Day 281: Bottle Redemption for the Lion's Club

Well it's New Years Eve day, and it's been a full week of entertaining and social festivities that have left a  lot of empty beer bottles in the Cutler household!  We know that our friends at the Sherborn Transfer Station, who support eye disease research through The Lion's Club, are eager to receive these redeemable bottles. So today we donated the motherload of bottle returns to support a most deserving cause.  Happy New Year to all and may the gift of sight be within reach to all in 2012.

Day 280: Glow Golf Gift

For Christmas, Mom and Dad gave us 3 girls tickets to a free round of Glow Golf at the Natick Mall, a recently built indoor mini-golf course (that is indeed, all glow-in-the-dark). They generously gave us 4 tickets, with the intention that Sophia could bring a friend as the 4th person, but as it turned out only us three were able to go. So, we decided to give the 4th ticket to the person at the front desk, and told him that he could give it to the next family as a surprise gift...just playing it forward to whoever happened to come in behind us! The cashier tried to give us a free admission ticket in return, but we insisted that he keep it. Soon into the golfing however we realized that it was not all it was cracked up to be- all 18 holes were crowded into one room and Sophia was the oldest child in the room by a good 7 years at least. As it was, decided to leave Glow Golf after about five holes. On the way out we decided to all give a go on the last hole, and Sophia got a hole in one, meaning she got a prize! How ironic that the prize was one free admission ticket! Knowing that we wouldn't be coming back anytime soon, we ran into the Build-A-Bear store across the street and gave our free ticket to a little boy and his mom. So technically we gave away 2 free admissions! Hopefully we made a couple families happy in the "random act of kindness."

Day 279: Helping Katrina Victims

Heard from a little bird a few days ago, that Olivia was going to Louisiana on Spring Break with a group from her college (Loyola) to help the unfortunate there still suffering from the effects of Katrina. The group will be doing some fund raising as a whole, but each participant was responsible for raising $50.00 on their own. We were happy to write a small check to Olivia to help her out in this worthy cause.

Day 278: Recycling Clothing

With the holidays past and all the gifts opened, this family of five is delighting in the many new additions to our wardrobes. The new items have inspired us to once again go through our closets and drawers to see what  no longer fits or, honestly, is no longer flattering......and of course, there is plenty!  All "chosen' items are in terrific shape and went right to the local clothing collection bin to be distributed to those less fortunate than the incredibly fortunate Cutlers!

Day 277: In2Books Epal Message

Today I wrote a letter back to my epal, who was assigned to me through the online In2Books mentoring program. His class is on the social studies unit so I went to the library to get a copy of the King Tut book that my epal requested. After reading it, I wrote a response that I planned to send to his teacher. Unfortunately after 45 minutes of composing his letter, the computer lost all of my work so now I need to re-think and re-write everything that was in my original letter (and before midnight!) Although I never got a response from him after my letter for the fiction unit, I hope he still reads my comments and questions about the book as he forms his own opinions and becomes a more engaged reader. Even though this re-work isn't going to be fun, I am sure that he will be grateful for my response since he may not have the opportunity to talk about his book with a teacher or another classmate.

Day 276: Visiting a homebound Friend

Today, I was thinking of one of my Communion calls (Al)that had been in the hospital and then rehab a few days ago when I took Communion to the other 3 that I visit each month. Al is a very quiet soft spoken man and I was feeling badly that I had not made it to him for a Christmas visit. So, I called there around noon and got his son Tom (our paper boy of quite a few years back) and was pleasantly surprised that Al was back home and would love to receive Communion, so Dad came along with me as he and Al were active in Boy Scout leadership together in the 70's. Al and his wife Mary were very happy to see us and we all reminisced about Boy Scout days and grown up children. Dad saw their bird feeder that I had been telling him about for a few weeks now and we told them we received a bird house from the Pratson's and it is attached to the fence and now we can look out the kitchen window and see the birds----- when and if a family makes their home there. Yes a very enjoyable visit with Al and Mary it was and it was easy to observe that Al really appreciates Nana's visits with Communion and he and I have a lot in common -- just think, his Mother use to prepare a meal out of squirrel as mine did!!!! To ALL a pleasant and blessed New Year 2012.

Day 275: Blankets for Christmas Day, 2011

We all woke up to a beautiful but chilly morning to start our Christmas Day.  We are so grateful to be able to stay warm by lighting a fire in the wood stove, or even, God forbid, raise the thermostat if we dare!  As we were gathered to give thanks, open gifts and share memories, we remained painfully aware of how many cannot enjoy this most special of annual traditions. 
So, in keeping with the holiday spirit of trying to make today's blog entry one of Christmas cheer, we decided to use some of my MemoryWrap fleece to make blankets that we could donate to the local Salvation Army Drop in Center.  Sophia and Bianca cut the yards of fleece into appropriate blanket size, which came out to eight blankets.  Then we packed them into the van and all (without Olivia as unfortunately, she was working at CVS today; but fortuntely she was earning double time and a half!)  headed over to Framingham to make the delivery.  Daddy "made the drop" and we left them at the entrance of the building.  Merry Christmas to all, and to all, a warm night.

Day 274: Christmas Eve, 2011

December 24th is traditionally filled with giving hame baked goodies from the Rinck's and Cutler's.
At some point today, all 7 parties involved with this blog have baked and/or delivered holiday treats in an expression of thanks to dear friends in the community.  From Nana's hot fudge sauce for the convent, to Olivia's Hannukah cookies for her Jewish friends, to Bianca's coffee cake for her good friend's family, to Sophia's Christmas cookies for multiple neighborhood friends, to my coffee cake for the Mail Carrier......and so on.  And best of all.....we are so fortunate to have our Happy Kitchen Elfs, Daddy and Buppa,  to help set up and clean up during all the baking activity!
We also make it a tradition to attend a Christmas Eve Mass, and we were very happy to contribute to the special collection designated to support the retired priests in the archdiocese. We always think of our favorite priest, Fr. Henry Doherty, when this specific collection comes around.   It was a full church tonight; really a beautiful celebration of faith, family and friendship....... hopefully the collectve contribution will prove a generous contribution from St. Theresa's.

Day 273: Fundraising for Olivia's Trip!

This Spring Break, Olivia is planning on going to New Orleans with a group of Loyola students to help repair the damages of Hurricane Katrina. Sadly even almost seven years later, the devastation of the hurricane is still so widespread and there are many families still suffering. It is nice of the Loyola students to offer their week of spring break to community service. As the trip is expensive, each student going on the trip is required to do a little fundraising for themselves. I decided that I would pitch in to Olivia's fundraising goal today for the blog... every little bit counts! And I am more than happy to help support her philanthropic endeavor.

Day 272 -- Saint Jude's Bristol Lodge day

Today was the last Thursday of the month and (also the year) and it was St. Jude's turn to provide the meal. As luck would have it, my group had to cook meat loaf. We have to cook enough for 15 or so people, so that takes about 5 pounds of hamburg. Started around 11:00 and was all through mixing, etc by noon. It was a bit nostalgic for me as it was my last day to be "in charge." The new leader came here and went on the pickup route and then to the convent for the last stop where we suggested to some of the ladies to drop their cooking instead of as previously at Ruth's house. It all worked out well and Sandra will be great. Explained to the 2 men in charge there that we had a new leader as Ruth had passed away. They were both so sorry to hear this and welcomed Sandra aboard. We hung around a bit to show her the ropes and how some of our people stay and serve. She was happy to see how it all worked as she had always been on the pickup list, so it was all new to her. Ruth and I have been doing this together for 30 years, so it is a bit sad to close that chapter of my life. I will continue to cook each month, but not have to worry whether the other 25 remember to cook.

Day 271: Wrapping Presents

Hi all,

As I was in the mall today shopping for Christmas presents, I noticed a kiosk booth that wrapped presents for charity, with a suggested donation. The group benefitted cancer research and children in foster homes. After I bought my present, I decided to donate some money and get my gift all wrapped. They did a wonderful job, and I got to pick put my wrapping paper, bow color, and ribbons. There was actually a line at the booth, which was great and meant a lot of people were donating money! The wrappers were so friendly, and wished everyone a happy holiday. I would say it was a successful shopping trip overall!

Olivia

Day 270: Donating Old VHS Movies

Hello it is Sophia!

The Veterans Communty Service group at my school is collecting used movies (DVD or VHS) or any video gaming games or components (Playstation, Nintendo, Wii, X-box etc.). Today I brought in some of our old VHS movies which will be sent overseas to service members we have contact with.  The veterans don't have access to stuff we take for granted like movies, so I bet it is really nice to have new options for entertainment. The videos will be used in break rooms for soldiers to view on downtime. I hope our veteran friends take joy in seeing these movies!

Day 269: Christian Foundation

Paul here.
Time for our monthly donation to our sponsored child: Claudia Margarita Moreno Ibarra.  I love that name!  She is now 12 years old and recently sent us a letter wishing us a Merry Christmas.  It's hard to imagine how valuable our $20.00 per month could be, but since we have been sponsoring a child for 10-12 years (or more?) I guess it adds up.

http://www.hopeforafamily.org/

Day 268: Christmas Donations at Loyola

Hi everyone,

The semester is winding down, and the majority of the students have left to go home for break. Although I am leaving tomorrow, I needed hand soap so I walked over to the nearby campus marketplace. As I was checking out, I saw a basket to donate money to neighborhood Baltimore families who are less fortunate. I was happy to contribute, also since I knew this basket wasn't up long, and there weren't many students on campus anymore!

Happy holidays!

Day 267: An Easy Day to Give....

With Christmas just eight days away, you can see and hear the Salvation Army Bells ringing wherever you go.  It's wonderful to see how many volunteers will stand by the signature red kettles and jingle the bells to help raise money for the needy.  Really, if someone can stand out in the cold for hours and ring a bell, well it would seem that the least I can do is drop a little something in the kettle!!  Happy to oblige during my holiday errand runs today.     http://www.salvationarmy.org/

Day 266: Food Pantry at Gymanstics Express

Seems like the collection for food items is omni-present this season....

and  that's a really good thing as good food is essential to good health in

celebrating this season and every season.

Tonight, Sophia was able to bring can goods to her gym, where a Senior

Gymnast service project, a Food Drive for the local food pantry, was in

motion with the gymnasts.  Gymnastics Express is a terrific gymnastics
academy that truly recognizes the joy in giving back to the commmunity.

http://www.gymansticsexpress.com/

Day 265: Giving to the Food Pantry

For the season of Advent, we have been trying to give a food donation to the Food Pantry once a week, so today was our day to drop off 2 bags of various food items. The basket was empty so I was glad to be able to put somethings in it. Heard on the television that there are so many homeless and hungry out on the streets, in fact, they showed a man all wrapped up in a blanket, not wanting to get up and go into a place to eat--scary! I think that our Food Pantry takes care of families where the breadwinner is out of work--hopefully, temporarily. No matter what the reason, it gives one a wonderful feeling to know they are "feeding the hungry."

.

Day 264: Hotel Tour and Hotel Toiletry Donation!

Guess what? Today was my birthday! I took a bunch of my friends to the Intercontinental Hotel in Boston and we got a tour of the kitchens and Presidential Suite.  A fun coincidence is that today at school this morning, before my brithday party, I donated hotel sized toiletry items which were going to a homeless shelter in the area through a school group called  HELP Club. At the Intercontinental, we learned that the hotel is big on recycling their  linens, soaps, and toiletry items to those in need. They even recylcle the oil for cooking French fries!  The nice lady that led our tour was glad to hear that we are doing a little donation box at our school. She also said that the Intercontinental Hotel was the only hotel in Boston that received the Green Award for their recyling and environmental efforts. We had such a great time celebrating my 12th birthday in such a special way.

Day 263: Working Hard For Approval To Volunteer!

Who knew that it could be so time consuming to become a volunteer?  As I continue my efforts to become a volunteer at Asera Care Hospice Center in Wellesley, I was told that I need to go through drug testing and provide a urine specimen.  Man oh man!  But no problem...except that the lab they required me to go to today was 30 minutes away in Newton Center!  Which is crazy because there are so many medical buildings and hospitals right near my house in the Natick/Framingham area.   But such was the deal and off I went to find the lab.....which took me on a stroll down Memory Lane as the lab was located in the same medical building as the pediatrician who treated Bianca and Olivia for the many years  we lived in Watertown!
(Hey B & O, those fun, bright green lights/fish tank sort of display is still there once you get off the elevators!)  Turns out that the lab was almost directly across the hall from Dr. Benjamen's office, which tempted me to stop in and say hello, but alas, a busy schedule got the better of me and I chose to instead get home and start make the brownies Sophia wants to bring to gymnastics tonight to celebrate her last workout as an 11 year old!

Day 262: Holiday Book Buddy Party

A couple weeks ago a friend reached out to me and others to see if we would sign up to be a book buddy to a local elementary school child in Philadelphia. The organization that she is involved with holds a Holiday Book Party each year, where kids from all over the Philadelphia area get to sit and read a book with a buddy (us). I was assigned to the sweetest fifth grade girl. In her letter to me a couple days before the event, she mentioned her favorite book and what she likes to read. As the volunteer, I was required to buy her a book, wrap it, and give it to her at the event. Luckily the book was at the campus bookstore! I don't think she was expecting to get that particular book, because her eyes completely lit up when she opened the package and exclaimed how it was her favorite book ever. For the next hour we took turns reading to each other, and then finished the event with a coloring activity. It was a long commitment, but there were over 100 Penn students who volunteered to help. The kids were so adorable and it made the stress and confusion of the event worth it!

Day 261: Poinsettia Cheer for House-Bound Neighbors

St. Theresa's in Sherborn, like Nana's church in Waltham, is participating in a Giving Tree program to bring holiday gifts to the needy.  Ours is called a "Bethlehem Tree", and in addition to purchasing "wish list items' for an underprivileged member of the community, parishioners could also choose to purchase a poinsettia plant for a neighbor who is housebound during the season.  Today, Sophia and I brought our pretty little plant to church when we went to Mass.  I especially missed Bianca and Olivia at church today as Sophia and I were drafted to bring up the gifts and I would have happily passed the honor on to my lovely twins!!

Day 260: Children Helping Children

Hello it is Sophia!
At my gym, we do a little gift giving game probably many of you have heard of, "Secret Snowflake, Secret Santa, Majestic Manorah" whatever you want to call it. Today I went out to get a gift for my sporty friend Kayla. She likes Under-Armor and Nike, so mom and I went to Dick's Sporting Goods and got her a Nike t-shirt that I would very much want myself that says "Girls JUST DO IT Better" (A part of Nike's JUST DO IT motto).   So when we were checking out, the actual blog opportunity was giving my own dollar to St. Jude's Children's Hospital  Cancer Research. I love supporting this cause because if I found out I had cancer, as an almost 12 year old, I would hope that people were doing their best taking care of me.

Day 259: Seeking a Volunteer Position at AseraCare Hospice Center

AseraCare Hospice  (taken from their website)

AseraCare Hospice is one of the nation’s premiere providers of hospice and palliative care services. We treat each of our patient’s end-of-life journey with respect, kindness, compassion and support.
Our family-centered approach works to ensure that the needs and wishes of both our patients and their family members are met throughout the hospice experience. We provide a wide range of hospice care services that include physician, nursing, therapy, social work, counseling, personal and spiritual care.

Patricia here.  Today, I had the opportunity to apply for a volunteer postion at the Hospice Center described above. So much paperwork to fill out that it was rather overwhelming.  But basically, I "have the job" if my criminal record comes back clean!?!   I confessed to the gal interviewing me that I often threatened to shoplift when my twins were little, desperately hoping that I might be able to spend a night in jail and finally get a good night's sleep, but alas, I never followed through with the plan!  Thankfully, she will not hold this against me.

I have a few options with this new volunteer program; I can help with the administrative office needs, or I can work with the hospice chaplain and assist families of hospice patients.  Both require training seminars, which I am happy to attend in the new year when the next training session is scheduled.  It's all so intriguing....and worthwhile...and truly a wonderful way to give support and offer friendship to those who need it most.

I'm really looking forward to this next chapter of living and giving.....the journey continues.

http://www.aseracare.com/

Day 258: Gifts for the Giving Tree

This year when I was making my list of persons that we give to, I came to a standstill when my dear friend Ruths' name came to mind. We always exchanged gifts for many years and I decided this year to continue to give, but to give something in Ruth's memory. For some reason, (maybe the economy) there are many tags left in the baskets at our church, so I took 2 tags to do in her name. I was off and looking for a ladies hat and gloves and a little boys sweater. Found the sweater in no time, but the hat and gloves was a project. Went to several stores looking for a set, but not much luck. Lots of fancy hats and separate gloves, but keep in mind, these people are poor and homeless, so I was looking for something warm. Finally found a hat and gloves to match and that felt like they would keep somebody warm. So, today we took them to church to put under the tree. They also were collecting small sizes of personal items such as the shampoo, soap and hand lotion from motels. When we were on our trip South in October, I saved all the ones we did not use and today added our bag to the box. Again, it was a great feeling to know we helped and that if Ruth were here, she would have done the giving tree gifting.

Day 257: Colleges Against Cancer Speaker Panel

Today, I spent some time after class flyering on Locust Walk for a speaker panel event that the Colleges Against Cancer Committee held tonight. In about a half hour I handed out a lot of my flyers (more students responded to "free food" rather than "Cancer Speaker Panel.") However there was a pretty good turnout tonight and there was an active discussion about various cancer statistics and research studies. The guest speakers consisted of an oncology Nurse Practitioner, also a Penn grad, and the Health Outreach coordinator of the PA American Cancer Society. It was interesting to learn a lot about the local cancer studies happening all over campus. Off to study for 2 finals tomorrow!

Day 256: A Down and Up day this day

My original intent this day was to blog about a visit with a wonderful Friend Al who I had the pleasure of working with during our boys involvement in Boy Scouts. Yes many years ago, he as committee treasurer for Scout Troop 250 during my years as camping chairman and Scoutmaster. He was home recovering from a fall. Unfortunately, he was taken to the hospital last night and as I write, no word on his condition, but his Family appears to have gather around.
So, I said to myself, what can I do this day for my commitment to the Service Challenge 365 blog today. Thought a bit and then off to find a Salvation Army bucket to give a donation which I do once a year during the Christmas celebration times. I went to the local Shaw's store and not surprised for there wasn't one there this day and the day was off kilter a bit. So on ward to Stop and Shop. Oh yes, there was the volunteer ringing his bell and spreading good will. So up I pulled and put my donation in. Things picked up right away, for as I was leaving I met a Wife of another Friend that gave assistance to Cub Pack 250 when I was Cub master. A nice conversation we had about Spouses and Grandchildren.
I have had an interest in the Salvation Army for most of my adult life while recognizing the work of charity they do. I still remember going to their place of prayer and social work to donate some things that they might be able to process through their store for resale at a unbelievable low price to assist the needy. Quite interesting!!!! I really like their ratio of funds collected to funds distributed to help -- 83% to charity, outstanding compared to many of the United Nations ratio's!!!!! Well Folks, have a good LIFE and keep you chin up and smile on for life is beautiful even though challenging at times -- Buppa

Day 255: Hope Lodge

Bianca here. Tonight, I went with a couple Relay for Life Chairs to the Philadelphia Hope Lodge, about 40 minutes outside the city. The Hope Lodge is a place where cancer patients and their caregiver can stay while they are going through treatment. Like a hotel, each patient has their own furnished bedroom, meals, a fitness center, cozy lounge rooms, a meditation room, etc. It is really a beautiful place meant to both inspire its inhabitants and also provide a warm, welcoming environment. There are 37 rooms in this particular lodge, though there are 31 Hope Lodges across the US.

Tonight, the UPenn Relay Committee cooked for all of the patients in the lodge. Lots of us made pasta dishes. A couple of our Chairs who had a little more time actually made lasagna, stuffed peppers, chicken, and a macaroni and cheese casserole! I ended up making a trip to the open 24/7 grocery store down the street around midnight last night and got some frozen meatballs and sauce. Not nearly as good as Dad's or Nana's, but I figured it would complement the three trays of pasta we had. Unfortunately my camera died so I only got this one photo.

We ate dinner with the patients and it was nice chatting with them. All of them are so strong and I cannot even imagine what it must be like to be going through such a scary, draining, and emotional experience. We were all glad we were able to put smiles on their faces. We wish them all the best of luck and hope to volunteer there again soon.

http://www.cancer.org/Treatment/SupportProgramsServices/HopeLodge/index

Day 254: Supporting UPenn and Penn State!!!

We are just back from a fun weekend with our granddaughter, Bianca, at her college of choice--University of Pennsylvania (U Penn, for short!)It was quite a ride down. I was the co-pilot with Map Quest directions held tightly in my hands. We knew Bianca was working til 5:30 on Friday and her games were at 8:00 and 10:00, so we decided to take a "dry run" to the building where the games were to take place. We found it easier than we thought, so called and left her a message that we were there. It was quite a challenge to find a spot to park and learn the ropes on getting a "card" from the "kiosk" to put in the car window. By Friday night, we had that procedure and finding the garage "down pat." Grabbed a burger and then Buppa stood by the car while I went down two streets to mail a box to Olivia. (Couldn't do for one twin without the other!) Small P.O. with 15 people ahead of me. Quite a process! Finally met up with Bianca and she invited us to see her dorm. She is on the 15th floor and has a great view of the city. Met her roomies ---Carolyn, Jessie and Ashley--all lovely, friendly girls. Went to the pool and only attended the first game which they lost to Penn State. Beautiful pool and quite a game to watch---feet cannot touch the bottom of the pool during game!! Next game was too late for us "seniors", so we left and found our way back to motel. Plans were made to meet at 12:45 on Saturday for lunch. We toured and saw the Liberty bell and the Betsy Ross House among other things and met on time. Lunch was fun and then off for a walking tour of campus---very interesting. Left Bianca and met her later at the pool Her wonderful roommates were there to support her. Team is having a rebuilding year--they lost both games! So we parted ways--see you at Christmas. Today, we decided to go out for breakfast at a diner across from the motel and after spending 2 days at and with U. Penn folks, there was a girl from "Penn State" canning for THON. Collector asked if we had heard about THON and proceeded to explain and the gist of it all was they were collecting for children with pediatric cancer. While I was getting out some money for her basket, Buppa explained we had spent the weekend with our granddaughter at U.Penn, but even though unknown to us that the two colleges were rivals, we were happy to contribute to such a worthy cause.

Day 253: A Memory Pillow for Kathleen

Another one of my dear friends, Kathleen, has recently lost her mother. 
Kathleen and I go way back...she was one of my college roommates at BC, and she was in my wedding.  Thankfully, we have managed to stay close over three decades! 
A few weeks ago, Kathleen ordered a MemoryWrap to be made out of her mother's favorite sweatshirts, which I was happy to design as I had the privilege and pleasure of knowing her mother, Kay.  In the true spirit of kindness and generousity that has always been Kathleen's nature, she plans to ship this quilt to her brother and sister-in-law in Hawaii as a Christmas present.  She is very excited about sending this special surprise.
What Kathleen doesn't know is that when she comes to pick up the quilt, she will be receiving her own  gift from me....a keepsake memory Pillow made from her mother's clothing.  I know how close she was with her mother, and I feel blessed that I can use my skill as a seamstress to be able to support the people I love.

Day 252: Coats for Kids

Once again, happy to redeem the UPC codes on my favorite coffee creamer to support Coats for Kids, and Toys For Tots.  Actually, it's a bit embarassing that I drink so much of the stuff!  But certainly...Bravo to White Wave Foods who make/distribute International Delight.  You're on the right track; a role model for how business can give back. 

WhiteWave Foods Gives Back

Share Your Delight is brought to you by WhiteWave Foods Company, based in Broomfield, Colorado. At WhiteWave, we’ve always believed that drawing a connection between what we value and how we do business is essential to our success. That’s why we’re proud to partner with organizations that help make the world a better place. By choosing specially marked bottles of our brands, you’ve chosen to Share Your Delight with kids this holiday season. Thank you.

Day 251: Parish Christmas Giving Tree

As in most every church at this time of year, there is a "Giving Tree." We at St. Jude's have one also. The tags were in colorful baskets at the entrances and all were asked to participate and take 1 or 2 tags, buy the specified gift or gifts, and return the wrapped gift WITH the tag on it by December 11th. We had little boy gifts to get---hat and mittens for a 2 year old and pants for another 2 year old . It was fun looking at clothes for little ones as we don't have many little ones left in our family. I was happy to place our 2 gifts in their Gingerbread wrapping paper under the tree.