Fundraising From The Heart

Supporting programs that support our youth.

BY RESIDENT AND PUBLICATION MANAGER BILLIE ROSE THIS FEATURE SPONSORED BY LUX DENTAL CENTER

There are so many opportunities in our world to support charities and several right here in our own community. One we would like to highlight is The Ryan Bartel Foundation! The organization helps our teens get through the rough times in their lives so they don’t get so overwhelmed or hopeless that they want to give up. Kinga Ulery is a Willowsford resident who lives in the Greens with her husband and 3 kids, ages 16, 14, and 12. She has been volunteering with the Ryan Bartel Foundation for 9 months. The statistics compelled her to get involved.

“It’s really shocking how prevalent suicide is and what a young age it is impacting right here in our community,” she said.

Kinga and a group of colleagues decided to create a kickball tournament at her company to help fundraise for the charity. “We organized a large corporate kickball tournament during our month of service that promoted the foundation as well as brought the teams together to build awareness and camaraderie, and celebrated our successes with our partners and the team…”it was the perfect mix!” she explained. “We had over 130 attendees who donated more than $35,000 to support the upstream youth suicide prevention programs that The Ryan Bartel Foundation provides to teens and families throughout Loudoun County,” she said.

The event didn’t just pay off in dollars. When asked about the benefit she gets from volunteering with The Ryan Bartel Foundation, she replied, “it’s the fulfillment that I’m advocating for an amazing cause to raise awareness of teen suicide prevention and support the youth in our community.” The team was so excited to have made such an impact and the winning kickballers were able to present the check to the foundation!

If neighbors would like to get involved, she said that residents can “help spread the word about the Ryan Bartel Foundation’s monthly upstream youth suicide prevention programs, volunteer for events, and donate to provide financial assistance. Take a look at the weekly Loudoun County Schools Announcements that share the details of the FORTitude workshop for example and get involved.” She added, “Our kids and families have so much to deal with, let’s spread love and kindness so everyone feels welcome in this big world!

The Ryan Bartel Foundation provides upstream youth suicide prevention programs for all young people to help them build resilience to get through the challenges teens face. For more information please visit: www.ryanbartelfoundation.org