SimplyHelp

Please donate toys for boys living in poverty

This week:

Holiday Distribution on December 19^th

• Holiday packing great success: Please join forces again this Sunday
• SimplyHelp’s work published in the UN Chronicle
• Lotte is leaving SimplyHelp 

 

• Please mark your Calendars: SimplyHelp’s annual Holiday Distribution will this year be on Sunday December 19^th.

All volunteers need to be 18 years or older.

Last year there was an incident where one of our client’s teenage daughter saw a SimplyHelp volunteer that she knew from school . She was horrified that someone knew that she was poor – and went running, crying back to her mom’s car.  We really want to try to avoid this type of situation this year. 

• The packing of gift bags for the Holiday Distribution last Sunday was a great success – we packed 1232 gift bags!!. About 50% of the people were new volunteers – Welcome to the SimplyHelp family!

We need to pack a total of 3500 gift bags for all the children, so please join us again this Sunday Nov. 28^th  from 1-4pm.

And please consider donating toys for the children living in poverty in your community. We really need toys for boys – toy cars etc.

Address:14944 E. Don Julian Road
City of Industry, CA 91748 

• The United Nations world renowned magazine  ‘UN Chronicle’ published an article about SimplyHelp’s work in Cambodia this month. Check it out! :

http://www.un.org/wcm/content/site/chronicle/home/archive/issues2010/un_academic_impact/SimplyHelp_Cambodia_vocational_education_model?ctnscroll_articleContainerList=1_0&ctnlistpagination_articleContainerList=true. 

• After 2 wonderful years of working for SimplyHelp, I will be leaving SimplyHelp this week. Of course I’ll still be supporting SH’s work as a volunteer.

Thank you for many wonderful times together! 

Be happy,

Lotte

lotte@simplyhelp.org

www.simplyhelp.org

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Give Thanks by Sharing

Sunday Nov. 21^st  – Big Holiday Packing Day at the Warehouse – 2pm-4pm

This is the time of giving thanks for all the good things we have in our lives. 

Share some of your fortune with others by coming to the warehouse this Sunday to help pack donations for people in need, or by donating items for homeless families in Los Angeles.

We will work together with Foothill Unity for the 3^rd year, to distribute donations to 2000 families, 3500 children, living below the poverty line.

Please help us prepare Christmas gifts for them!

 This Sunday, November 21^st, 2pm-4pm.

Address:

14944 E. Don Julian Road
City of Industry, CA 91748

Be happy,

Lotte

lotte@simplyhelp.org

www.simplyhelp.org

Big Holiday Packing Event this Sunday Nov. 7th!

Dear Volunteers, 

• Sunday Nov. 7^th – Big Holiday Packing Day at the Warehouse – 10am-4pm 

Come one come all – in Holiday Spirit – to help pack and prepare for the several Holiday donation distributions SimplyHelp is doing this season.

We will work together with Foothill Unity for the 3^rd year, to distribute donations to 2000 families, 3500 children, living below the poverty line.

Please help us prepare Christmas gifts for them! 

• LA County Distribution for the Homeless 

LA County has changed it plans for one big donation distribution for 4000 homeless in December, due to security reasons.

Instead it will be broken up in several smaller distributions. 

The first one will be on November 10^th.

We would like to do a poll and see how many volunteers would like to help on that day – depending on how many volunteers can come out we’ll participate or not. 

It’s on Nov. 10^th from 9am-2pm.

It will be a kind of fair where different organizations will have stands to offer their services. SimplyHelp will have a stand from which it will distribute winter clothes to homeless men, women and children. 

Please get in contact with Andrea if you can make it on the 10^th. Andrea’s email: andrea@simplyhelp.org. Telephone: 213 626 7676 

Be happy,

Lotte

lotte@simplyhelp.org

www.simplyhelp.org

Please donate: Toys, Children's Clothes, Winter Jackets or Business Attire

About 10 people showed up at the warehouse last Sunday and a lot of work was done: 4 pallets of boxes were finished! 

Let’s keep this momentum going – on Sunday 2 weeks from now, Nov.7- we need to sort and pack 4000 winter jackets for our upcoming donation distribution for homeless families in early December.

Please mark your calendar and join us for 2 hours for some packing fun! 

There are two other donation distributions coming up:

1. Business attire for men and women at WorkSource centers.

SimplyHelp will be helping low-income people in LA County to secure a job.

The first step SimplyHelp is taking is providing people with business attire, so they look professional at their job interviews.

If you would like to give someone a well-deserved chance to secure a job, please donate business attire in good condition – next Sunday at the warehouse (Nov. 7).

    2. SimplyHelp will join forces with Foothill Unity for the big annual Christmas Distribution for the 3^rd year in a row.  SimplyHelp is now collecting toys and children’s clothes in good condition, so we can prepare gifts for 3500 children.  

The warehouse will be closed this Sunday. 

Be happy,

Lotte

lotte@simplyhelp.org

www.simplyhelp.org

Donate Business Attire: Help People Secure a Job

As we all know – the results of the economic crisis are harsh on many people, and many are looking for work. SimplyHelp will be helping low-income people in LA County to secure a job.

The first step SimplyHelp is taking is providing people with business attire, so they look professional at their job interviews. 

If you would like to give someone a well-deserved chance to secure a job, please donate business attire in good condition – this Sunday at the warehouse. 

We can use all the help we can get with packing and organizing the donations at the warehouse, so please – come one, come all - to help us with this monumental but rewarding job.

The warehouse is open this Sunday Oct. 24,  for donation drop-off, 2pm-4pm.

Address:

14944 E. Don Julian Road
City of Industry, CA 91748 

We hope to see you there,

Lotte

lotte@simplyhelp.org

www.simplyhelp.org

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Give a Helping Hand at the Warehouse next Sunday

Dear Volunteers, 

There were 2 volunteers who did a wonderful job packing and organizing the donations at the warehouse last Sunday. Thank you!!

I know we can do better than that the next time – please come to the warehouse for just 1 or 2 hours to help pack donations and get them ready to ship to people in need.  

The warehouse will be closed this Sunday and will open again next Sunday.  

SimplyHelp is collaborating with the city of LA this year, to do a holiday distribution for 4000 homeless families.

In order to assure that all 4000 people will receive some love, SimplyHelp is collecting as many winter clothes, hats, scarves, gloves and blankets (all in good condition) as possible. 

Please help your neighbors and donate any of the items above.

Have a wonderful week, 

Lotte

lotte@simplyhelp.org

www.simplyhelp.org

School in Nicaragua gives Girls Confindence and Succesful Future

SimplyHelp started supporting a High School in Nicaragua in 2006.

When SimplyHelp started to support this school, most students and some teachers had never touched a computer in their lives.

Now, teachers have learned how to use a computer and the internet and use these new skills to improve their classes.

Students learned and developed fast; they are participating in competitions on ‘Best Website Design’!

Because of SimplyHelp’s support for the tailoring and carpenter classes, students who did not have to means to pay for education before, are now able to learn a vocational skill well and are able to find a steady job within weeks upon graduation. 

Personal Story

Martha Ernestina Mercado Cerda is 18 yrs. old and studied at Guillermo Ampie Lanzas High School in La Conception.  Her father is a teacher and her mother is a secretary. They do not have the resources to send Martha to university.

When Martha finished her secondary education she decided to go to Nursing School because she likes to help the people.

Martha: “I studied in the high school from 2005 to 2009 and honestly I am very thankful for my teachers and for SimplyHelp’s support for the school. When I got to the school I did not know anything about how to use the computer, however now I can use it, I want to tell to SimplyHelp “thank you very much” because nowadays I can do my homework and research using the technology I learned to use at school. And I am sure that I am going to be a successful girl because I can use the technology.” 

• Warehouse will be open for donation drop-off this Sunday, Oct. 10^th from 2pm-4pm.

Now that the weather has cooled down, please come help us pack and organize donations at the warehouse. 

SimplyHelp will work together with LA City this winter to provide 4000 homeless families with warm winter clothes.  Please help these people and donate coats, blankets, sweaters and scarves. 

Warehouse address:

14944 E. Don Julian Road
City of Industry, CA 91748 

Joy,

Lotte

lotte@simplyhelp.org

www.simplyhelp.org

Help Build a Home for Homeless Elderly in El Salvador!

Dear Volunteers,

• Challenge: Raise enough $$ to build a Home for Homeless Elderly 

SimplyHelp has received a plot of land in El Salvador and strives to build a 4^th Senior Center for Homeless Elderly, together with Pastor Soto and his church. 

This home will harbor 35 homeless seniors who currently live on the street and beg for their food.

It will also be an activity center for local eldery – elderly can participate in fun activities, exercise programs and grow their own vegetables. 

The cost of the construction will be $50.000.

Whether SimplyHelp will be able to build this center depends on whether we’ll be able to raise the money.

Please help us reach this goal, and give homeless elderly a safe and happy home.

All donations, small and large, help! 

• Thank you for your help at the warehouse last Sunday! 

Many hands make light work.  A lot of packing and organizing got done, and all left satisfied and feeling good about the good work done that afternoon.

Thank you!

The warehouse will be closed this Sunday. 

Lotte

lotte@simplyhelp.org

www.simplyhelp.org

 

63rd Annual United Nations DPI/NGO Conference
Advance Global Health: Achieve the MDGs
Melbourne, Australia
From Julie Russell

It is undeniable that health is a social, economic and political issue and above all is a fundamental human right. Therefore, human rights are central to the health issues that face poverty stricken communities and solutions that deal with inequity and social exclusion need to be applied to the programs in operation.
Maternal health has shown to be the least effective of the eight millennium goals. It is imperative to the restoration of struggling communities that women’s empowerment, access to health facilities, education, and gender equality are compiled into agendas that aim to improve the quality of life for the entire population.
The Declaration of Alma-Ata was adopted at an international conference in 1978 expressing the need for urgent action by all governments, all health and development workers, and the world community to protect and promote the health of all the people of the world. It was the first international declaration underlining the importance of primary health care. The primary health care approach has since then been accepted by member countries of WHO as the key to achieving the goal of "Health for All". Unfortunately, certain governments and international institutions, as well as unregulated transnational corporations have suspended the progression of this proposal. Health for all means that powerful interests have to be challenged, that globalization has to insure equitable distribution of resources, and that political and economic priorities have to be drastically changed.
This being said, there is an insurmountable mission facing NGOs to address and overcome difficult issues posed from both their own governments and those they seek to assist. The best way I can see for anyone to make progress is to work together and combine resources in order to grow and attain media attention and recognition so that more people become exposed to the problems and are able to then become part of the solution. As long as the MDGs are unknown to the majority of both developing and undeveloped nations, they will remain unattainable.

I can write a lot about my experience in the workshops and in the roundtable events but the information that needs to be passed on is the potential affiliations that can be established with other organizations that have common interests with those of Simply Help. So below I have listed some of the larger organizations that I felt would be the most beneficial.

One workshop I attended was titled ‘Women & Girl Power: Uniting to build healthy societies, and end and prevent violence against women and girls.’ The sponsor of this workshop was the Soroptimist International and World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts. I had the pleasure of speaking with Alice Wells who was the USA representative of the Soroptimist International. She is a strong supporter of opening vocational schools in poor communities in order to bridge the gap of knowledge between developing and developed nations and to rebuild the work force and market of these struggling economies. I believe that a prospective partnership can be created with this organization that would promote the aspirations of future Simply Help projects. To learn more about the Soroptimist International and their ongoing projects and programs, go to: www.soroptimistinternational.org .

Another good organization that Simply Help might be able to collaborate with is The Earth Charter Initiative, which operates internationally and has a link currently working in Honduras. Their mission is to promote the transition to sustainable ways of living and a global society founded on a shared ethical framework that includes respect and care for the community of life, ecological integrity, universal human rights, respect for diversity, economic justice, democracy, and a culture of peace. Education is fundamental to their mission and therefore they have created the Earth Charter Center for Education for Sustainable Development at the University for Peace in Costa Rica. For more information go to: www.earthcharterinaction.org/content/categories/Country/Honduras

The BPW International is a federation of business and professional women who collaborate with NGOs to network and lobby for the development of the business and leadership potential of all women on all levels through advocacy, mentoring, skill building and economic empowerment programs and projects around the world. They operate in 90+ countries and they can be contacted at: presidents.office@bpw-international.org.

The IWDA (the International women’s development agency) is an Australian not-for-profit organization that for 25 years has been creating positive change for women and their communities across Asia and the Pacific. Their projects directly address poverty and oppression in developing countries and are devised and managed by women who live and work in the communities. They recognize that deep and persistent discrimination, including deficient education and resources, limits the opportunities many women have to build a better future for themselves and their families. One statistic they provided was that for every year beyond fourth grade that women have attended school, their family benefit from increased wages by 20%, reduced child deaths by 10% and reducing family size by 20%. Being that they are located in Australia, they may be beneficial to the continuing development of the vocational schools Simply Help has established in Cambodia. They can be reached at: iwda@iwda.org.au.

Global Oneness Project is a unique media outlet that has worked with NGOs and could promote Simply Help through film and select broadcast to promote projects around the world. They have an inspiring collection of films I recommend checking out their work at www.globalonenessproject.org/about-project .

Other organizations that are worth looking into:
The Tzu Chi Foundation www.us.tzuchi.org
Save the Children www.savethechildren.org
The GAVI Alliance www.gavialliance.org
Anuvrat Global Organization www.anuvibha.in

SimplyHelp's Succesful Seminar at the United Nations

• SimplyHelp has returned from a very successful trip to United Nations’ DPI Conference in Melbourne, Australia.

The topic of the conference was ‘Advance Global Health; Achieve the Millennium Development Goals’. SimplyHelp hosted a workshop about Improving Global Health through Educating Mothers and Grandmothers, which was very well attended.

 

This year five bright SimplyHelp Ambassadors joined us to the conference. Julie Russell, Whitney Clearwater, Patrick Wang, Theresa Tsao and Annie Hsu.

All ambassadors are graduate and undergraduate students majoring in Public Health, at various Universities from all over the country.

• Whitney Clearwater: “The opportunity to be an ambassador for SimplyHelp at the 63^rd Annual UN DPI/NGO Conference in Melbourne was a once in a lifetime opportunity for a public health graduate student. I was not only exposed to experts on the ground working with unique populations for the purpose of global health but also witnessed the practical collaboration between NGOs in achieving the MDGs. I am better prepared for my future in global health by participating in this conference and learning from the stories of fieldwork and insights by officials. SimplyHelp is adding to the wealth of caring organizations dedicated to serving the disadvantaged. I am humbled by their ability to achieve so much with limited staff and resources.”
• Make sure to visit our blog to read about Theresa and Whitney’s experience at the conference. www.simplyhelp.org, click Blog.

 

• The Warehouse will be closed this Sunday, September 19^th.

 

Joy and happiness,

Lotte

lotte@simplyhelp.org

www.simplyhelp.org