Family Matters Greetings from the CEO, Tina Pagotto
It’s hard to believe that two months have already passed since I assumed the honor of serving as Bethesda Project’s new Chief Executive Officer. I’ve been touched by the show of support and congratulations shared by our residents, staff, volunteers, donors, and partners. Thank you all for your encouragement and a warm family welcome! At the end of June, I hosted our Employee of the Month luncheon, which is an opportunity to thank select staff who are recognized by their supervisors for outstanding implementation of our core values. These lunches also serve as a chance for me to hear directly from our all-star staff about their motivation for and commitment to this work. This time, the conversation highlighted the care and love that go into making meals at Our Brothers’ Place shelter and at our Safe Haven, and the acknowledged importance of helping residents monitor their medications and blood sugar levels at our residential sites. I was moved by this conversation - these honored employees of the month described actions that characterize the essence of family, our mission in action. There are countless small acts of kindness and compassionate care that happen daily at Bethesda Project – sometimes these acts are by all-star staff members, sometimes by our volunteers, and sometimes by our guests and residents. Together, we make each other stronger, better, and whole. Thank you for being a part of this critical work, at a time when our community is aching for reminders that we are more alike than we are different.
Mann Center 40th Anniversary Performance Volunteers and residents from five Bethesda Project sites attended the 40th Anniversary performance at the Mann Center on June 21st. Longtime volunteers Michele Howard and Barb Tierno, as well as newer volunteers such as Brian Mele and Addison Davis, and Senior Case Manager, Katrina, spent a beautiful evening under the stars with our guests and residents, complete with a fireworks finale. Volunteers had a great time laughing and exchanging stories with the Bethesda residents. Volunteering is a family friendly activity! After the event, Bainbridge Case Manager, Shana, reported that the men of Bainbridge had such a wonderful and impactful time, and that they were raving about it all week. One of the men even took himself on a return visit to the Mann later that week for a full-length Tchaikovsky symphony, again complete with fireworks. Thank you to all our volunteers and the Mann for enriching the lives of our guests and residents, and increasing their curiosity and courage to explore Philadelphia. That work is truly the heart of our mission.
Generosity 5K Run/Walk For the second year in a row, Bethesda Project is participating in the Generosity 5K, a multi-charity run/walk in which participants fundraise for the charity with which they register. Last year we raised over $12,000 and had over 20 participants. Will you help us beat that this year? Join us at the Philadelphia Museum of Art on October 30th for a 5K run/walk through Fairmount Park! Here are the details:
The event takes place on Sunday, October 30th The race starts and finishes at the Philadelphia Museum of Art This event is part of the Generosity Series and will include other local non-profit organizations as well (let’s show them our spirit!) Registration is $20 per person and each participant commits to raising a minimum of $200 (don’t worry, we’re here to support you with tools and resources) Every dollar you raise directly benefits Bethesda Project This is a great opportunity to get your friends and family together to support a cause you care about This is a walker friendly 5K
From now until July 31 use code SUMMER for $5 off Registration! Click here to register.
Donor Spotlight: Domenic Fund Donors Thank you to all of our donors who made a gift to The Domenic Fund at the end of June. Collectively, we raised over $20,000 for the fund, which brings the grand total to over $80,000! These donations will help establish a working cash reserve that can be used as needs dictate, giving us the flexibility to respond to changing needs, while maintaining our ongoing core programming. What this means is that The Domenic Fund directly helps stabilize the lives of single adults who are experiencing homelessness.
My Brother’s House Hanging Garden A resident, Jordan, at My Brother’s House (MBH) approached Director of Entry Level Programs, Misty, about creating a nonintrusive garden on the back porch for everyone to enjoy. He showed her his designs, which she took to Community Life Program Coordinator, Hannah, to see if there were volunteers that could help bring the designs to life. Hannah connected Misty and Jordan with Tom and Sarah. After meeting and talking about the project, it took Tom and Sarah two weekends to put it all together. Now, two vertical planters hang in the porch at MBH. Jordan calls it the CommonUnity Garden, a garden to bring the community together. Among what is growing are two different types of tomatoes, different watermelons, two different types of cucumbers, various peppers, basil, different types of mint (including chocolate mint), and copious amounts of other vegetation. Jordan even created an irrigation system to make sure the vertical gardens remain constantly watered, even when he’s gone. He has high hopes for the CommonUnity Garden, hoping to grow enough food to share with everyone at MBH. He would love to see his idea spread to the other Bethesda Project locations in the near future. “You could teach people how to do this. It could teach them trades, give them an interest in something, and also to watch something grow from nothing into something is just amazing,” Jordan said about vertical CommonUnity Gardens at different sites. The garden has helped bring the resident of MBH together, with other residents helping care for their new garden as well.
New Floors at North Broad Bethesda North Broad is enjoying the beautiful new flooring installed in the 3rd and 4th floor community lounge and kitchen spaces. This new flooring is durable and improves the overall look and feel of these highly utilized spaces. This critical project was completed thanks to a generous gift of an anonymous donor.
Volgistics System Provides Big Picture of Volunteering at Bethesda Project The Community Life Department launched a brand new digital volunteer tracking system in 2015. Now that we are a year into using the system, we were able to compile powerful reports that provide a baseline of info about our volunteer program and its impact. All new Bethesda Project volunteers now attend a uniform volunteer orientation, where they are trained on how to use the digital system that enables us to create accurate and powerful reporting. Below is a sneak peek at some exciting numbers that were pulled from the end of year reporting on volunteer impact:
Over 1,500 unduplicated volunteers visited Bethesda Project in the last year
Across our entire volunteer network, 470 people volunteer 1-3 hours/month on average, which is approximately 1 or 2 visits per month
Average age of a Bethesda Project volunteer is 35
56% of individual volunteers (not associated with a larger group such as church ministry or corporate visits) are under 41 years of age
The Sock Project On June 26th sock toiletry kits were dropped off at My Brother’s House (MBH) and St. Mary’s Church shelter as part of “The Sock Project” at Caley Road Elementary School. Third and fourth grade students collected toiletries and bundled them into socks, complete with personal notes of care and encouragement, for the men of MBH and St Mary’s. The kits were then picked up by dedicated volunteers and distributed to the men. Thank you to teachers Janelle Johnson and Kathleen Kibler and the students of Caley Road Elementary School for this great donation, the men were thrilled! For more information on how you can donate to Bethesda Project click here.
Employees of the Month Congratulations to our June Employees of the Month! Thank you for living our mission and being family to our residents and guests. From left to right: Michael, Rosa, Lawrence Not pictured: Tyrine
Seeking Auction Committee Members Bethesda Project is currently seeking members for our Auction & Party Committee! Members will help solicit silent and live auction gifts, as well as sponsorships for the 2017 Auction & Party, scheduled for the spring. If you can help, please contact Lisa at lcolasanti@bethesdaproject.org or 215-985-1600 ext. 208.
Bethesda Project in the News Did you catch Bethesda Project in the news recently? Not only was our new CEO announcement featured in the Philadelphia Tribune (found here), but Generocity also did a feature article on Tina as well! You can find the Generocity article here.
About Bethesda Project
1630 South Street Philadelphia, PA 19146 Phone: 215-985-1600 Fax: 215-732-8214 Email: info@bethesdaproject.org www.bethesdaproject.org
Facebook.com/BethesdaProject
Since its inception in 1979, Bethesda Project has created caring communities for homeless and formerly homeless adults in Philadelphia. Bethesda Project is focused on reaching out to those who are not only homeless, but severely isolated from society, typically stemming from untreated chronic mental illness, medical conditions and addiction. Many of these men and women come to Bethesda Project after years of living on the streets, and are extremely reluctant to stay in any type of shelter. Supporting these vulnerable men and women requires long-term relationship building to address the underlying health and personal issues causing homelessness. What makes Bethesda Project unique is the dedication of the staff to treat these individuals as family and work through challenges to ensure that these men and women have a place to call home.
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