Hello there. This is Daniel from Springwire with an announcement about Memorial Day closures, the Hunger Hotline number, and using food stamps to buy plants and seeds. You can press 3 to delete now or 2 to save this message and listen to it later.

Monday, May 27^th, is Memorial Day. It is a federal holiday so many organizations and government agencies may be closed that day. If you have places you usually go on Mondays, you should check with them to make sure they’ll be open. Memorial Day is a day of remembering the men and women who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. You may wish to take a moment that day to remember their sacrifice to our country.

If you have questions about food programs, need help finding a food pantry, or are looking for information about the summer lunch program for kids in your area, you can call the National Hunger Hotline at 1.866.348.6479. The Hunger Hotline is staffed M-F from 9a.m.-6p.m. Eastern Time who speak both English and Spanish. Again, that number is 1.866.348.6479.

A couple of months ago I told you that you could use food stamps at the Farmer’s Markets, but did you know that any retailer or Farmer’s Market that is approved to accept food stamps can also sell you plants and seeds? If you have a place to put in a few plants, growing your own food can be a cost-effective way to keep food coming in, even when your food stamps run out at the end of the month. Food stamps will not pay for soil or containers for your plants, but you could get a plant that has a larger container with more soil in it. 

In many farmers’ markets across the county, master gardeners can answer questions about plants and sometimes they do free workshops on gardening. You may also live in a city that participates in a community garden program which would enable you to get a small plot of soil to plant your seeds or vegetable plants.  If you have access to a computer you can check to see if there is a community garden in your area by using this interactive map found at tinyurl.com/citygardens. This is the perfect time in most of our country to plant some veggies!

Take good care!

Hello there. This is Daniel from Springwire with some low cost tips for taking care of pets. You can press 3 to delete now or 2 to save this message and listen to it later.

Since May is National Pet Month, I thought it would be useful to provide you with some pet tips.  For many of us our pets are part of our family, but sometimes they can be expensive because of pests and health care costs.

One way to reduce the price tag of costly pet healthcare is to get them spayed or neutered. There are clinics across the US that will provide free or low-cost spay and neuter to people that qualify. To see if one is near you call this toll free number 1-800-248-7729.

Veterinarians can be expensive. If your pet is in need of a vet, try seeing if there is a veterinary school in your area. They often can provide low-cost or free medical care for your pet.

If you have access to a computer visit this link www.tinyurl.com/dogandcathelp. This goes to the Humane Society of the United States website and they provide a list of organizations that provide low-cost care to pets.

If your dog or cat has a pest problem, like fleas or ticks, there are some low cost home remedies that may assist with the problem. One option for fleas is to dilute some apple cider vinegar with water on a rag and rub it all over your pet’s body. The fleas do not appreciate the acidity of the vinegar or the smell.  You can also put a little vinegar in their drinking water if they don’t appreciate it being rubbed on them. Another option is to feed them a piece of garlic once or twice a week or rub them down with DAWN dish soap and wash them off with water; the soap will suffocate the bugs.

What kind of pet do you have? What is his or her name? Press 4 now and share some fun pet stories with me.

Take care out there.

If you like that, then “Like” us on Facebook. Share the video and ask your friends this question: “What would you keep if you had to carry all your documents on your back everywhere you went?”
 
Stay tuned for Day 3 of the Springwire GiveBIG Film Festival coming to you TOMORROW, May 14.
 
Thanks for supporting Springwire!

Hello there. This is Daniel from Springwire and today I have some fun facts about Mother’s Day, which is this Sunday, May 12th. You can press 3 to delete now or 2 to save this message and listen to it later.

Did you know that celebration of motherhood goes all the way back to the era of the Greeks and the Romans? The Greeks would have a festival every spring to celebrate the maternal goddesses. In 1914, President Woodrow Wilson signed a Joint Resolution designating the second Sunday in May as Mother’s Day in America. Today, Mother’s Day is celebrated in over 70 countries!

Here are a couple of fun facts about kids and motherhood. In the 1700s the average number of kids per mother was 7-10; today it is 2 kids. The largest number of children born to one woman was 69, over 40 years. That’s a lot of twins and triplets! The oldest mother to give birth, was 63 years old and the heaviest newborn was 22 pounds and 8 oz, both from Italy.

Nowadays Mother’s Day is a holiday to celebrate all the traditional and non-traditional moms in our lives, which can include more than one mother, aunts, stepmothers, grandmothers, godmothers, in-laws, or close friends.  This Sunday, May 12^th, you may want to take a moment to say thanks to the “mom-figures” in your life and I want to say Happy Mother’s Day to all of you maternal people out there.

I wanted to leave you with one final fact. Did you know that 4.3 babies are born each second? That means around 335 babies were born while you were listening to this message! Take good care.

The Seattle Foundation’s GiveBIG campaign is coming up on May 15. Support Springwire as part of this one-day, online charitable giving event inspiring people to give generously to nonprofit organizations. Your donations to Springwire will help expand a community’s capacity to care!

It’s time to start getting in the mindset. Grab some popcorn and a giant frosty drink. Maybe some Junior Mints. Settle back, and watch this amazing 2 minute video featuring Springwire Board President Lauren McGowan whose job is to end homelessness.

If you like that, then “Like” us on Facebook. Share the video and ask your friends this question: “What would you do if you had no way to be reached?”
 
Stay tuned for Day 2 of the Springwire GiveBIG Film Festival coming to you on May 13.

Thanks for supporting Springwire this GiveBIG season!

Today marks the start of my 5th week as Springwire’s Interim Executive Director, having taken the reins from Jenn Brandon in early April. Since last you heard from me/us, Jenn has made her pilgrimage to Hawaii and I have done my best to get up to speed quickly, get to know staff, board and program teams and learn as much as I can about our partners across the US and in Vancouver.

Our 2012 outcomes have been tallied and it’s been insightful for all of us at Springwire to know more about the impact we are all making, together. Not only was our response rate higher than ever (23%), 83% of our clients reported achieving one or more of their goals, up from 68% in 2011. In fact, this is the highest overall success rate in our organization’s history.

Our story is about more than just numbers, but this double digit leap is big. We believe the difference is the content – the jobs, housing, health care and safety information being transmitted over the communication channels directly and proactively to our clients – via email, blogs, Community Voice Mail. This extraordinary difference is why we at Springwire are so focused on helping our partners around North America use Resource Broadcasting, and why we view the personal touch of a “safe, consistent, friendly” voice connecting individuals as invaluable.

Springwire is currently conducting a national client survey about Resource Broadcasting  – via voice mail and email. The early responses are rather astounding. The first 103 respondents report sharing information received via Resource Broadcasting with a total of more than 1600 other people. Clearly, information is currency. Clearly, it inspires people to take action. It empowers.

My job over the next six months will be to help to drive our business, product and strategy planning, and to help Springwire’s Board of Directors find its next great leader. I know that person will have a mind for innovation and technology, and a passion for how communications technology can accelerate our efforts to end homelessness. We expect to kick off the search process later this summer with a clear picture in mind of our future leader.

Please feel free to contact me any time at christinem@springwire.us. I would love to hear from you whether you are a supporter, an agency leader, or an interested observer.

I will continue to keep you updated here. Thanks for your warm welcome to Springwire, and commitment and support for our mission.

Warmly,
Christine Martin
Interim Executive Director

Hello there. This is Daniel from Springwire and today I have some information about Mental Health. You can press 3 to delete now or 2 to save this message and listen to it later.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, a time when advocates from across the county draw attention to the mental health issues that affect as many as one in four Americans. Regrettably because of the stigma of mental illness many people are too embarrassed to seek the help that they need. As a result, more people live with severe depression or anxiety, and some even choose to take their own lives.

Mental health is a key ingredient to your overall health and well-being. I wanted to let you know that there is help out there for those who need it. The National Alliance on Mental Health is a great place to turn for information and resources. Their Information Helpline is 1-800-950-6264.

If you are thinking of committing suicide please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

I wanted to end with a little quote from Helen Keller, someone who fought through many obstacles in life: “Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadow. It’s what sunflowers do.”

We are specifically looking for a few key skills and backgrounds to help expand our board capacity and support to the organization:

• Experience in technology or telecommunications and an interest in using these tools in the social sector
• CFO, public accounting, finance or other fiscal management background
• Nonprofit governance background – experience on other boards
• Legal background, ideally working with business issues
• Marketing, social media and public relations background
• Fundraising and strategic funding experience in nonprofit setting

Please review the board job description if this sparks an interest or if you have recommendations for individuals who might be interested in this opportunity. Inquiries can be made to either our Board President or to our Interim Executive Director.

Hello there. This is Daniel from Springwire and today I have some information about volunteering. You can press 3 to delete now or 2 to save this message and listen to it later.

This week is National Volunteer Week and I wanted to highlight three great reasons for volunteering in your community. First, did you know that volunteering helps to reduce stress because focusing on others actually helps your body? Second, for you job seekers, volunteering can help you gain professional experience, which can help to boost your resume. And third, and perhaps most important–you have the ability to make a real difference in your community, because everyone’s time is valuable and everyone has something to offer. There are many great organizations out there that support a large volunteer force, especially nonprofits that have fewer paid resources. Check out your local food kitchens/food banks, churches, parks, senior centers, and libraries for volunteer opportunities. You can even volunteer for special events such as during the tax season at VITA sites. Just remember that there is something for everyone when it comes to volunteering. Thank you for your time and take good care.

Hello there. This is Daniel from Springwire. Today I thought it could be useful to provide some first aid tips. You can press 3 to delete now or 2 to save this message and listen to it later.

You may not always have access to a first aid kit in an emergency so here are some suggestions for everyday items you can use in certain situations.

If someone gets burned, but cold water isn’t available, use any cold liquid including juice, beer, and milk, until you have access to cold running water. The aim is to cool the area as quickly as possible and for it to be effective you should keep it covered with the liquid for at least 10 minutes.  To protect the burn from infection use plastic wrap, but if that isn’t available you can use a sandwich/freezer bag or a clean plastic bag. Plastic bags won’t stick to the burn and they create a barrier to stop infection.

For broken bones, use items such as clothing, blankets, or simply hold the injured part close to the body in order to support it until you can get medical care.

If someone is bleeding heavily, but you don’t have medical pads, you can apply pressure to the wound using a t-shirt, towel, or even your hand. By applying pressure you can stop or slow down the flow of blood.

For a head injury, you can use a bag of frozen vegetables if there’s no ice. Frozen peas work great because they are already in a bag and are pliable enough to set on your head.

The final tip today is for a diabetic emergency. You can use orange juice, packets of sugar, chocolate, or any regular fizzy drink (not diet drinks) to help bring a person’s sugar level up.

I hope that you never have to deal with an emergency situation, but if you do, hopefully some of these tips could come in handy until folks can get to a doctor.  Take good care out there.