their children for adoption. Birth parents will be able to find information on our adoptive program, and services available to them, as well as contact information for our counselors on the site. The site contains information on two of our new programs, our Older Child Adoption Program and our Post Adoption Counseling Program. Both of these programs have been launched by our agency. We anticipate serving more children needing adoptive homes through our older child adoption program. Just this month we are placing 3 children ages 5-7 through this program. We also hope to serve more families who have already finalized their adoptions through our expanded counseling services. Our waiting families can still be viewed online.

Bayer CropScience, one of the world’s top innovative crop science companies in the areas of crop protection, non-agricultural pest control, seeds and traits, has announced that the company recently participated in a service and educational event for The Shepherd’s Table Soup Kitchen. The event, which involved providing a meal and winter clothing to Triangle men and women in need, was part of Bayer CropScience’s holiday outreach efforts. The Shepherd’s Table Soup Kitchen, located at the Church of the Good Shepherd in downtown Raleigh, serves meals to hundreds of Triangle residents each day.

Bill Horne, CEO of Laser Spine Institute, the leader in endoscopic spine surgery, has announced that the facility will support the Marine Toys For Tots Foundation, an IRS recognized 501(c)(3) not-for-profit public charity contributing tangible signs of hope to economically disadvantaged children and families during the Christmas holiday season. As a component of Laser Spine Institute’s community outreach program, all four of its surgical facilities will collect gifts and gift cards internally from employees and participants through Friday, Dec. 16, when members of the United States Marine Corps will collect Toys for Tot boxes from each location.

The Boys & Girls Club Nan Knox Unit in Broward County received a free energy makeover by Florida Power & Light Company and S & H Lighting, which will save the organization $1,500 annually on its energy bill.

Fifty local children will have a brighter holiday season this year through TriMark Solutions’ generosity. The Raleigh-based internet marketing company has once again chosen The Salvation Army’s Angel Giving Tree program as this year’s holiday philanthropy. The children, ages 12 and below, will be receiving clothes, toys, and other gifts purchased by TriMark, and donated through The Salvation Army, on Friday, December 9, 2011.

Connected Women of North Carolina (CWNC), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit networking group, has announced that nearly 400 women attended the group’s fourth annual “Know Your Value” fall networking event on Nov. 18 at the North Ridge Country Club. Attendees heard from keynote speaker Katty Kay, lead anchor of BBC World News America, as well as a panel of local business leaders from Allscripts, Cisco, WakeMed, Red Had, Fidelity Investments and Greene Resources. Women from around the area participated in various activities designed to enhance networking skills as well. A portion of all proceeds from the event went to InterAct, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising awareness and providing support for victims and survivors of domestic violence.