Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum, Inc.

Have you been waiting for the right time to participate? That time is NOW!

2012-01-20T12:15:00.000-08:00

It's So Easy to Make a Difference in an Infant's Life

Very precious cargo needs protection!

Infant patients cannot be released from the UVA Medical Center without an infant car seat. It's the law. There has been no designated program for this indigent need; however, many families simply cannot afford this absolute requirement of a safety restraint system or a minimum amount of clothing when it's time to take their babies home. IHS is seeking to meet this "unmet" need.

What is the IHS objective?

When Teresa Bevins, BSW, in the UVA Children's Hospital asked for our increased involvement last November, we asked how many infant car restraint systems (car seats) would be needed in the course of one year. She immediately came back from speaking with all pediatric clinics, and the emergency room that about thirty (30) infant car seats was their best guess for 2012.

Previously, professional staff members had scrambled to quickly pool their pocket money to purchase an individual infant car seat and some infant clothing. IHS was involved throughout 2011 with collection of new and "like new" infant clothing for children 3 - 24 months, thanks to three main donors, namely Drs. Robin and Lee Kubersky of Philadelphia, PA; Tina Schweikart of Louisa, VA; and Dawn Cleveland of Ivy, VA. Collectively several thousand dollars of clothing reached IHS to assist the effort. Car seats are another matter; they must be new!

IHS promised to initiate fund-raising for this objective quickly in 2012

A dedicated "baby account" was established earlier this month. Two donors in the Charlottesville area, namely the Marjorie Adam Real Estate Team and Katie Forman of StellarOne Bank, immediately secured the account for the purchase of two(2) high quality infant car seats. Keith Rosenfeld of Hot Cakes Restaurant in Charlottesville originated and printed 500 multi-color informational cards to stimulate interest. So - we are off and requesting your participation. The promotion has started and we have secured and delivered the first two(2) infant seats as of January 13th. One seat has already left the hospital with a secure baby on board the family car. It's never too early to initiate a worthy objective.

What if ... What if ... each reader of this e-mail set out as their objective to ask their office, their business, their church class, their club, their school class, their fraternity, their sorority, even those in their family to pool their change for just $35.00 ... THAT WILL BUY ONE INFANT CAR SEAT. Just $35.00 this year is all it takes!

First ... Let's secure their trip home!

These quality infant car seats generally sell from $50-$60 each; however, Tammy Lee, Customer Service Manager at the Gordonsville's Walmart Super Center, volunteered the reduced price of $35.00, immediately upon learning of the charity's objective and if bought by IHS. Believe me, this is the best price available and we appreciate the discount.

Those supporters already contributing to the general IHS fund for lodging and emergency prescriptions are doing their part. Those numerous Scout Troops, Sunday school classes and school classes who are assembling meals throughout the year are securing the IHS food program. BUT ... for those who have not been involved in this valuable effort, please consider that it only takes $35.00 for one infant car seat in 2012. Also, any used or new infant clothes can be boxed for local pickup or sent by mail or UPS to make this objective so easy to handle. Don't you think so?

Now it's time to secure this minimum need and prevent delay in discharge of these patients.

Our post office address for mail and postal boxes is:

IHS

P.O. Box 163

Palmyra, VA 22963

For UPS or Federal Express boxes, send to

Rev. T. Wade Clegg

c/o #37 Brougham Road

Lake Monticello, VA 22963

For local Albemarle and Fluvanna County pickup, e-mail us at info@interfaithhumanitariansanctum.org. We'll work out a time for meeting. OK?

Sincerely ... T. Wade

First Grant could not be more timely!

2011-12-22T15:17:00.000-08:00

On December 14th the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation (CACF) announced $337,300 in grants to 43 local nonprofits through the Bama Works Fund of Dave Matthews Band in CACF. One of those 43 grateful recipients is Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum (IHS).

The Dave Matthews Band

IHS received a letter on December 13th from John Redick, President of CACF, with a check for $10,000.00 to be used for assistance with programs providing food for patients and families at the University of Virginia (UVA) hospital.

In his press release Mr. Redick had these comments: "The Dave Matthews Band's continued generosity to the people of this community is remarkable. Through the Bama Works Fund in CACF, established in 1998, the Band touched and improved the lives of many in our local area. The Community Foundation is deeply grateful for their support and for the good work of the deserving organizations which will benefit from the gifts being announced today."

For those not familiar with the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation, CACF is a permanent endowment dedicated to improving the quality of life in Charlottesville and the surrounding counties of Albemarle, Greene, Orange, Louisa, Fluvanna, Buckingham, and Nelson. Since its inception in 1967, the CACF has provided over $43 million in grants.

For a complete list of the happily surprised 43 charities, please access the CACF website at www.cacfonline.org.

What the Grant means for the IHS Food Program

This grant will support the IHS full-day Meal Packet Program for the Social Office workers within the main Hospital, and for the first time, allow for a consistent monthly food delivery for the UVA Hospitality House (HH). It is anticipated that the grant will assist with about 60% of our food purchases for both food projects for 2012.

The full-day Meal Packet Program, under the guidance of Margaret Gorman, is based on community assembly sessions by church classes, scout troops, schools and even neighborhood work parties. The cumulative collection monthly from various groups allows for this charity to maintain the 100-150 meal packets delivered every two weeks. The grant will allow us to secure production of meal packets, especially during summer breaks when most groups are on vacation.

UVA Hospitality House (HH) Food assistance is now secure for 2012

We learned of the potential loss of the Hospitality House's only consistent food grant of $400 monthly several months ago. Anticipating this loss, we appealed in our grant request for funds to instigate a consistent monthly food program. This grant arrived just in time to pick up a significant food load at HH. We will actually purchase food and deliver to HH every two weeks. First delivery was last week. With the grant we were also able to secure the Christmas meal for those guests at the House during this holiday period.

Thanks to the Dave Matthews Band for the music ... and their exceptional generosity!

On behalf of all of us who seek to make a difference for those long distance patients and caregivers with limited income who come to this community for treatment at the UVA Medical Center, this fantastic contribution could not have arrived at a more opportune time. We do not operate on the basis of seasonal needs ... the need for lodging, food, co-pay, prescription and travel assistance is never-ending; however, this particular food grant is that unexpected boost which has lifted our spirits even higher.

To All of those faithful donors to this charity and this new friend of the charity, we wish you and yours the very best of holidays with family and friends.

Blessings .... The Volunteers of Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum

Santa Came to Town and Did NOT Let Us Down!

2011-12-15T08:52:00.000-08:00

Some siblings can't be separated and really enjoy sharing.

Last Saturday was a special opportunity to support a business friend of IHS. Knowing our special relationship with the giving community, and how that influences a particular fellow who delights in giving, Marjorie Adam of The Marjorie Adam Team, a Charlottesville Realtor, requested that we seek out a special early visit by Santa. And guess what? HE CAME!

Marjorie wrote this short note below and provided the following photos to share with readers of this blog. It was a lovely opportunity for Marjorie, her guests and their children, and Santa said he really likes coming to Virginia.

This kid is fixated, but not on Santa

"December is the time of year when our team reflects upon the past year and how fortunate we have been, and we look to continue to give back to our community. My favorite part of giving back is combining fun and family with giving. We truly value and appreciate our past clients, friends and business partners and we enjoy spending time with them. This year, we decided to have Santa come to our house to take photos with our friends and clients, saving them a trip to the mall. We of course did not charge for this, but we asked our clients to make a charitable contribution to IHS. It was a win-win. Our clients got a wonderful visit and photo with Santa, we got to spend fun time with them and IHS received some much needed and much deserved help. We highly encourage people to combine a fun get together with giving, and we thank Santa and his IHS helpers .

Sincerely, Marjorie Adam, REALTOR,
www.marjorieadamteam.com"

'Twas The Night Before Christmas

When a girl needs time to think ...
Santa can just wait

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all thro' the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;
The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of sugar plums danc'd in their heads,
And Mama in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled our brains for a long winter's nap -

When it's really cozy curled up in Santa's lap,why say anything?

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters, and threw up the sash.
The moon on the breast of the new fallen snow,
Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below;
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny rein-deer,
With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.

Sisters bring a lot of joy and smiles when meeting Santa

More rapid than eagles his coursers they came, And he whistled, and shouted, and call'd them by name:
"Now! Dasher, now! Dancer, now! Prancer and Vixen,
"On! Comet, on! Cupid, on! Donder and Blitzen;
"To the top of the porch! To the top of the wall!
"Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!"
As dry leaves before the wild hurricane fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky;
So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,
With the sleigh full of toys - and St. Nicholas too:

And then in a twinkling, I heard on the roof

This was no little girl; she's one of the Adam Team members!

The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.
As I drew in my head, and was turning around,
Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound:
He was dress'd all in fur, from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnish'd with ashes and soot;
A bundle of toys was flung on his back,
And he look'd like a peddler just opening his pack:
His eyes - how they twinkled! His dimples: how merry,
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry;
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;

This little guy never stopped smiling and said very little.

The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath.
He had a broad face, and a little round belly
That shook when he laugh'd, like a bowl full of jelly:
He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laugh'd when I saw him in spite of myself;
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread.

Happy Holidays from
the Adam Team
family

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And fill'd all the stockings; then turn'd with a jerk,
And laying his finger aside of his nose

And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose.
He sprung to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew, like the down of a thistle:
But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight -
Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night.

-Clement Clark Moore

It's All About a Cummulative Collection of Giving

2011-12-07T17:54:00.000-08:00

We have many people to thank for food donations recently, and it's a pleasure to continue to recognize groups, families and individuals in this never-ending challenge. It is our hope that readers of this very intimate blog entry will recognize what "cumulative" really means.

J.T. Henley Middle School Concludes "Make a Difference Day" Project

Our friends at J. T. Henley Middle School in Crozet, VA recently sent over 21 meals. This concludes their remarkable "Make a Difference Day" project, coordinated by Amy Effland. This was an ambitious project, and Amy had to organize it quickly. It called for a lot of communication and flexibility and involved many people from different parts of the school. In all we received 322 meals from Henley.

Local Family Helps Out

We also want to thank Amy Effland and her family, John, Ryan and Connor, for the 25 additional meal packets that they assembled at home. That's a very nice surprise to come home from work and find three large boxes of meals sitting on the porch. They are much appreciated and will be go over to the Medical Center soon.

Monticello District, Boy Scouts of America

Boy Scout and Cub Scout leaders with meal packets they assembled at their monthlyh Roundtable in Charlottesville, VA

Our local district of the Boy Scouts of America holds a monthly "Roundtable" meeting for leaders. Last December, 2010, I introduced the meal packet project at Roundtable. I developed them using my training as a Boy Scout Leader and backpacking experience with the Scouts. In backpacking and in assembling IHS meal packets the goal is compact, non-perishable food that is simple to prepare, filling and nutritious.

This year, 2011, my husband Mike arrived at the December Roundtable to find a meal packet assembly line set up. Scout leaders told the group about how their youth had helped over the past year and talked about their goal of continued assistance. Everyone had the opportunity to fill bags with food and Mike came home with 50 meals and extras items that I combined with supplies from my stash to come up with a total of 53 meal packets.

Thank you so much to the Monticello District of the Stonewall Jackson Area Council, Boy Scouts of America. Special thanks to Peggy Ives, Roundtable Commissioner, and the other people who shopped for and laid out the meal packet supplies.

Over the past year the Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts from several counties have been our greatest supporters. They have given us hundreds of meals, and we are very appreciative.

And finally ...It's nice when your friends and family support your hobby

I want to thank my colleagues, Linda and Andrea, for thinking of IHS when they were shopping at Sam's Club. I found cases of breakfast bars, peanut butter crackers, applesauce cups, etc. sitting at my desk at work one morning before Thanksgiving. I bought microwave entrees at the store and we had everything else to assemble meal packets in my stash of extras at home. My family put together 24 meal packets after dinner on Thanksgiving Day.

The above people produced 123 full-day meal packets. This represents our minimum need every two weeks at the UVA Medical Center to make sure that no caregiver or outpatient from out of town for many days goes without food. It is estimated that this quantity of very deliberately assembled nutritious items is valued at no less than $615.00. These packets are meant to sustain for the day!

The need for meal packets will not go away soon. We so appreciate your assistance in helping people. I hope this cumulative review will allow others to consider how it comes together, and join in this most worthy of projects. Thanks to all of you.

Blessings,
Margaret Gorman, IHS Meal Packet Program Coordinator

Every Day Allows for Giving Thanks

2011-11-24T09:27:00.000-08:00

It's good to have a dedicated holiday to gather with friends and family. All of us need a set-aside day to sit across the table and renew the bonds which bind. Sometimes it is that set-aside day which allows people to have time to travel. Sometimes people find themselves traveling away from home with far too few funds to support themselves, but their duty to themselves or a loved one must take priority.

Students push meal packets boxes up ramp, but one slipped off. Student shouted "Drop Zone!"

Those people being served by Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum, Inc. have come to Charlottesville, Virginia with an abundance of hope. They are being treated for a very serious medical problem, or they are here as the closest family member or caregiver, waiting and hoping for a loved one's recovery. Our purpose is dedicated to making sure that to the degree it is possible to offer temporary assistance as they establish a plan forward to balance their further need for lodging, food, co-pays and travel.

There are many in this community, inside and outside the UVA Medical Center, who are passionately dedicated to the welfare of these patients and families. To all of you who are among that Fraternal Order of Giving, we are so very thankful to be blessed with this opportunity to help secure these patients and families, mostly indigent, in a time of desperation. For those who have donated to IHS and other charities, YOU ARE THAT CRITICAL DIFFERENCE IN OUR ABILITY TO FUNCTION AND FULFILL OUR PURPOSE. Thank you for Giving.

A Very Special Class of Donors visited UVA Medical Center last week

Waiting for elevators up to UVA Social Office

On November 15th a middle size yellow school bus arrived at 12:15 PM at the UVA Medical Center's rear loading dock. A space was reserved next to the rear entrance ramp for parking. The Henley Middle School Functional Skills Class, their teacher Amy Hovis, and several aids had arrived with the final boxes of full day meal packets from the past month's project at Henley Middle School in Crozet. That project and photos of their grocery store shopping spree is featured in IHS blog entry on October 28, 2011.

The Skills Class has been instrumental in raising funds, purchasing food items and then assembling with other students in a school project which produced more than 322 full day meal packets. The final 49 meals were delivered personally during the class's visit to the Medical Center Social Office. Clinical Social Worker Teresa Bevins lead the group to the special storage area where the meals are maintained for access to all social workers for caregivers in their sections, especially in Pediatrics. Ms. Bevins also

Everyone gathered for a photo before leaving Social Office

spent time explaining the procedures and benefits of the program , and how the class's donations are immediately available and used daily. She indicated that no less than 100-150 meals are needed every two weeks.

UVA Medical Center has been a special part of the lives of these particular students, and many saw professional staff whom they recognized just during the trip up and back to the Social Office. To these marvelously giving students who understand the value of medical professionals, as former patients, and wanted to experience the completion of their purchases and assembly sessions, right to the source where the need is fulfilled, this visit was truly meaningful.

Blessings ... from all of us at IHS and our supporters

A Terrific November ... thanks to so many!

2011-11-18T09:49:00.000-08:00

It is so gratifying to know that we are able to be a part of the safety net for UVA Medical Center patients and families who come from such distances, often not knowing where they will sleep or eat. As you know, we can't be specific with details for privacy reasons. Perhaps it helps to know that one situation, which tends to happen frequently, provides an example of IHS being the only source available to assist.

A mother and baby are transferred from another hospital at a great distance to UVA Medical Center where the baby is entered into the NICU (Neo-intensive Care Unit). Both Mother and baby arrive in a medical vehicle.

Parents are not allowed to remain in the NICU with their babies, and upon arrival the Ronald McDonald House (RMH) was completely full. It so happened that UVA Hospitality House was also full. When social worker MT called in mid-afternoon, it was evident that neither facility would have an opening that night, and this very stressed out mother had no funds to cover her needs while in Charlottesville. IHS places this mother in a commercial hotel within a short walk to the hospital and she is told of the full day meal packets available to her through her social worker. A room in Hospitality House opens within one day, and the day after she is placed in Ronald McDonald House. Problem solved ...thanks to friends who contribute to strengthening the safety net.

Speaking of full day meals ... IHS received lots of help from a lot of kids this past month

Louisa County Cub Scout Pack 183, led by Jim Snider, organized and completed an assembly of 60 full-day meal packets (and a couple of boxes of extra items for use in further IHS assembly sessions) which were delivered on October 30th. Pack 183 is made up of 1st-5th grade boys. Den responsibilities are rotating, with Shonda Brooks, Webelos 1 Den leader, and Tina Schweikart, Bears Den 5 leader, organizing this go-around. Also invited to participate this past month was Louisa Boy Scout Troop 183, lead by Jim Harlow. This troop is all high school age boys. The older group supplied all paper products, ziplock bags, utensils and a large box of oat meal for delivery to UVA Hospitality House. They also joined the pack meeting to help assemble the total packets. Tina related that it's a wonderful way for the older boys to help mentor the young boys, especially the Tiger age group, plus contribute to a wonderful community service project. Thanks Louisa!

Thanks also to Brownie Troop 1234 of Charlottesville area for their November 2nd donation of 25 full-day meal packets and 24 snack packs. The leaders reported that they were happy to give true service with no reward or prizes other than the good feeling one has when doing something for others.

When these combined scout sessions were completed, and all items combined, IHS will be able to secure two more weeks for food supplies for social worker needs in November and December. THANKS TO ALL!

Thanksgiving and IHS participation!

Thanksgiving around the Table with Family

Elisheva and I will be celebrating Thanksgiving in Los Angeles with our son and his wife and the expected baby to arrive on Thanksgiving Day. It is our first trip in many years, but an important family event. Just sharing, since Sam McLawhorn will be monitoring the phones and e-mails, and making a meal delivery to the hospital when called.

However, before leaving this Sunday, please know that we stopped by Kroger Market in Barracks Road Shopping Center and secured a large turkey and ham to be prepared for delivery to UVA Hospitality House for those patients and families who must remain for further treatment over the holidays.

For friends of the charity within the Charlottesville area, please know that Mary Jackson and her staff do marvelous things for their guests, and IHS is so pleased to make it more enjoyable.

IF YOU LIVE IN CHARLOTTESVILLE AREA, AND WANT TO ADD TO THE FOOD NEEDS OVER A VERY LONG WEEKEND FOR ABOUT 30 HOSPITALITY HOUSE GUESTS ... PLEASE CALL MARY JACKSON AND ASK WHAT ITEMS SHE NEEDS TO MAKE THANKSGIVING EATING STRETCH FOR MANY DAYS FOR MANY PEOPLE. Her number is 924-5722. She will indicate what is needed and where to bring your food contribution.

Hold the presses - another assembly party just last night, November 15th. Here is the note from Adult Leader Scott Sims.

"17 Young Men and Young Women from the Rivanna Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints had a very uplifting experience compiling 100 meal packets for IHS. Several months of planning and purchasing food for these packets resulted in a fun-filled, inspiring activity where these youth were able to provide this great service to our Charlottesville community. Thanks to Youth leaders Brandon Mantell and Brianna Ashby for leading the charge, and adult leaders Forrest Johnson, Johanna Johnson, Miquelle Crosland, and Scott Sims. The church website is www.lds.org. The Rivanna Ward Youth thanks IHS for all you do and for providing this opportunity to serve. "

Blessings to all of you and yours ... T. Wade and Elisheva Clegg

Make a Difference Day at Henley School will feed hungry over many weeks!

2011-10-28T18:58:00.001-07:00

Personal Notes from Margaret Gorman, IHS Meal Packet Coordinator

Life Skills class arrives at Big Lots for shopping spree

J.T. Henley Middle School in Crozet, Virginia participated in "Make a Difference Day" by making meal packets for IHS. There's not enough room to tell you about all the ways the students participated, but for part of the story you can read a nice article by Bryan McKenzie from the Saturday, Oct. 21 Charlottesville Daily Progress newspaper (link to this article is below).

I'd like to add that two girls raised $125 in a bake sale that we used to purchase food. Harris Teeter Grocery Store in Crozet donated $50 and let us borrow two grocery carts that we are using for collecting donations and for moving food to various classrooms where the students assemble the meals. Students gave up free time to go to Ms. Effland's classroom to make greeting cards. About 20 students helped Margaret Gorman conduct a semi-scientific study to compare the efficiency and accuracy of two methods of assembling meal packets: piecemeal construction vs. the assembly line. The results suggest that Henry Ford had a good idea when he invented the automobile assembly line. Eighth grade students will receive community service credit for their help. Everyone who participated had a good time and knew they were providing valuable assistance to people who are going through a tough time.

Two happy shoppers with longest grocery receipt in Big Lots day!

I can't tell you enough about how much I appreciate the time and effort the Life Skills class put in to shopping, assembling meals and creating cards. The grocery receipt they produced on their shopping trip to Big Lots was about seven feet long. One photo shows happy Life Skills class students displaying their large purchase.

We want to express great appreciation to the J.T. Henley community for their success in this huge effort. Amy Effland, Amy Hovis and Teresa Goodin organized the effort. Susan Guerrant, Chuck Miller and Kevin Murphy provided great financial support, advise on logistics and publicity. The custodial staff collected nice boxes for packing the meals. The front office fielded questions and collected the donations for us. Maureen Russell gave her art classes the time and resources to produce beautiful greeting cards.

Students filled three shopping carts with heaps of IHS food packet products.

Enjoy reading the article, and contact us if you'd like to know more about how to participate. The 322 full day meal packets assembled by Henley Middle School is a new one-time assembly project record for an IHS contribution. Thank you Henley!

Here is the direct link to the Daily Progress article:

http://www2.dailyprogress.com/news/2011/oct/21/mckenzie-henley-goes-big-make-difference-day-ar-1400876/

A Story Worth Repeating

2011-10-18T05:07:00.000-07:00

The Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign (CVC) 2011 for state workers, asked IHS to submit a very short story which depicts situations we encounter. This one story came quickly to mind. There are many more to tell, but this repeating situation is emotional for all of us, and stands forth as to why IHS's existence has such merit.

During the month of October, you can visit the CVC website at http://www.cvc.vipnet.org and visit "Making a Difference." As short stories appear, potential state worker donors can click on "Read more" and they will read the story below. For friends of IHS, we wanted to share this one example of this charity's impact.

Blessings ... T. Wade

The woman on the midnight bus

There is a young woman who arrives every month or two on the late Greyhound bus in Charlottesville. She walks with her child to a hotel near the UVA Medical Center. She saves every penny, not using a taxi even at this late hour. She is coming for cancer treatment the following day. Since she has no one at home in northern Virginia to keep her child and UVA Hospitality House restricts guests with children under age 18, her social worker meets her need for lodging and food through a close working relationship with a very responsive charity.

Without pre-planning to secure her stay, this indigent patient could not make these trips to secure her hold onto life and a long life with her child. Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum, Inc. (IHS) works closely with UVA social workers to meet temporary "unmet" needs for indigent patients and family members. While others are sleeping, IHS is also available 24/7 to UVA social workers with immediate needs which are not being met from any other source.

We are a CVC charity. To support the work of Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum, Inc., designate your gift to CVC 3648.

SPECIAL NOTICE for UVA Medical and University staff, and all other state employees. The Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign (CVC) 2011 begins October 1st. Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum, Inc. (IHS) is a CVC charity. To support our work for lodging, meals, co-pay etc., designate your gift to CVC 3648.

October Events to Date Have Provided Wonderful Exposure!

2011-10-14T11:14:00.000-07:00

Notes from Margaret Gorman, IHS Meal Packet Coordinator

IHS Yard Sale a success Oct. 8, 2011 in Ivy area of Charlottesville, VA

Kimbrough Circle Yard Sale for IHS

I won't complain about spending a beautiful October day outside. Alyson Ball, a good friend of IHS, and I filled the driveway with donations from friends and neighbors, the Cleggs and from our own homes. Alyson suggested we ask for donations instead of haggling over prices, so that we could focus on communicating with our shoppers about IHS. We were rewarded-- $550 and many new contacts. I am hopeful that we will hear from some of them about performing service projects that will help the caregivers and outpatients at the UVA Medical Center.

Thanks to Alyson and John Ball, Mike Gorman and Patrick Gorman (who got out of bed unbearably early to move tables). Thanks to the Tillys, Bo Berndt, the Allisons and Missy Lynn for their donations of yard sale items and to the Kimbrough Circle neighbors who gave generous donations for the items they hauled away. Thanks also to Sandy and Alice Williams who set up a companion yard sale that enticed many people to our yard sale. Alice was also one of our best customers; I believe most of the profits from her sale ended up in our donation box when she hauled off bags of books and an outfit to wear to an upcoming Japanese Anime convention.

Follow up to Kroger days Oct. 1-2, 2011

IHS distributed information and collected donations of food and money from shoppers at the Kroger Grocery Store at Barracks Road Shopping Center in Charlottesville on Saturday and Sunday.

Barracks Road Kroger Charlottesville with UVA Venture Group Helping the Cause

Venture Scouts from Crew 1819, Boy Scouts of America, of the University of Virginia returned Saturday morning from a frigid camping trip to give their support. The female members of the crew displayed their skill from Girl Scout cookie selling days. Crew leader, John, made sure everyone was well fed. It was a beautiful autumn day and the University was hosting a home football game, so that atmosphere was brisk and festive.

On Sunday, the high school youth group of longtime IHS supporter, Thomas Jefferson Memorial Church, Unitarian Universalist, came to help. The weather had changed, so these young people had to bundle up against cold and wind, but they were fortified with bagels and good company. They clipped coupons from the Sunday ad insert for the local newspaper and then warmed up by shopping for microwave soups, stews, and other meal packet items.

We met a lot of very nice, concerned shoppers and came away with a trunk full of food and enough cash to pay for several hotel rooms. Thank you to everyone who helped, and a big Thank You to Katie Runkle and to Kroger for inviting us to set up our display and collection site.

Notes from T. Wade and Elisheva Clegg

Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign (CVC) Charity Fair, Richmond, Oct. 4, 2011

Charlottesville area was not scheduled this 2011 kickoff season with a charity fair for state workers to consider which charities are still active and who is new as approved charities for state worker donations. The kickoff date was October 1, 2011.

2011 CVC Donation Campaign

The closest venue for meeting state workers was hosted in Richmond, and IHS set up a display in the James Monroe Building on 14th Street, just a few blocks from the Capitol.

IHS functions solely to meet the unmet needs of outpatients and caregivers who must travel from all over Virginia to take advantage of one of two state hospitals with state-supported discount opportunities. UVA Medical Center is one of those hospitals; therefore, IHS is serving Virginians state wide by paying for lodging, food, co-pay, prescriptions and travel (as requested). The chance to meet state workers who are not related to UVA Health Services was a pleasure and hopefully will draw contributions for our role in serving the indigent population from every district of the state.

Thanks to CVC Director Anne Dinterman, and Program Assistant Melissa New, for their helpful direction and assistance for this new addition (IHS) to the CVC list of charities. The theme this year is "Give from the Heart in 2011." The CVC website for locating Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum, Inc. Code 3648 is www.cvc.vipnet.org.

Quick Review of Opportunities to Support IHS THIS WEEK and NEXT!

2011-09-28T08:00:00.000-07:00

Personal notes from Margaret Gorman in Charlottesville

Note # 1 : Come meet us this weekend outside the Kroger Market at Barracks Road Shopping Center in Charlottesville on Saturday and Sunday, October 1 and 2 from about 10 am to 3 pm.

Our thanks go to Katie Runkle of Kroger for giving us this opportunity to distribute information about IHS and to ask for donations of food and funds.

On Saturday we hope to be joined by members of the new Boy Scouts of America Venture Crew 1819 of the University of Virginia. Seven members of the newly-formed Venturing Crew #1819 assembled 28 meal packets as a service project at their September 20 meeting at the University of Virginia. The Venture Crew is a group of University students who want to do service work as part of the Boy

UVA Venturing Crew #1819

Scouts of America's program for young men and women.

(http://www.scouting.org/scoutsource/Venturing.aspx)

On Sunday the grades 11 and 12 youth group of Thomas Jefferson Memorial Church- Unitarian Universalist will join us for this outreach and fund-raising project. Most of the group will be wearing the IHS logo for ease of identification, as they hand out the IHS shopping list.

We hope Kroger shoppers will use our IHS grocery list to buy food for meal packets that we can assemble onsite. We'd like to meet you too. Please come by to make your contribution and sign a greeting card for the person who will receive your meal packet.

Note # 2 : Save the Date of Saturday, October 8, 8 am - 2 pm. HUGE Yard Sale!

If you are a yard sale fan, plan on coming out to Ivy, VA for a HUGE neighborhood yard sale. IHS is going to participate, along with at least 15 families. Our sale includes a motorcycle helmet, clothes, new books and gifts, toys, housewares, and so on. Our neighbors are selling furniture, antiques, dvd's, musical instruments and more.

Directions from Charlottesville: 250 West to Ivy. Right onto Owensville Road. Go 0.7 mile, then right onto Kimbrough Circle. Look for signs and balloons!

Final Reminder:

The Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign (CVC) Charity Fair for state employees on October 4th in Richmond. T. Wade and Elisheva Clegg will be manning the IHS table at the James Monroe Building, 101 N. 14th Street, first floor, from 10 am - 1 pm. IHS is now represented on the state website directly at www.vcv.vipnet.org . The IHS code is 3648. There are no Charlottesville area CVC Fairs scheduled to date, so stop by and visit us in Richmond next Tuesday.

There Is Vitality About September ....

2011-09-14T05:56:00.000-07:00

A Really Big Opportunity for IHS begins this month

The Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign (CVC) 2011 kicks off later this month, officially on October 1st. Their website is as follows: www.cvc.vipnet.org. Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum, Inc. (IHS) is listed for the first time. Our CVC code is 3648.

For those who are not familiar with this marvelous opportunity in Virginia, the Campaign is the workplace giving program for state employees. State employees number into the thousands, and that includes those professionals who work for the University of Virginia.

Each state employee can start payroll deduction giving at any time during the year, but the big thrust for becoming acquainted with eligible charities begins at the end of this month. State employees have the option to give to a single charity or as many as four charities.

Although there are no local charity fairs for introducing new charities scheduled for Charlottesville, IHS founding members, Elisheva and T. Wade Clegg III, will attend the CVC Fair on October 4th at the James Monroe Building in Richmond from 10 AM - 1 PM.

If you or a friend or colleague is a Virginia state employee, tell a friend that this public charity, solely dedicated to serving the indigent population for temporary assistance with lodging, food and co-pays who come to the University of Virginia Medical Center, needs support to sustain our program as the "go to" charity when no other resources are available. Look for the IHS table and banner in the Monroe Building on October 4th, and allow us to acquaint you with this vital program to meet "unmet needs" for patients and families who travel from all areas of Virginia to be served by the UVA Medical Center. This charity is the only 24/7 resource available to UVA Social Staff. And we are all volunteers.

The theme for this year's Campaign is "Give from the Heart." This slogan goes well with our saying which is often placed into full day meal packets, along with personal notes from those who assemble food packets: "You don't have to know someone to be a friend." Giving from the Heart is the only contagion we wish to see unleashed by those who can share with those who are in need.

Notes from Margaret Gorman, Meal Packet Coordinator

The Thomas Jefferson Memorial Church Unitarian-Universalist in Charlottesville held an intergenerational gathering this past Saturday, September 10th. They assembled 100 full day meal packets as their outreach project for the day's theme of "Cultivating Connections."

About twenty-five people from 5 years old to Seniors participated. They all expressed great satisfaction with this worthwhile and fun project. The children particularly expressed desires to eat some of the delicious foods, but they understood the greater need of the packets' recipients for the nutrition.

The cases of meals and individual meal packets decorated the front of the sanctuary for Sunday worship on September 11th. These meals will be delivered to the UVA Medical Center this week with best wishes and hope for friendship and comfort. The church now has a display table and information sheet-shopping list for members and friends to use so that they can fill a large wooden box in the entry hall with donations that will go for creating more meal packets.

Other Helping Hands in the Charlottesville area this month ...

Also adding to the next delivery, a big thank you to The Red Roof Inn Sales Department, just across from the UVA Medical Center. The hotel has a IHS meal packet display in the lobby and an invitation to guests to either donate food articles while in town for their personal staff assembly program, or donate funds directly to IHS. Last week I picked up 11 meal packets from Red Roof Inn. That's 11 full day meal packets of total nourishment! Thanks to Wilson and Lisa for your heartfelt involvement.

On September 12th Susan Erno called to ask where she could drop off a box of meal packets. That was eight more complete full day packets. Susan learned of the program from the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Church - Unitarian Universalist. Thanks Susan!

High school student Angela L. used her money earned from baby-sitting to buy granola bars and juice that were used in meal packets recently. Thanks Angela!

And finally, thanks to this charity's most consistent monthly donors from day one, three years on-going. Cassandra and Norman Pope McElvy drove up from Asheville, NC last week for a few days with friends. They spent one afternoon at Sam's Club shopping for items for use in assembling meals. Their afternoon of very deliberate shopping for the charity resulted in items for almost 40 complete meals. Thanks so much for your supportive visit. PLEASE COME AGAIN!

In Closing ...

To all of you who are helping us help others, thanks for giving from your hearts. If you or a friend needs our guidance sheet for making zip lock full day meals, and ideas to incorporate for having a really fun time, just send an e-mail to info@interfaithhumanitariansanctum.org.

Love ... US

You Don't Have To Know Someone to be a Friend

2011-08-25T15:26:00.000-07:00

Pretend for just a moment I called you personally and said, "There is a family down the street who simply can't balance their rent and buy groceries this week. I need your assistance." You know me well enough from my past notes that if I stated this fact that you could trust that I needed your involvement ... and soon. I would not be asking for a specific amount, but perhaps enough for funding a day or two of meals.

My objective for the underfunded and indigent families who come to UVA Medical Center in need of food and lodging is ever increasing, but the absolute minimum need for full day nourishment is now 200 packets monthly. These are the families just down the street caught in life's crisis as a loved one is being treated for so many desperate situations.

I constantly reflect on how I would feel if my child was laying there in critical condition without knowing what is to come, and all the time I was there without adequate money and hungry, ashamed of having to ask for help. Someone did call me last year; someone who sees this situation daily. Her name is Teresa Bevins, the UVA Pediatric Social Worker.

Please visit that appeal and scroll back to the "older entries" on our blog to April 26, 2010, and read those situations which are on-going at the Medical Center. I still visit Teresa's comments and it never fails to cause an emotional stirring. And Elisheva and I never go shopping for groceries without picking up items for our own meal packets for the twice monthly delivery.

I must continue to reach out for your consideration monthly for as little as $5 to make a full day meal, or by organizing a family activity, kid's day in the neighborhood, a garage sale, or a church gathering solely dedicated to assembling food items for making completed packets.

We are always ready to offer advice regarding what is needed and when to pick up or drop off. Margaret Gorman, Meal Packet Manager, has the pamphlet for guidance. IHS email is info@interfaithhumanitariansanctum.org and our mailing address is:

Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum, Inc.

P. O. Box 163

Palmyra, VA 22963

In case you hadn't guessed, we always put a note into each meal packet ... something personal to let the recipient know that "You don't have to know someone to be a friend."

Thanks for all that you can do to keep this opportunity vital.
Love... T. Wade Clegg III

Valued Radio Time

2011-08-03T06:53:00.001-07:00

On Monday morning July 25th, Margaret Gorman's mother called her at 6:40 AM to let her know that she (Margaret) had just missed the airing of an excellent feature on local radio about Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum's Meal Packet Program.

Then later that morning we all received calls from several UVA Medical Center social workers and staff who also heard the 3.5 minute feature while driving to work. Only the early risers hear the really good stuff!

Those friends who receive our twice monthly e-mails, which are converted to the IHS blog site for retention for return and review or "listen," will remember several weeks ago when there was a meal packet work party in Ivy area of Charlottesville. That event which had about 19 volunteers assembling full day meal packets was graciously attended by Sandy Hausman, Charlottesville Station Manager of WVFT /Radio IQ. Sandy took a large part of June 11th, a Saturday, and spent time speaking and recording participants at the IHS work party. Then she put together this really informative feature for airing on morning drive on the morning of July 25th.

Regretfully, I am never alert for driving most mornings, and therefore not likely to hear much morning radio; however, thanks to the miracle of "podcasts," this interview is retained for further sharing. We have retained it for you to hear below, but it is also saved on www.wvft.org. Click on News and Public Affairs, then scroll down to the story and click and LISTEN.

Please take three and a half minutes of your day or night and listen to the wonderful opportunity which Sandy Hausman has put together for sharing IHS efforts to feed patients and caregivers who come to the UVA Medical Center from great distances and too often are without funds for food.

Now turn up the sound on your computer and enjoy:

WVFT Radio Broadcast on IHS

Late Notice from Teresa Bevins, Pediatric Clinic UVA Medical Center

Teresa called at 3 PM August 1st...Social Work office cupboard has only 5 meals remaining. Last delivery was July 22 with 100 full day meal packets, so there is indeed a consistent need for supply. We will deliver today.

A Final Reminder

School is out and scouts, Sunday schools, kids groups are not available until September to be able to collect food items and have assembly sessions. This is considered a "down time" for participants, but not for those hungry people we serve at UVA Medical. Therefore, if at all possible, if you and your group of kids or adults are not able to personally make some meal packets with direction from Margaret Gorman, then please know that every $5 represents a full day of nourishment for those mothers sitting with their infants waiting for critical operations, and so many families who enter ER each week not expecting the tragedy unfolding.

Please know that WE (that's you and me and Elisheva and Margaret and Patrick and Dawn and Sam and Tina and Sandy and Teresa and so many others) are all involved in something really good. Thanks for your attention, and enjoy the radio program.

Blessings .... T. Wade Clegg III

Update - First Six Months of 2011 - and a look back over two years!

2011-07-24T10:13:00.000-07:00

Each time a list of figures is tabulated, a stark reality affects all of us at this charity. When I am using the word "people" ... these are "individuals" who would be adversely affected if this service was not provided. 589 individuals who stayed in 1210 overnight rooms in just over two years were secured with shelter because of this charity and every one of you who assisted with your contributions.

Let's look at it together:

From January - June 2011 (6 months)     165 people were lodged in 527 overnight rooms.
For July 2011 (first 20 days) another         26 people were lodged in   15 overnight rooms.
Therefore, the total for 2011 to date:      191 people were lodged in 542 overnight rooms.

How does the first 6.5 months of 2011 compare to the entire year of 2010?

For year 2010 (Jan- Dec 12 months)        259 people were lodged in 536 overnight rooms.

Return with me to 2009, when IHS began actively backing the UVA Medical Center social work staff when no other source was available. In other words for whatever reason there was either no room or a restriction for entry into UVA Hospitality House (HH), and a hotel room was needed for overflow traffic, or someone needed assistance for staying in a HH room. Also, there were numerous assists when Ronald McDonald House (RMH) arrivals came too early and faced a full house, and no funds for a few days as they waited for an RMH opening.

For year 2009 (from June - Dec 7 months) 139 people were lodged in 132 overnight rooms.

Notice any trends over this two year span of time?

It's easy to spot. The number of individuals and the number of overnight rooms has increased in these cycles. The number of rooms in the first six and a half months of 2011 has already exceeded the entire year of 2010. More under-funded people are coming for health care and to provide temporary comfort for loved ones with deadly conditions.

We do not have to be creative. These individuals all have names and are personally known by social workers seeking to assist them maneuver through the system at a critical juncture in their lives or the lives of their most precious possession ... a loved one.

I stared at this page for some time and reflected on so many instances of sadness. The stories are many, and they do not disappear in our thoughts once shelter and food are provided. Some names reappear on the request list. They must return for cancer treatment, and noticeably with more frequency over time. They are coming to THE MEDICAL CENTER to secure a chance for a more abundant and healthy existence.

There must remain community efforts to insure that immediate response is available to those already plagued by life's unrelenting challenges. This charity is one of those efforts. Thank you for whatever you are doing to make a difference to our efforts and for other routes to relieve the suffering. Remember - you do not have to know someone to be a friend.

With Love ... T. Wade

Happy Independence Day!

2011-07-04T18:07:00.000-07:00

A Personal note from Meal Packet Coordinator, Margaret Gorman

"My nephew, Justin Erwin, a graduate student at the University of Virginia, is helping a friend empty his Charlottesville apartment as he prepares to move to San Francisco. His friend has completed his medical residency at the UVA Hospital and will now begin work as an anesthesiologist out West.

Justin just contacted me to say he had a box of food for us. What a treasure trove of items that are perfect for our meal packets! I guess medical residents have lifestyles that require them to eat in ways that are similar to the people we help with meal packets. Justin delivered boxes of organic instant oats, high-quality protein bars, granola bars and microwave main dishes.

I have a few containers of fruit in my stock pile, as well as some of the non-food items (napkins, plastic spoons, forks, Dixie microwave paper bowls) that we need to assemble meal packets. I will pick up a few things (always in need of zip lock gallon size bags) to fill in what we need and expect to produce 25 more meal packets this week.

I so appreciate Justin for thinking of us, and for his friend for donating the food.

I would like to join the Reverends Clegg in thanking all the groups and individuals who answered our call for meal packets and who helped us build a stockpile of meals for summer use. Our supply might not last until September, but this 25 meal gift from Justin and his friend will help us get through August.

Our meal packets are helping so many people who are going through difficult times, and I am grateful to everyone who helps us relieve them of worry or hunger."

Just a short note to add to Margaret's greeting

Over this holiday weekend the mother of an adult patient in grave condition arrived at the Medical Center with the hopes of staying in UVA Hospitality House (HH) for just one night. This very worried parent came prepared to only pay the $10 per night rate, but she also was accompanied by a teenager. The under-18 child is not allowed in HH, but fortunately IHS charity located and paid for a commercial room in this busy holiday climate.

What was doubly gratifying in this situation was that the social worker said,

"It's so nice to have those full day meal packets handy. I will give this family a few packets to take to the hotel to get them through their short visit. They will need their extra few dollars for gas when they drive home."

Final reminder

If you need the pamphlet from Margaret Gorman as to how to make a full day zip lock meal packet, she is waiting to provide those instructions. Even if you can't actually find a group or a child to assist in preparation, we are all prepared to receive individual items in boxes and arrange a work party to assemble. Remember us each time you go grocery shopping and pick up a few items which will allow us to stay ahead. If the bounty is large enough, we will drive considerable distances to pick up your contribution.

Blessings ... OH ... and may every day forward be cause to celebrate!

Louisa Volunteers Do It Again ... and Baby Clothes Too!

2011-06-24T12:07:00.000-07:00

Louisa Volunteers Gave Us A Boost into July

The kids from St. Jude and Immaculate Conception Catholic Churches in Louisa, Virginia gathered on June 17th for a combined youth group effort for IHS. As a result, and thanks to Tina Schweikart, Karin Sewell and Missy Bishop (youth pastor) for organizing the activity, the youth group produced 47 full day meal packets and 14 breakfast meal packets.

Combined Youth Group takes a break after packing meals

Tina and Taylor Schweikart delivered the bounty to IHS June 21st and the entire output found its way directly into both the UVA Pediatric Clinic for caregivers and also for indigent patients staying at UVA Hospitality House.

Teresa Bevins, clinical social worker, and coordinator in the Pediatric Clinic for the IHS Meal Program, had just realized that this past week there was a run on meal packets due to increased traffic throughout the Medical Center. She was down to just three(3) full day meals when delivery was made on June 23rd.

The Louisa Youth Group supplies were combined with previous work parties in June for a total delivery of 124 full day gallon size ziplock meal packets. The combined breakfast and single meal packets delivered to UVA Hospitality House's Mary Jackson on Wednesday came to 24 meals, plus a box of 36 snack packs for patient and family occupants.

Did you see that notice about the need for infant clothes in the last e-mail?

Guess what? Tina Schweikart did, and met our immediate need within days.
Tina works for the Paul Stefan Foundation, which provides transitional housing for expectant mothers and their babies.

Tina said:

"I checked in at work today, and we have a large number of baby blankets and baby girl clothing. We wanted to share with you thanks to the abundance provided by our wonderful followers. We had a run of baby boy births for the past year. Most everything is brand new, but a few items that are used are in very nice shape."

What a delight to receive these clothes and accessories for the infants who arrive and sometimes leave the UVA Medical Center Pediatric Clinic with so very little. Tina also brought some of most gorgeous baby blankets we've received. It was like a treasure trove.

By the time you read this note, all items will have been distributed for immediate use in the hospital. Thanks to Tina and all those generous folks who are devoted to mothers and their infants at the Paul Stefan Foundation. The receipt of those items will allow for a lot of infants to go home with much, much more than when they arrived for treatment.

Never be afraid to give even a little

Too often friends of the charity will hesitate when they are waiting to consider a larger donation. What would really help us get up caught up with bills to hotels for lodging would be just $5-$10 monthly. If just that amount could be considered monthly, we could tackle the increasing hotel expenses.

Find one of those canisters for display in the kitchen area, and put a little sign on it which says,

"These coins will be my gift to make sure that no kids sleep in cars with their hungry family while their loved ones are being served at Virginia's premier medical center."

That's what Colonel Ed Fishpaw did this last year. Colonel Ed lives in Manassas, Virginia, and comes to the UVA Medical Center as necessary. He turned his collection of coins into the bank and sent us a check for $357.00. It is amazing what a few coins a day can do.

For two years we have kept our promise to the kids and their families. A little help is always appreciated.

Blessings ... T. Wade Clegg III

Food, Lodging and Prescriptions Update

2011-06-18T09:18:00.000-07:00

Update for June

June 4 & June 15 Single Meal packets delivered to UVA Hospitality House
(HH): Total 51

June 8 - What a day! Four (4) hotel rooms booked in one 3 hour period for four families who could not be accommodated and would have had nowhere to stay had IHS not existed. UVA Hospitality House (HH) is now frequently full. Commercial room funds truly needed.

June 11 - Home assembly session for meal packets in Charlottesville at Gorman Home.

June 16 - Request for assistance for infusion of funds for prescriptions today.

June 16 - Just received e-mail from Teresa Bevins, Clinical social worker in Pediatrics. She said, "If you have the opportunity, we are running low on baby clothes both genders. So, anything in sizes newborn to 9 months would be great." Simply place any new baby clothes in a box and UPS to Rev. Elisheva Clegg, 37 Brougham, Palmyra, VA 22963, or send funds via PayPal or mail to IHS at P.O. Box 163, Palmyra, VA 22963.

May 25 - (late recognition) - Thanks to Mollie Michie Preschool, 717 Rugby Road, Charlottesville. Just before leaving for summer, the Preschool produced 18 full day meal packets which were picked up later that week. Those packets will be added to the June hospital delivery.

Another Great Gathering to keep food stocks level for summer

Margaret Gorman

The little kids drew all sorts of colorful images, some almost recognizable. Then the older "kids" cut those pages into hearts and pasted them onto welcome notes for placement into each full day meal packet. That was the kitchen group.

Then the dining and living room areas had different stacks of food supplies arranged for a circular trail of workers to fill their gallon zip-lock bags with a full day's worth of nutritional items. Then another group accepted the completed packets and boxed and labeled. The total results of two fun-packed hours resulted in 80 full-day meal packets and 22 single meal packets.

Next delivery to replenish the UVA Medical Center Pediatric storage cabinet is this coming week. 22 of those single meal packets were delivered to UVA Hospitality House yesterday.

Please allow me to thank those participating and using their Saturday for this wonderful effort: Dawn, John, Timothy, Michael and Joshua Cleveland; Mark Graham with children Emma, Ellie and William; Then there was Angela, Alice, Matt and Zach (no last names provided); Margaret and Patrick Gorman; and Elisheva and T. Wade. Oh ...

Sandy Hausman, Charlottesville Station Manager

WTVF, Radio IQ

Blessings ... T. Wade

Can You Match Timothy's Donation for June?

2011-06-09T11:28:00.000-07:00

On May 27th when I reached into my post office box in Palmyra, there was a single letter with a hand-written note from 6 year -old Timothy Cleveland who lives in the Ivy area of Charlottesville. Also enclosed was a donation of $30.75.

The note said,

Timothy and his mom selling lemonade!
"Dear Rev. Clegg,

Here is some money to help sick people at UVA Hospital. We made the money with our lemonade stand on Saturday. Love, Timothy Cleveland."

The previous Saturday Timothy and his mom Dawn set up their lovely stand and raised funds for IHS to be used for lodging expenses for families and patients in need of a place to stay.

This was the same day that Margaret Gorman and her neighbors were hosting a yard sale just down the street for the sole purpose of raising additional funds for the charity's hotel bills for the very active months of April - May. Although Margaret is the Food Development Officer for IHS, she never stops coming up with projects to meet total charity needs.

Margaret said that Timothy's lemonade stand was "adorable." Also, as seen in the photo it was easy to spot, not only for refreshments for those neighbors participating in the yard sale, but also for the intended purpose ...and the sweetest possible salesperson.

A big neighborhood thanks to the Kimbrough Circle neighbors who assisted with another donation for the charity at the Gorman home. Other participants for the event's success with an additional $175.00 were Dick and Nancy Erwin, and Bo Berndt. This one neighborhood on the outskirts of Charlottesville continues to excel in the spirit of giving.

Special Notice to Friends of the Charity

The UVA Hospitality House (HH) has been continuously full during April - May. This trend has not stopped. As I write on June 8th, Ronald McDonald House was full and assistance rendered for placement of a family. Four hotel rooms were booked this day alone. Your assistance is certainly appreciated. Quite literally, we are the only opportunity in these cases. Thanks for your attention. Please consider matching 6-year old Timothy's full day of work for "helping the sick people." Thanks again ...

Blessings ... T. Wade Clegg III

LDS Ladies ... Latest Participants in Food Program

2011-06-03T05:29:00.001-07:00

Posted by Margaret Gorman, Meal Packet Development for IHS:

Hard Working Teens
"For their annual service project meeting on May 18, about 60 women and teenage girls of the Charlottesville 2nd Ward Relief Society of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints included IHS as one of their projects to give comfort and support to people who are going through difficult times. The group is lead by President Cheryl Thompson.

Meetings Coordinator Sharon Zobrist had read in the Crozet Gazette about Boy Scott Troop 79 preparing meal packets last November and offered it up as something the Relief Society might wish to do. Lexie Borg contacted me for information and served as the liaison. Marian Cheney helped with food collection and storage.
Sandy, Sharon, Lexie & Margaret

The Relief Society produced 110 full-day meal packets. They also donated another 49 additional main dish food items. I am told that church members brought additional food donations that IHS will include in future meal packet assembly sessions over the summer.

A friend of IHS, Sandy Williams, drove with me to the church in her large van and we joined the women of the Relief Society for a fun and friendly evening. The food filled the van, along with three bags of gently worn children's clothing which will be provided to
Meal Packet Program Items
Social Worker Teresa Bevins for those children who need apparel to replace and supplement clothes which they were wearing when they were admitted to the UVA Pediatric Clinic.

I wish the readers of this e-mail, and subsequent blog entry, could see all the healthy and delicious food that the church provided for making these gallon size zip lock bag full day meal packets. Some items were new to me, such as individual portions of dried pineapple and chicken dinners. The teenagers worked diligently to write friendly supportive messages on hand-made cards that went into all 110 meals, then packed everything in boxes in less than an hour. That's active coordination! Our special thanks. Sincerely ... Margaret "

Thanks to everyone who is assisting and planning for summer activities with food and direct donations to IHS to meet our most vibrant categories of support for patients and families, namely lodging and food assistance. More later on other participants making a difference.

When The Options are NONE!

2011-05-26T11:31:00.000-07:00

So many of you who receive these e-mails, which are then converted to a blog entry for retention and return for review, have indicated that what is most meaningful is to learn of situations in which real dollars donated go directly for serving real people with immediate needs.

Please know that privacy is paramount for patients being served by this charity when they arrive in Charlottesville for treatment. It is purposeful that protective measures in writing are in effect with each story.

There is a young woman from across the state who arrives on a midnight bus with her child, walks to a local hotel, and spends the night. The next morning she checks out of the hotel, walks to the UVA Medical Center where she is treated. Later that evening she walks back to the bus station for the long ride home.

I can tell you that the trips to Charlottesville have been more frequent. There are at least four more in 2011. This young woman has no one to keep her child so she can come this long distance; therefore, the child has no choice but to accompany the mother for this vital treatment, which is not available to her at this time near her home town.

Please know that I asked about any possible way that the child might be kept by relatives so that the UVA Hospitality House would be available to her. That option does not exist. The ONLY opportunity for coming for these increasing trips is when IHS books a hotel room.

This patient and child also have access to those full day Meal Packets organized through Margaret Gorman and kept in supply monthly in the UVA Medical Center Social Work Office.

Of course we worry about keeping the funding active for this individual, and the many others served monthly by this charity. However, today as I wrote this note I was more concerned that the trips for treatment for this young woman are more frequent, and that bus ride must be taking its toll.

Perhaps it is the company of her small child that makes those night trips bearable. I only know that we will never tell her social worker that her room is not available.

Thank you for listening ...

Blessings ... T. Wade Clegg III

More Terrific Groups of Kids Lend a Hand!

2011-05-15T09:34:00.001-07:00

The Helping Hands Service Club from Murray Elementary School, a group of 15 children, all 3-5th grades, delivered 75 full-day meals, plus 35 snack packets during their visit to the UVA Medical Center on May 4th. Clinical Social Worker Teresa Bevins hosted the group, showed the visitors where their production of meals is stored and answered a host of questions as to the value of their contributions.

Helping Hands was formed with a mission to introduce children about community and world needs, and what they can personally do to make things better. Teresa said that she was impressed with the group’s enthusiasm and desire to add to the Meal Program. She was really delighted to see them arrive for the presentation with their hands full of meal packets.

Jennifer LoCasale-Crouch and Adrienne Kim Bird run the Helping Hands service club. During early April Jennifer and Adrienne began communicating and working with Margaret Gorman who runs the IHS Meal Program. The children did a marvelous job of producing this large bounty, and then learned first-hand from Social Worker Bevins the numerous examples of how the meals will sustain so many caregivers in the hospital.

Girl Scout Cadette Troop 129 from Henley Middle School is presently composed of 11 sixth grade girls (age 12). Jennifer Bryerton and Lynn Bradley are the adults leading the troop, which meets every other Sunday at Olivet Presbyterian Church in Ivy.

Connie Alexander, one of the Troop mothers, delivered Troop 129’s meal production to IHS on May 3rd. The girls produced 20 full-day meal packets and 32 single meal packets.
Lynn Bradley said, “The girls enjoyed planning the contents of the bags, shopping for items and stuffing the bags. We follow the good example of service to the community and feel that this effort is just a small step to help those who are recuperating or tending to sick loved ones at UVA Medical Center.”

First United Methodist Preschool in Charlottesville organized the 14 kids in the class for a very special first-time project. Each child was assigned the task of making one complete meal packet and the opportunity to make a card to insert into the complete packet. The class is composed of 3 and 4 year olds. The group must have involved their teachers, since the “one Child, One Packet” project delivered 16 complete full-day meals to Margaret Gorman.

Paige Lindblom, the school director, along with organizing teachers Megan Bisset and Mary K. Carroll, were proud of the children’s enthusiasm. Erin Rothman, whose son Elliott was one of the workers, produced a full meal packet for the project. Erin related that when she told Elliott about the idea, he helped her do all the shopping, including picking out the foods he thought would be healthy and good.

Thanks to everyone involved above. Your joint productivity has met our needs for May!

Blessings ... T. Wade Clegg III

Why This Charity Is So Important!

2011-05-05T17:18:00.001-07:00

Some days are simply more treasured than others. This was such a day, May 4, 2011. I went to the post office in Palmyra and found two letters in our box. One was that ever faithful monthly check from a small Catholic Church in Abingdon, Virginia. The other was a handwritten letter on lined paper, and folded multiple times, so as to keep it secret until opened.

On the outside in large letters the words:

"Thank You with Prayers and Appreciation and Love."

"Dear Rev. T. Wade Clegg,

Our family would like to thank you for furnishing us a motel room. If it weren't for you renting us that room in Charlottesville, VA, we would have not got to make the 6 hour trip there. My Mother nor I would have got to get to see our doctors. We also have a 2-year old and a 4-year old that has to make the trips with us. So we would like to say THANK YOU and MAY GOD RICHLY BLESS YOU ALL. With all the prayers and appreciation for this. Thank you. Me and my whole family."

(This letter is signed by each member, even the pre-schoolers)

In the almost three years since we began this effort, this is only the second personal note from someone who has received assistance. That is because IHS is not known by recipients. In this case, the recipient wanted to know from the social worker who to thank. Today was another pay day for all of us, including all the volunteers, donors, scouts and Sunday schools who make it possible for this family and so many others to have lodging and food. If not available, quite simply these trips would be postponed and vital treatment neglected.

This is why this charity is so very important.

Blessings ... T. Wade Clegg III

Never Too Young to be a Member of a Giving Team

2011-04-18T14:19:00.000-07:00

Daisy Troop 360 Hard at Work

Two groups of energetic young ladies from Earlysville, Virginia added to the production of full-day meal packets this month. Dawn Cleveland, an active volunteer working with Margaret Gorman (IHS's Meal Packet Program Director), received a total of 24 more packets from their March activities.

Twelve (12) packets came from the Earlysville Children's Garden. The working group was composed of 12 children, ages 2-5. Each child made a card with a heart with their thumbprints and their name. As each recipient opens their meal packet from the Children's Garden, they will be greeted warmly with well wishes.

Twelve (12) packets came from Daisy Troop 720, Broadus Wood Elementary School in Earlysville. There were 13 girls participating, ages 6-7. Individual handmade cards were also placed in each packet.

A Special Message Card

A special thanks to Children's Garden and Daisy Troop 720. These contributions will be included in the late April and early May deliveries to UVA Medical Center Social Work Program.

If you know anyone living in Earlysville, please click on "forward this e-mail" below, and allow others in that community to know how much their young people are helping others in need. If you know of other children's groups who would like to participate in the Meal Packet Program, information is as close as an e-mail to Margaret Gorman for guidance.

Update on April Meal Packet Delivery

On April 15th IHS delivered 136 full-day meal packets to Teresa Bevins, and restocked the Social Work Office food cabinet. The meal packets are accessed by all UVA Medical Center Social Workers as needed to eliminate hunger for caregivers, and any out-patients who may need assistance during prolonged out- patient treatment stays at the hospital.

Blessings ... T. Wade Clegg III

IHS Gives Thanks to the Meal Makers

2011-04-02T11:40:00.000-07:00

It is really a good feeling to know that full-day meal packets for April delivery to the UVA Medical Center Social Work food program is almost complete. Each month is an individual challenge, but so much of the food program load is now being balanced due to the enthusiastic participation of several scout, church and neighborhood groups. A big THANK YOU to the following participants ....

Cub Scout Pack 183 and Boy Scout Troop 3 in Louisa:

Teamed up for a tremendously productive Meal Packet Service Project. Their joint efforts provided 136 completed full-day packets, plus a large collection of assorted items.

Some key players in this project, and on-going scout activities, were Jim Snider, Pack 183 Cub Master; Harry Quarles, Troop 3 Scout Master; Karen Sewell, Pack 183 Committee Chair; and Wolf Den Assistant Brad Baber. The Food Lion at Lake Anna also donated to the project in order to purchase extra items to complete this large donation.

Tina Schweikart, Wolf Cub Leader and her son Connor (pictured to the right), a wolf, delivered their bounty to IHS Founding Member T. Wade Clegg III on March 27th. The photo shows Rev. Clegg and Cub Scout Connor Schweikart transferring boxes into vehicles.

Cub Scout Pack 206:

Under the guidance of Robin Kaczka, added to the March meal packet collection. Robin said, "We charged an entry fee to our Blue and Gold Banquet which was a food donation item. Each den was assigned a portion of the meal packet."

Cub Scout Pack 206 meets at Hollymead Elementary School and their Charter Organization is the Hollymead Parent Teacher Organization. They have 50 registered scouts from 1st grade through 5th grade. For more information the Pack 206 website is www.cubpack206.org.

Thanks to Sue Hietanen of Charlottesville, whose son is long grown and graduated from Boy Scouting, but she and her husband are still volunteers. Sue heard Margaret Gorman's presentation about the IHS Food Packet Program in December and decided to put together food packets on her own. Sue and a friend made 25 full-day meals for pickup this past week to add to the April delivery. She noted that there are so many problems in our world that we cannot solve, but helping out the people served by IHS is something we can do.

For those of you planning on participation and in need of contact, please send your e-mail to info@interfaithhumanitariansanctum.org as first recipient during the first two weeks in April. Margaret Gorman will be on a much deserved vacation with her family until about April 10th.

If you are too far away for making and delivering meal packets, please know that funds are used to supplement meal quotas each month as needed, or used for IHS's continuing need for securing lodging for UVA Medical Center outpatients and caregivers who come from great distances without funds to balance their stay.

And finally...

Last week IHS delivered an infant car seat and baby clothes for a one-year old which had not a stitch of clothes at the hospital or at home and was being released. These are always last minute needs, of course. As this note is being released, we received another call and have scheduled tomorrow a purchase of another infant seat and a stroller for a child from a family which has neither. This is what we do...because of YOU!

Blessings ...T. Wade, Elisheva & Sam

Social Worker Comments Are So Valuable ....

2011-03-17T08:18:00.000-07:00

Allow me to share ...

a personal note from UVA Cancer Center Social Worker Vikki Bravo. Vikki's comments are gratifying, and although specific examples of our assistance are not possible due to privacy issues, the following note is appreciated. There is an increasing need to assist cancer outpatients who are staying for extended periods at UVA Hospitality House, and IHS is making every effort to assist with fees beyond temporary stays.

Vikki said the following:

"There are often patients who come to the UVA Medical Center who have to be here overnight(s) and have no funds for lodging or food. Sometimes they cannot stay at our Hospitality House because the house is full, or because they are traveling with underage children, or other reasons. Without the help of IHS in providing a place to stay and food to eat, they would be unable to come here. There are many logistics involved in getting medical care here, including transportation, lodging, food, time, money, caring for children or pets at home, and missing work. These funds for hotel rooms and to pay for Hospitality House have made the difference between getting necessary medical care and not getting it. It's not enough to have great technology and great doctors and nurses. These other services are vital. Without these services, there are people who would be unable to come here for care."

Thought you should know...

This first quarter of 2011 has been just as active as the previous year for lodging and food requests. The full-day Meal Packet Program originated by Margaret Gorman has received marvelous support from several scouting and Sunday school classes, but funds for commercial lodging and assistance at UVA Hospitality House has been very weak over the last few months.

The holiday donations have run their limit, and we are very much in need of any contributions from friends who are not consistent monthly donors. If $25-$50 is possible in your giving fund this month, please know that it is needed.

Our personal funding continues ...

but larger weddings have tended to diminish over the last year. As most of you know, Elisheva and I are interfaith ministers who are full-time non-paid volunteers, and we allow a significant part of every private ministerial fee (weddings, vow renewals, memorials, funerals, baby ceremonies, private counseling, etc.) to be donated directly to IHS for a tax deductible contribution. This is our continued contribution which allows families to be a part of the giving, but periodic support presently is only coming from past family affiliations from these ministerial services.

Grant research is presently being pursued. We are hopeful that with the involvement in the Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign (CVC) for state worker contributions this year that awareness of IHS participation as an eligible charity will have a favorable impact.

We are also hopeful that...

families, church groups, Sunday school classes, girl and boy scout troops will continue to contact Margaret Gorman for guidance in making those full-day meal packets for cumulative monthly delivery to the UVA Medical Center to meet caregiver needs. What a marvelous opportunity to engage any age group of children, and Margaret has extensive experience with such a program.

For those of you who are not in Central Virginia or have a group of adults or kids to support with their purchase and assembling of meal packets, then we would be delighted to receive a check to meet the range of unmet needs for people who come to Charlottesville to be served by the University of Virginia Medical Center.

Blessings ... T. Wade Clegg III

Crozet, VA Boy Scout Troop 79 Made a Big Difference This Month!

2011-03-08T15:50:00.000-08:00

Their goal was to produce one hundred full-day meal packets in support of the IHS food program for caregivers and outpatients who come to the UVA Medical Center from all over Virginia, and more frequently from other states. Crozet Scout Troop 79 exceeded their original objective by producing 119 packets.

Such a project entails more than just the very deliberate buying of supplies, which represents a value of no less than $595.00. The attention to nutritious food purchases, the time and effort for assembling into gallon-size zip-lock bags with paper microwave bowls and utensils, then boxing for delivery, requires considerable organization.

Mike Marshall, editor of the Crozet Gazette, visited the assembly session and provided an article which is accessed below. Please take a moment to read about another important group of kids with a very giving attitude. Troop 79 is lead by Scoutmaster Gary Conley. Life Scout Ryan Evans organized the food collection. The supporting cast of up-front Scout mothers deeply involved were Jan Baer, Amy Evans and Margaret Gorman.

http://www.crozetgazette.com/2011/03/crozet-scouts-donate-food-packets-for-hospital/

These specific meals were delivered on March 3rd to the UVA Social Work Office under the capable direction of Manager Noel Dianas-Hughes. The Social Work monitor of the IHS caregiver food program is Teresa Bevins, Clinical Social Worker in the UVA Pediatric Clinic.

Remember - any group (boy and girl scouts, church classes, school clubs, or neighborhood efforts) can add to the monthly collection needed to sustain this on-going program. For detailed guidance simply send a note to Margaret Gorman, the IHS Meal Program Guide at gormanmargaret@hotmail.com.

Don't forget...$5 buys a full-day meal; $10 provides a stay in UVA Hospitality House; and $50 allows for placement in a hotel room for these families in a desperate time in their lives. Yes - it is only temporary assistance, but all too often it is the only assistance available when a social worker calls.

We very much need your present attention to cover lodging and co-pay bills for February 2011. Keep us in your thoughts with even a small donation. There were no large supporting funding programs, as we experienced last year with Whole Foods 5% Day, which paid for winter lodging bills.

This season we are solely dependent on YOU...individuals who know us.

Blessings ... T. Wade

Good Things are Happening with IHS Food Program

2011-02-18T13:45:00.000-08:00

UVA Hospital Visit enjoyed by all

The Meal Packet Program, originated by Margaret Gorman and her religious education class, and continuing at Thomas Jefferson Memorial Church - Unitarian Universalist (TJMC-UU) in Charlottesville, Virginia were allowed a rare opportunity for a site visit to the UVA Medical Center Social Service Office on Sunday morning, February 6. The class was accompanied by youth group leaders, John, Catherine, Jeff and Mike.

The TJMC-UU group has provided nearly four hundred full-day meal packets in the last three months, and used this opportunity to add more meals to keep the shelves adequately supplied for a few more weeks. Later in this blog entry you will note further participation with making meal packets before summer.

Teresa Bevins, Clinical Social Worker, and monitor for the program at the hospital's Pediatric Clinic, hosted an hour of discussion about the role of social workers and the impact the Meal Packet Program was having for caregivers. Although no visitors are allowed onto the floor where caregivers are constantly staying with their infant children, the visit provided this pre-college group a chance to learn about the vital role of UVA Medical Center's social work staff.

The TJMC-UU group had lunch in the hospital cafeteria, just to experience the cost for a single meal. A "full-day meal packet" made by participating groups are nutritionally balanced with diversified items, and based on selective shopping, actually costs less than a single meal from the cafeteria. This proved to be a reality check for students who realized the expense for a caregiver seeking to balance funds while staying in the hospital away from home for weeks, even months at a time.

Louisa County Cub Scout Pack 183 has joined the Meal Packet Program

Pack 183 has 69 active cub scouts, under the leadership of Cubmaster Jim Snider, and Pack Committee members, Tina Schweikart and Karin Sewell. On January 30th Tina Schweikart, along with her personal helpers, Connor and Taylor Schweikart, delivered 71 full-day meal packets and 10 breakfast packets to IHS for further delivery to the UVA Medical Center.

Tina Schweikart assumed the leadership role for the project. Scouts and parents went into full organizational mode for purchases and then filling of packets at their January meeting. Personal cards were made, signed and placed in each packet with special notes to recipients of the meal packets.

This past week we received a note from Tina on behalf of Pack 183, which said:

"We are very excited to become a part of this program. We also talked about our ability to commit as a pack twice a year to these collections, and plan to dedicate October and March as our months to assist, hopefully keeping this tradition going for a long time."

A special Valentine's "Giving from the Heart" Party

In early December 2010, IHS received a very personal note from Dawn Cleveland who lives in the Kimbrough Circle neighborhood in Charlottesville. Dawn felt that organizing an event for giving was something she could do with the very young.

That event was scheduled around a Valentine's Day theme in the last week. Dawn said, "The party guests were from Crozet, Ivy, Earlysville, and family from Northern Virginia. 16 kids and 10 adults made for an awesome assembly line. They were age 18 months - 15 years, all helping make cards and assembling bags."

Dawn also said, "One of my friends is an employee of Whole Foods, and she was able to get the store to donate some items as well. I noticed that Whole Foods has been a good sponsor of IHS with their wooden nickels project in the store."

Dawn noticed how the event has sparked a real connection with giving with her young children. She said that her 4-year old is still talking about "the people who don't have money for food," and the comment by her 6-year old when he suggested, "Maybe we could give them money in the bags too, so they could buy more food."

The Kimbrough Circle "Giving from the Heart" party had an objective of producing 24 full-day meal packets; however, 34 full-day meal packets were delivered to IHS on February 17th.

Other groups in the pipeline for adding to this total effort ...

Boy Scout Troop 79, located at Crozet United Methodist Church in Crozet, Virginia has a work project scheduled for February 22nd. Their objective is 100 full-day meal packets, according to Sandy Williams, speaking on behalf of the scouts. No group has ever assembled 100 full-day meals in one day, so this is going to be an exciting evening of energy and satisfaction of knowing that it is possible to make a genuine, positive impact in the lives of so many people.

Murray Elementary School (Ivy) Helping Hands Club, and their guidance leader, Jennifer LoCasale-Crouch, are presently fund-raising for food collection for an assembly and delivery session in March.

St. Paul's Episcopal Church Ivy Spirit Movers Sunday School assembled 20 meal packets on February 13th, and will present their project to the entire congregation at the February 20th worship service.

TJMC - UU children continue their productive ways with meal packet projects scheduled for February - March with an objective of 100 packets, and a similar objective in May. Their example is marvelous for other church groups to emulate.

In Summary...

The continued expansion of this Central Virginia IHS Meal Packet Program, which has now reached into several counties, is allowing for monetary contributions to be dedicated to a growing need for lodging support. Margaret Gorman is reviewing a "Rotation Map" for informing new participants as to those months when production of meal packets need an extra input.

However, full-day meal packets should contain items which have a solid shelf life for many, many months. Therefore, if a large number of packets is produced prior to the long summer or winter holiday breaks, which can effect scout and school club activities, then IHS is standing by for a call for pickup and delivery in any month which makes the activity convenient for all contributors.

Allow me to offer an example of how all of IHS objectives can come together with just one patient...

For purposes of privacy, in the not so distant past, a small child was released from the UVA Medical Center on a Friday. The child was here with a grandparent, with no funds for sustaining outside the hospital environment. The child needed a prescription filled for pickup at the hometown pharmacy over 300 miles away, but Medicaid offices were closed for extended assistance. The ride home by Medicaid taxi was not available until the following morning. The status was this: no funds for food, lodging, and medications until arrival at home.

The social worker on duty called the pharmacy in the child's hometown, and indicated some specifics, and IHS paid for the medication to assist for a few days until Medicaid could be engaged again on Monday. IHS immediately booked a hotel room for the night near the hospital. The social worker then obtained several meal packets from the social worker office to feed the child and grandparent through several days until securely back at home.

You may ask and rightfully so...how many meal packets are needed? A definitive answer is difficult, for the need is experienced in all of the UVA Clinics. Lack of nutrition reaches long and short term residents at UVA Hospitality House, caregivers in Ronald McDonald House, many family members who have come to be near a loved one in critical care, and many outpatients with only funds for travel to the UVA Cancer Center for treatment, etc. etc. Dawn Cleveland and Margaret Gorman reminded their children to remember that one person staying as a caregiver for 60 days needs 60 full-day meal packets. It is a sobering example, and presently the IHS objective must be prepared with no less than 300 full-day meals monthly.

Blessings ... T. Wade Clegg III

A Marvelous Start for 2011 and what happened last year!

2011-01-30T12:02:00.000-08:00

January has it all, including the end of that long holiday period and lots of mixed weather (including snow), which can delay families and patients already strapped for funds for lodging and food. January also brought us new friends to add to the giving group that supports this all-volunteer charity.

Many new friends have learned of our efforts, especially with that very in-depth Daily Progress newspaper article of November 28, 2010. If the previous link fails, and you missed it, scroll back on the blog to the entry of November 29 and read it on-line. Also, please share it with a friend.

A few days ago I received an e-mail from a follower in northern Virginia. He asked if there are any similar charities serving people in his area. I indicated that IHS is serving patients and families from his very town! Many do not know that all of those receiving IHS lodging and food support come to the UVA Medical Center from distances ranging from 60 miles to hundreds of miles. Many do not know that this large teaching and trauma hospital is the home of specialties not easily found elsewhere - in cancer and infant care, among others. Therefore, IHS is quite literally a service to every Virginia locality.

2011 is the beginning of our third year and it's tax preparation time, which will be posted upon completion. Already, we are very close to filing the updated detailed information for review on GuideStar. There are also a lot of hyperlinks on our home page, which allows IHS to be as transparent as possible.

In March IHS will have its first opportunity, as a nonprofit public charity, to enroll in the annual Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign (CVC) for state workers. Look for further announcements about this in the months ahead.

You will be pleased to know that we continue to make a difference. Although IHS is independent of the UVA Medical Center, our close working relationship with social workers enables us to respond rapidly to unmet family and patient needs. Now... It's reporting time!

In summary: during 2010...

IHS assisted 259 people with lodging for 536 overnight stays. This included commercial hotel rooms and assistance at UVA Hospitality House.

IHS provided over 1,500 meals, mostly in the last six months of the year. Pinnacle Foods provided 500 large frozen dinner coupons early in the year, and the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Unitarian Universalist (TJM UU) Church in Charlottesville began its full-day Meal Packet Program in October. Margaret Gorman's Sunday School classes produced a total of 310 packets, and will continue their leadership role for the program into 2011.

IHS continued to sustain two funds that were established in the Office of Social Work. One meets Pay Grade 1 medical co-pays. The transportation fund covers the cost of commercial bus tickets or gas expenses for a patient's vehicle. Secondly, local transient tickets are issued to Charlottesville area patients following their UVA Medical Center appointments. This past year we donated $1,274.00 to these efforts in response to requests from the Office of Social Work.

IHS invited three advisors to become active board members, and each accepted and fills vital volunteer roles.

Margaret Gorman designed the full-day Meal Packet Program and a handout for guidance, then introduced it to Boy Scout and Cub Scout troops throughout central Virginia. They are now busily producing packets for 2011 deliveries. Other interested groups may e-mail Margaret at gormanmargaret@hotmail.com for further ideas and guidance.

Jean B. Lee has arrived after retiring as Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and has accepted the role of Development Officer. She has been attending CNE courses and is presently engaged in grant research and writing on behalf of IHS.

Danielle Devereux, a well known Charlottesville real estate broker for many years and a UVA Medical Center volunteer translator, has placed herself on standby for future projects, not the least being the IHS Vision project. Anyone interested in donating land for this long-term goal of establishing a permanent farm setting for IHS will have an expert to come and review the possibilities with the donor.

In the weeks ahead I will provide the names of those scouting groups and others who are making such a wonderful impact by producing full-day meal packets for delivery every two weeks to the UVA Medical Center Pediatric Clinic. This program is an opportunity not only for scouts, but also for church classes, clubs of all kinds, and school classes. We hope to spread production over the year, in order to meet our monthly goals.

With the Meal Packet Program in its present productive stage, monetary donations can be routed to the most demanding IHS obligation, namely lodging assistance. The colder, snowy months increase the need for lodging assistance. Your continued contributions keep the rooms available. Just sharing.

Sincerely ... T. Wade

A Personal Holiday Greeting from T. Wade Clegg III

2010-12-27T08:07:00.001-08:00

On behalf of our small pool of very active volunteers who make up Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum, and for all the UVA Medical Center social workers for whom we support for their concern for patients and families, please allow us all to wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday.

Thanks for so many days of lodging and eating for so many visitors to our community who have been allowed to have a hotel room and adequate food for their stay. It has been a marvelous year.

Just in case you missed the very definitive newspaper article in the Charlottesville Daily Progress of November 28, 2010, please read our blog entry directly beneath this article and the link to the newspaper article. Then share it with a friend or neighbor.

Allow me to leave this lovely bit of advice in your thoughts as a gift…

“Many men and women know the laws of mathematics and are skilled in the arts, but most know very little about the laws governing life, the art of living. One may be able to build an airplane and circle the globe and yet be entirely ignorant of the simple art of how to be happy, successful, and content. When studying the arts, place first upon the list the art of living.” Author Unknown

“Surely at the heart of the art of living… is the giving.” ... T. Wade

Blessings….T. Wade, Elisheva and Sam
Founding Members of IHS

A Personal Holiday Greeting from T. Wade Clegg III

2010-12-24T04:12:00.000-08:00

“Many men and women know the laws of mathematics and are skilled in the arts, but most know very little about the laws governing life, the art of living. One may be able to build an airplane and circle the globe and yet be entirely ignorant of the simple art of how to be happy, successful, and content. When studying the arts, place first upon the list the art of living.” Author Unknown

“Surely at the heart of the art of living… is the giving.” ... T. Wade

Blessings….T. Wade, Elisheva and Sam
Founding Members of IHS

Charlottesville's Daily Progress Newspaper highlights IHS's charitable efforts!

2010-11-29T11:40:00.000-08:00

It is not likely that many of you have heard of or read The Daily Progress of Charlottesville, Virginia; however, please turn your attention to a front page Sunday article, November 28, 2010. Here is the direct accessible link:

http://www2.dailyprogress.com/news/2010/nov/27/fluvanna-couple-helps-families-uva-patients-hotel--ar-679903/

We were truly gratified with the front page placement of a lengthy article with a few photographs on Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum.

This recognition of the charity's objectives comes at a most appropriate time. The holiday period through the winter months was the most pressing for lodging requirements last year, and to receive notice locally has such merit. Please open the link to the newspaper and read the article.

It's never too early or too late to tell you that we are blessed to be able to participate in this totally independent, non-religious public charity which is devoted to assisting the UVA Medical Center Social Workers who are serving families and patients who travel from great distances to this marvelous University of Virginia Medical Center.

Blessings....Elisheva, T. Wade and Sam
Founding Members of Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum

IHS Announces our First IRS Tax Return available on line!

2010-11-17T12:02:00.001-08:00

I know that most of you reading this short entry received some important updates on November 12, but this update needed to be added. Although it is not required, we have decided to post the 2009 Tax Return. It can now be accessed from the IHS "Home" page or directly here: IRS Form 990-EZ.

What will be evident is that all of us serving the charity are volunteers. Yes...hours are posted for the record, but those hours represent a minimum required in the initial year, and throughout 2010 we have been accessible 24/7 for social worker contact.

Beginning in 2010 we allowed all wedding couples who use our ministerial services to donate a sizable part of their wedding fee directly to IHS for a tax deduction. That allowance not only gave each wedding an added depth of meaning, it has become a prominent source of income to sustain the charity, since IHS has never received a grant or an adequate number of consistent monthly donors.

Food Support from Charlottesville's Thomas Jefferson Memorial Unitarian Universalist Church has made such a difference in recent months. Their objective of 200 full day rations for caregivers at the UVA Hospital Pediatric Clinic will be realized after just one month. In fact, Teresa Bevins indicated that some of those gallon size zip lock bags, crammed with nutrition for a full day of eating for an adult, have been shared with caregivers at the Children's Cancer Center which is experiencing the same needs.

Someone asked a prominent question last week, "Are you telling me that those parents are here for weeks on end and without funds to properly eat?"

How were so many of these parents and family members who are here for weeks and months being sustained for their food needs? Isn't it evident from reading Teresa Bevins plea in the April 2010 entry? The answer is that they were going hungry most days, while their children were being treated by the most expensive and best care possible. Some were eating once a day from their own depleted funds. Some were being given money from social workers, nurses, doctors just to get by for a few days. Yes, some staff was sharing when these circumstances were noticed, since all too often these caregivers will simply allow themselves to be hungry before seeking assistance. There is already the feeling that their children are receiving excellent medical treatment, and to relate that they are going hungry is not acceptable. Pride can and has left far too many malnourished.

Someone else asked, "Where did those late night arrivals to the Medical Center sleep before you guys got involved?"

That question has been answered from the day this charity started.

"THEY WERE SLEEPING IN THE CORNER OF A LOBBY WHEN ALLOWED. THEY WERE SLEEPING IN THEIR CARS. WITH CHILDREN. THEY WERE EATING CRACKERS AND SODA FROM A MACHINE."

Two nights ago at midnight, we received a call for an overnight social worker. A family had arrived with their child from southern Virginia. He was checked and released for a NEXT morning appointment in the medical center. Not entered as expected, and with inadequate funds for a hotel room, and a policy of no children in UVA Hospitality House, and too late for check-in at Ronald McDonald House, the social worker had only one place to call. He called IHS. Problem solved.

This was the third late night call for similar situations in two weeks with children. In the past a social worker was placed in the most awkward of positions. Please consider the strain on a social worker who has to tell a parent there is nothing he or she can do.

This was the past...and these situations must remain a thing of the past. They simply must!

It's that time of year when we are told that giving is most prominent. We are hopeful that a wind is headed into your life and the spirit of giving will allow you to share some of it with us. We have some pressing lodging needs at this time and winter brings a renewed sense of urgency.

I am only asking for each of you to seek to provide a few dollars a month.

If 500 friends can provide $5 a month, this will form a base for maintenance.

If more is possible, we will keep the pantry filled with food in Pediatrics, and the co-pay fund prepared and ready.

Please review what is possible. We will continue to perform full-time and allow our ministerial fees to sustain to the extent possible, but truthfully, we need your assistance now.

Blessings…T. Wade and Elisheva Clegg

Notes for November - an Update for Friends

2010-11-11T17:30:00.001-08:00

It seems hard to believe, but we are now at that 2 YEAR MARK AS A CHARITY. Yes, the actual retroactive date on our IRS notice was November 13, 2008, but we began exploration before that date, and necessarily had to wait until June 2009 to engage in activities to begin assistance. The challenges began from day one, and they have not diminished. UVA Medical Center Social Workers were often faced with too many who could not afford lodging, food, co-pays and periodic transport needs. Nothing has changed, EXCEPT that IHS provided another safety net, a "go-to responder" accessible 24 hours every day.

Please consider the numbers assisted

The figures are significant from that beginning in June 2009 when the phone line was opened for social workers to call and indicate specific needs. The main emphasis has been and will remain a need for TEMPORARY lodging for those who arrive from considerable distances without adequate funds.

November has started with an increased need for commercial hotel rooms, since UVA Hospitality House (HH) becomes fully booked weekly. This period is especially challenging since funds seem to diminish at the same time as the need increases. Not counting this first two weeks in November 2010, and since the beginning activity for lodging in June 2009, this charity has provided for 356 people in 563 overnight rooms. These people, often with children, would simply not have had a place to sleep had this challenge not begun.

The original lodging objective has continued and expanded

Two methods of assistance were established: (1) When UVA Hospitality House (HH) is full, or a family with a child under 18 arrives and cannot be accommodated at HH, then this charity will place those who have been fully screened and approved by a social worker in selected commercial hotels for temporary stays, and (2) When HH has a room available and a visitor simply cannot afford that extremely reasonable and often flexible fee, then IHS will assist.

Since those initial months, IHS has expanded assistance to the extent possible and paid for many visitors to Ronald McDonald House (RMH). This occurs when a family arrives prematurely or RMH has found its eighteen rooms fully booked. In addition, there are many occasions over the last year when out-patients for the Cancer Center need to stay for 4-5 weeks in HH for chemotherapy, and special rates are allowed for the patient and IHS will contribute to secure the stay.

Just this past week another problematic pregnancy resulted and the patient was not able to return home where there are no medical facilities to handle her condition. IHS placed the family in a hotel and then arranged for up to 28 days assistance as needed at HH while waiting for the new arrival. Yes, this is more than temporary, but working with the very capable Manager of Hospitality House, we have both learned to stretch to meet unusual situations.

Food Project is receiving marvelous support

Several months ago we received our first request for consistent food assistance from Clinical Social Worker Teresa Bevins in the UVA Medical Center Pediatric Clinic. Her emotional appeal is seen in the blog entry of April 27, 2010. Scroll back and read it again, since these same caregivers and others continue to arrive and now receive daily meals.

One manufacturer extended a helping hand with 500 coupons for family size frozen dinners. Pinnacle Foods, one of the nation's largest producers, has made these early months in the program so manageable; however by January 2011, those coupons will have all been used.

A New participant has come forward at just the right time

Early last month Margaret Gorman of the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Unitarian Universalist Church in Charlottesville offered to engage families in her neighborhood, then the children in her church. Every two weeks Margaret's kids spend time making zip lock gallon packets filled with items for a fully nutritional day of eating. This marvelous project has now received full support from the church's Social Action Council, and is presently providing a significant impact in this monthly need at the Medical Center. In one month alone they have provided 80 full day rations for the caregivers who are waiting with their seriously ill infants in the Pediatric Clinic.

Margaret has asked to become a very active part of our local outreach program. She doesn't have an official title, but suggested that "Meal Packet Trainer" might be appropriate. Margaret has made a science out of her kid's project from procuring items to filling the packets, and all with the intent of providing a fully nutritional 1300 calorie offering. She is ready and prepared to offer guidance if a church or organization (such as girl and boy scouts) in or near Charlottesville, Virginia wishes to learn and/or share in this terrific experience of dedicated giving. Anyone who would like to know how Margaret has modeled her program, please e-mail her at gormanmargaret@hotmail.com.

It is absolutely amazing how one small group of children with a monthly objective of a few dozen full day rations in one gallon zip lock bags every other week can impact our need. If just a few more groups can reach out monthly and join Margaret's Sunday School classes, the load can be shared and sustained in a marvelous manner.

November is our month for the "Nickels for Non-Profits" program at Whole Foods Market in Charlottesville, VA

It is so gratifying to be selected again to participate in this Whole Foods charitable opportunity. The Market is located at 300 Shoppers World Court along US 29 North in town. In case you are not aware of the program, local non-profits are featured on a collection box prominently displayed for exiting shoppers to place their wooden nickels received from the cashier at check-out. You have to ask the cashier for the nickels as you complete payment for merchandise, and upon leaving you drop the nickels into the slot which says Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum.

IHS is featured as one of the two nonprofits for the entire month of November. Customers from as far away as 30 miles of the Charlottesville store come to shop at Charlottesville's largest organically oriented food market. Please take a moment to remind a friend or family member who lives in the area to remember this opportunity throughout November. Those nickels can turn into hundreds of dollars to support lodging, co-pay and food needs.

Don't be shy! Giving has such a healing power.

It's Thanksgiving, and we are so thankful for those who remember that we depend on funds solely from friends and acquaintances who receive this monthly blog. Remember... that as little as $10 can secure a person in Hospitality House, and $50 for one night in a hotel when that is the remaining alternative.

Here is our direct donation link for your convenience:

http://interfaithhumanitariansanctum.org/donate.php

Also remember what we said from day one:

"NO MORE CHILDREN SLEEPING IN CARS OUTSIDE THE UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA MEDICAL CENTER. NO MORE FAMILIES GOING HUNGRY WHILE A LOVED ONE LINGERS IN CRITICAL CONDITION. NO MORE!"

Thank you for your support over this holiday period. It is very much needed.

Blessings....Elisheva, T. Wade and Sam
Founding Members of Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum

Young People at Thomas Jefferson Memorial Church -Unitarian Universalist in Charlottesville, VA are Making a Difference

2010-10-29T14:18:00.000-07:00

On Sunday October 24 I visited the TJM Unitarian Universalist (UU) Church located at 717 Rugby Road in Charlottesville for their morning service. Since meeting members Margaret Gorman and Leia Durland-Jones several weeks ago, and not having any out of town engagement last Sunday, I drove to town and joined the congregation as a first time visitor at their 11:15 AM service.

Perhaps you will remember my mention of Margaret’s ideas for assisting with our food efforts for UVA Medical Center caregivers in the Pediatric Clinic from the September 29 blog entry.

I did not know that IHS would be the lead topic in their Sunday Bulletin, nor that a thorough explanation would be presented to the congregation regarding the church’s planned participation. It was a truly gratifying experience.

Margaret Gorman had researched items for consideration for food packets to provide no less than 1300 calories for a one day’s ration for recipients, and explained in her presentation and in the bulletin some most helpful tips. I did not know that the high school Sunday school class was busy filling up 24 zip lock full-day rations that morning, and completed them and gave to me for delivery the next day to Teresa Bevins in the hospital. It was the second such delivery in the past two weeks. Margaret had begun by soliciting in her own neighborhood, and scouted for sales and ideas to present to parents and children.

I am providing that excerpt from the UU bulletin, for it provides ideas which can prove most helpful for reference for other churches and organizations in the future who may wish to assist in this never ending need. I am using the bulletin ideas since the food recipients do not have access to kitchens, just microwave ovens in the hospital.

Items which allow for ease of preparation and consumption are necessary. The innovation with enclosure of a microwavable disposable bowl and some plastic utensils does offer diversity for preparation in case small cans are used as a part of the assorted items for a one day’s ration. Just ideas to consider.

Some groups or churches may wish to provide funds from their outreach program, which will go to our largest funding need, namely funds for lodging, co-pay and transport; however, any church, neighborhood group, nursery school, school class, or even a business, with a desire to replicate or diversify with these food ideas can help secure our present needs, as we enter the holiday season with increased demand. Remember – IHS is a public charity, and even the smallest donation of $5, when provided as a check, is proof of a charitable donation for tax deduction consideration. Just a reminder.

By the way please note the expiration dates on food items. This is prominent, so that items can be stored for several months if any one product arrives in large numbers and needs to be distributed over a longer period in the months ahead.

The lead item in the October 24, 2010 UU Sunday Bulletin reads:

“TODAY… Food Drive for Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum (IHS).

Our children will be creating, in their Religious Education classes, one-day meal packets families for patients (and caregivers) at UVA who come from far away for care and cannot afford food or housing while they are here. We need particular food items to make the packets: one one-gallon zip lock plastic bags, napkins, spoons and forks, instant oats, instant grits, breakfast bars, granola bars – the healthy kind, Minute Maid vitamin fortified 100% orange juice boxes or other 100% fruit juice boxes, single serving boxed milk, 5 oz. cans mixed fruit in light syrup with a flip top lid, single serving packets of peanuts, other nuts or crackers, Minute Rice single serving microwavable rice, especially Spanish Rice (healthier), Chef Boyardee single serving (8.75 oz.) microwavable meals, Hormel single serving microwavable meals, Healthy Choice single serving microwavable meals and soups, Campbell’s soup to go, single serving and microwavable, other food items (not cookies and candies) that you think would be a good addition to a meal pack for one person for one day.”

A special thanks to Margaret Gorman and her very organized group of teens who are making our food delivery trips to the hospital much more substantial.

Blessings .... T. Wade Clegg III

Our place in the scheme of things is not diminishing!

2010-09-30T11:29:00.000-07:00

Allow me to catch you up on some happenings recently. Some will touch on previous activities, but repetition of needs is why charities exist. Please read through the various topics and think about ways you can assist. It only takes a few minutes!

NO MORE FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN SLEEPING IN CARS...I MEANT IT!

I know many of you think it was a one-time event when I said I found it alarming that a family with children who comes to UVA Medical Center are sometimes left with no alternative but to sleep in their car. It was that first exposure which made it evident that we needed to make sure this seldom, if ever, happens. This charity's presence has practically eliminated that from happening.

It is worth reminding everyone why and how this happens. And it happens monthly that someone is spared the uncomfortable and degrading circumstance of not having a place to sleep with a child or children while waiting and monitoring another child or relative in the UVA Medical Center. It happened again last night.

The social worker called at 2 AM concerned that a couple with an infant in the hospital was too late for entering Ronald McDonald House (RMH) and that the next available entry time would be 1 PM. The UVA Hospitality House (HH) does not take in people with children under 18, and this couple had a toddler with them, in addition to the infant in the hospital. They live hundreds of miles from Charlottesville.

The social worker said, "I'm concerned that they have this child and they've mentioned that they will sleep in the car until RMH has an opening later in the afternoon. That's eleven hours, and I just wanted to know what you can do."

Please remember that a UVA Social Worker already knows the situation with each patient and family regarding their financial status. This is not a guessing game. So - the answer was simple. This was no ordinary night. It was blowing rain and humid and a miserable night under any circumstance. This is exactly the kind of situation which should alarm all of us. I made contact with one of the three hotels which works with us, and booked a room for the family immediately.

This intimate and immediate working arrangement with the social staff and our availability 24/7 is the most effective way to remove an immediate need for lodging and food. NOW - all we need is your generosity to help us pay for the rooms and keep this safety net strong.

Regarding Food Supplies

The family above also had access to a frozen dinner or microwavable meal which we supply several times monthly for monitor Teresa Bevins, clinical social worker. Food access for all social workers for those with little or no funds to balance their stay has become a vital assist. That includes the 24-hour social workers in the Emergency Department (ED), who can access a few meals as he or she determines is needed immediately.

Last week we delivered up to 60 meals on Monday, and then again 60 on Friday. Teresa said it had been a particularly active month. We received some really needed assistance from the Pinnacle Foods Corporation in New Jersey with manufacturer coupons of 100 frozen meals monthly through December 2010. This represents about 25% of the frozen meals needed at this time. This was a really big deal, and we are so appreciative for this assistance from this giant corporation, which seldom reaches out so far for a very small charity. Yet - the people at Pinnacle heard the appeal and responded for this set period of time.

It would really be nice if you would send a thank you to Mr. Bob Gamgort, CEO, Pinnacle Foods Group, 1 Old Bloomfield Avenue, Mountain Lakes, NJ 07046. This is a multi-billion dollar firm. They took the time to read our appeal for assistance and actually committed to 500 Hungry Man dinners. This was so heartening. Does your note or thank you card count? YOU BET IT DOES!

A local lady heard the call also

I have never met Margaret Gorman, but she sent an e-mail and made a wonderful suggestion. She said, "My friend Alyson Ball of the Center for Nonprofit Excellence (CNE) gave me your information card recently."

(Margaret is referring to the IHS card which is about our last blog entry regarding the excellent article written and seen at the CNE website. If you missed it, please see the last blog entry.)

Margaret continued, "I am a volunteer at our church and am designing some religious education lessons for the elementary school children. We are the Unitarian Universalist congregation on Rugby Road near the University of Virginia. For the month of November I'd like to have the children create gift bags to give to people who could use them. We think we could make between 50-75 zip lock gallon plastic bags with granola bars, dried fruit, and so on. The children could create greeting cards with messages of friendship and caring to tuck into the bags, and we could put them in a box for you to distribute."

I wrote back that this was a grand idea, and suggested some items which make for a really nutritious balance to include microwavable soups such as Healthy Choice and Campbell's Chunky meals, just as suggestions.

Then Margaret came back with an update yesterday. "This morning I sent an e-mail to my neighbors, asking for money and some of the foods you suggested. So far, two have responded, and I expect more will help. Patrick, my 17-year old son will help scour the stores for the sales next Saturday. I have invited neighborhood children to help pack meal bags, and I think some of them will participate. This is aside from the food drive project for our Sunday School. "

Thanks to Margaret, Patrick and all their participants. I hope this will give each of you an idea of what one person can do to assist in the elimination of hungry visitors to our community in a time of great stress. Also to those of you who can simply send a small check of $5, $10 or more, we will use the funds to balance all of the needs which are presented.

Please note that we are still actively funding the co-pay fund

During the last 30 days, we have twice added to the co-pay fund in the Office of Social Work. Some of you may not know that we supplement this needed social work program as requested for Pay Grade 1 category patients (indigents). Just sharing.

In closing, allow me to make special mention

Since April 2009 when we first needed those initial donations, two contributors have never missed sending a significant donation every single month. Others have sent significant periodic donations. But - I just wanted to thank Dr. Jean B. Lee of Madison, Wisconsin (soon to be a Charlottesville resident), and Pope and Cassandra McElvy of Asheville, North Carolina for their consistent giving to a charity which is so far from them, yet so close to their hearts.

YOU are ALL our strength in this very important effort. We are ALL volunteers in this project. We just happened to be at a time and place in our lives to funnel some of the giving.

Blessings ... Chaplain Elisheva

IHS spotlighted for September 2010

2010-09-09T09:29:00.000-07:00

Most vibrant, giving communities have a local resource dedicated to strengthening nonprofits to realize the potential of that community. That resource in Central Virginia, especially the Charlottesville, Virginia area, is Center for Nonprofit Excellence (CNE).

Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum (IHS) has been a member since 2008. CNE has over 250 nonprofits, businesses, and consultants working to enhance the quality of life for all area residents.

For September 2010 CNE is spotlighting IHS! Visit their website at www.thecne.org, click on News & Features, locate Member Spotlight, or access the article directly at the following link: http://www.thecne.org/newsitem.php?id=184

Your kindness in forwarding this rare article on this charity to others is indeed appreciated.

Sincerely…T. Wade Clegg III, A Founding Member, IHS

A Giant Corporation and a Tiny Catholic Church

2010-08-29T17:03:00.000-07:00

A giant corporation and a tiny Catholic Church both reached across the miles to assist this small charity in its efforts to weave a stronger safety net.

August 2010 brought us two supportive partners, namely Pinnacle Foods Group, headquartered in Mountain Lakes, New Jersey, and Christ the King Catholic Church in Abingdon, Virginia.

Pinnacle Foods began providing coupons to assist with purchases of their brand of large frozen dinners, at least through the end of 2010. This has made such a difference, as you will recognize in the e-mail (see below) we received from Teresa Bevins, Clinical Social Worker and coordinator of the program at the UVA Medical Center Pediatric Clinic. The Pinnacle assist covers half of our present monthly need, a big share indeed.

In her very personal note to me, Michelle Weese, Pinnacle Foods Communications, stated:

“First, let us commend you for the fabulous works you are doing for the families visiting the UVA Medical Center. The role you are playing as an advocate for these families is one that is very important. We realize that these families are going through life changing experiences and the trials that they are enduring are difficult. It is people like you that make a difference as you care for their needs and bring them the daily kindnesses that get them through the day, the week, and the event in their life. Thank you for your dedication and the tireless hours you spend caring for people. In response to your original appeal to us, Pinnacle Foods will be sending you coupons for frozen dinners monthly for the balance of 2010. We hope that this removes the worry for the basic need for food for some of the families who will be spending time at the UVA Medical Center. Our best wishes go out to those families and we hope that you can convey that for us. Best of luck in your charitable endeavors and again, thank you for your outreach to us.”

The other consistent contributor is Christ the King Catholic Church in Abingdon, Virginia. Abingdon is over 250 miles from Charlottesville.

Pastor Father Paul Maier wrote:

“Dear Friends, by way of explanation, our church hopes to make this a monthly pledge ($50) for as long as we are able. Remote Area Medical (RAM) clinic follow-up patients will be heading to Charlottesville, so perhaps our little bit will help. God Bless…Father Paul.”

The RAM clinic patients referred to by Father Paul are those who have been treated in the free clinic in Wise, Virginia, and will often be sent to Charlottesville for further diagnosis and treatment. Most frequently they are unemployed, without insurance, and other than the free clinic, they have no access to medical and dental treatment. Father Paul and his small church became aware of IHS support of social workers who assist these long distance patients. IHS functions solely in support of the UVA Medical Center Social Staff.

Last Friday we received the following note from Teresa Bevins, in which she asked specifically to relate her note to those who support IHS with donations. She wrote:

“Dear Reverends Clegg, as usual we stay quite busy with families in need here at the hospital. Today , as last Friday also, I was contacted by adult social workers with caregivers and patients that were staying in the community to receive chemotherapy or radiation and did not have funds to eat. Fortunately, I had a significant amount of frozen meals and breakfast items that IHS donated to us and was able to meet these needs for 3 adult patients/ caregivers. It is understatement to say how much your valiant efforts are appreciated by the UVA Social Work Department in pursuing outside donations through your charity to help us meet these deserving people of various communities around Virginia. Some of these patients will be here for many weeks per our oncology social worker Vikki Bravo. It is a pleasure for us as social workers to be able help these deserving individuals and families in their time of need. In addition, I referred another social worker to you for lodging.

I know I speak for myself and others to say IHS is making a difference in the lives of patients and families here at UVA. It always amazes me how those with the least often try to donate such as the church you mentioned in your e-mail to me. These are truly angels working on the behalf of mankind. Please feel free to share my letter with your benefactors, as I am sure they will appreciate knowing the wonderful work you both are doing. Sincerely, Teresa Bevins BSW, Clinical Social Worker, UVA Children’s Hospital”

As many contributors and readers know, IHS has a responsibility to observe confidentiality of patients, and this we do with diligence. Therefore, it is so very much appreciated when a social worker relates exactly how the funds are beneficial from their own personal experiences.

Your $5-$25-$50 donation keeps the lodging and food available. Your discussion with your church, your golf club, your service club, your business, your own family to place us on an outreach program is so very much needed. Lodging donations are not presently matching the need. Please consider us in your giving, even with a few dollars a month. No one working for this charity receives a dime, and we are personally the largest donor to support this effort. Your gift is totally aimed at bills for lodging, food, travel and co-pays.

Direct link to IHS Donation Site: http://www.interfaithhumanitariansanctum.org

Blessings…T. Wade Clegg III

Forgetting to Give

2010-07-16T18:24:00.000-07:00

We all experience grief when we see the visuals on television of a catastrophic event someplace in the world. It could be the eruption of a volcano, a tsunami, an earthquake, a hurricane or a flood. We still remember the pictures of Haiti from January of this year, and rightfully so!

It will take a long time for any type of normalization to be established. The majority of humans will immediately try to give what they can to alleviate the suffering and pain of the effected population. What always has a great impact are those pictures of suffering infants and children.

Seeing the outpouring of donations always makes me feel good knowing there are people who still care about others. At the same time I would like to remind all my friendship network not to forget the suffering and pain close by – right here in your back yard.

It’s not visually available on a television screen. So, when I write to you about the “unmet needs”, when I write to you about a mother sitting for weeks in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) or when there is a husband, wife or family members in need of lodging and food while awaiting the outcome of their loved one at UVA Medical Center, or a patient coming for treatment from a long distance but with no place to sleep and nothing to eat, I can only hope that you can visualize this yourself within your heart and minds.

I know television advertisements are very powerful, but we can only utilize the printed media to convey the suffering, agony, pain right here in our back yards. It’s a BIG BACK YARD – it’s West Virginia, North Carolina, Maryland, DC and right here in Virginia.

The patients come from all these areas, and so do the unmet needs with them. The need for food in the freezers at the hospital has increased. The need for lodging and accommodations is increasing consistently as well as co-pays and subsistence for medical co-pays and transportation. These needs for funding are rising monthly.

Please remember we are a non-paid staff. We don’t have a fancy office. Every dollar donated is being allocated back to the charity and these needs. There are no fancy advertisements or pictures in your mailbox. Wade, Sam and I are still the largest contributors to the charity. So far, we have not had to turn anyone down or say , “No!” to any request, BUT it is getting very hard. And, I am worried about the future to be able to meet these unmet needs!

Is it possible next time you receive a IHS blog describing one of these cases, you visualize this case in your minds as vividly as sharply as any television plea or advertisement would be? We are not taking care of the whole world. We are not expanding with office space and overhead into other areas.

We just want to take care of the true needs RIGHT HERE … of those who are in need of help here in our own back yard coming from such long distances!

Allow me to mention a few real life cases this past week. Please understand the sensitivity issue for hospital patients and their privacy, although the chances of a patient ever reading this blog is slim. Remember – we are not known to patients and families 99% of the time. They only know that a social worker is assisting them to secure assistance.

Call from social worker X: “Can you assist with two nights in Hospitality House(HH) for patient Y? She’s here for an ovarian cancer appointment. She has Medicaid but the kind that she has doesn’t pay for HH. She and her family driver can stay in one room together.” Note: This patient cannot even afford the $10 per night rate for hospitality house. Room is secured.

Call from social worker T: Alert e-mail: “We are extremely low on meals this week. Can we meet Thursday? We had a high turnover of patients over the past few days (July 4^th weekend). Families are very appreciative and this still continues to serve many areas of the hospital past the pediatric floors as my other social work colleagues are aware they can access the meals by paging me. We are down to about 5 meals on PICU, 7 on 7 west, and 7 on central. Thanks so much.” Note: We make contact with Teresa Bevins or associate every two weeks and shop and deliver within hours of an alert of low supplies (frozen dinners for at least three freezers).

Call from social worker K: “Indigent patient, stays in a home in southern Virginia, came up for an appointment on a one-way bus ticket that someone bought for him. Stayed last night in hospitality house (HH) (which he has no money for) and today missed his appointment because he couldn’t read the appointment slip. Has to stay over another night. No bus ticket home, and needs one more night in HH. Can you assist?” Note Response: If transportation fund in social work is low, we will reimburse for ticket home. Both nights in HH covered.

Call from social worker V: “Patient being treated for lung cancer coming from 5 hours away in Palliative Care Clinic. Has chronic pain. Return in same day very problematic, 10 hours on road. Not enough funds to balance a night here. Hospitality House (HH) full. Can you manage one night for her and her family driver in a hotel?” Note Response: Yes, here is her reservation number. Ask if she has enough money for food while in hospital. Access to freezer for sign-out is available through you.

T. Wade tells a story of his Mother’s admonition when he was a boy in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. She would ask him almost every day, “Wade, have you checked on Miss Cora?” Miss Cora was the elderly woman just down the street. Wade’s Mother (Grace Wells McCullough Clegg) had a list of people in her mind that she called, visited and delivered hot meals. Grace was the ultimate example of caring for others with special needs. Watching out for Miss Cora is very much at the core of this charity’s existence.

There has never been a dedicated charity which responds with such immediacy to back up the UVA social workers seeking to serve so many clients coming to this major medical center. We are seeking diligently to maintain that posture for temporary assistance as their final safety net.

Will you help us out now by clicking below and reaching into your hearts? http://www.interfaithhumanitariansanctum.org/donate.php

Blessings…Elisheva

Food supplies making a real impact!

2010-06-23T19:27:00.000-07:00

Teresa Bevins, clinical social worker in UVA Medical Center Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) sent me a few notes this week. She related a recent case of a mother whose child from northern Virginia transferred here from an outside hospital. The woman speaks very little English and requires an interpreter; however, she was able to tell Teresa that she had no money, and her friends were watching her other kids at home and she needed help.

After providing this young mother with a number of meals, she responded to Teresa with, “God bless you” in Spanish.

Teresa has notified other social staff that they just need to page her to access the meals which IHS is providing directly to Teresa and stored in freezers in PICU every two weeks. There is a sign-out procedure in place, which has now extended access to all social workers in the main hospital to meet these family needs, even overnight.

Teresa said that this monthly stocking of freezers has enabled parents to stay with their little ones and not stress about how to afford a meal. She added, “Your efforts and those of donors who support you, are truly a blessing to so many families.”

A tiny safety seat is no small thing…

We have now received three calls in the last year from social staff for assistance with child safety seats. Last week it was for a booster seat for a child from out of state who was sent to the Medical Center in an ambulance. The family had a seat at home, but it was not brought with them when they were transported to be with the child. The family did not have funds to buy another one, and had already received gas vouchers to help get them home. A child cannot be discharged until he or she is able to be discharged to a vehicle for safe travel, and the booster seat made that happen. The seat can be used for the child’s little sister next year when she will need the extra one for traveling. We made the purchase of the seat and delivered it quickly.

Lodging needs shift monthly…

May and June have been active for fee assistance for UVA Hospitality House, especially for patients and families in need of week- long stays. It’s the most reasonable room rate around, but when one has no funds to stay for the week or balance that stay by not eating, then the most economical room is not reasonable.

Commercial hotel rooms are still very much used when Hospitality House is either full or a child is out of necessity with a family member. Also, when a child arrives with a family member by Medicaid taxi and Ronald McDonald House is full and not able to receive them upon arrival, then the alternative is a hotel room , of which many arrivals can simply not afford. IHS has assisted numerous times over the last year, and again last week.

Lodging funds running very low…

Most of you know that we are personally the largest funding source for this charity, and we are now doing that by allowing more couples to make their ministerial fee deposit as a donation directly to the charity. That is now about $150-$200 per wedding, but it is simply not enough to sustain lodging costs.

We only perform about 2-3 weddings a month throughout the year and those are generally concentrated from April –November. The other months are truly pressing. That means we are personally allowing ministerial fees up to $600 average monthly, and working full-time in the charity with overhead of accounting, legal, promotional and computer needs, and as you know, none of us takes a penny from these efforts. These internal costs are in addition to our direct donations to support the food, lodging, transport and co-pay donations. To say we could use your support is a bit of an understatement.

We know that most of you have a true appreciation for Virginia and the University Medical Center, which is a part of the University. The Med Center is a marvel with its new Cancer Center almost completed, its infant transplant clinic which is a magnet for the vast area served, and its trauma professionals serving all comers.

Sometimes, in all this building and professional offerings, some of those being served and their families are lost in the bigness of it all. So many arrive with a cry for help to the professional medical staff, but they are also crying from hunger and a place for their closest loved one to be near them through a crisis.

This charity was formed to seek to alleviate the unmet needs which are not noticed by the average insured and able visitors to this marvelous institution. We saw this need, and literally hundreds are helped. We are not asking for others to stop and witness this lost tribe in our own midst, those who are trapped without insurance and no work. We are only asking for a contribution so that WE CAN TAKE AWAY THE PAIN OF HAVING TO WORRY MORE ABOUT WHERE TO STAY THE NIGHT BEFORE OR AFTER A CRITICAL APPOINTMENT OR WHAT TO EAT, AND CONCENTRATE FOR THIS SHORT STAY ON THEIR CANCER, THEIR MISCARRIAGE, THEIR CHILD’S DEATH-THREATENING DISEASE.

When a social worker calls, she or he is asking to help them with assistance to remove these extra depressing needs of hunger and shelter. We are asking for your support to allow us to reduce the pressures which can literally kill people who feel they have nowhere to turn.

Try to imagine the pain of a father’s emptiness when sitting with a small child with a suitcase in a giant hospital lobby, just hoping a social worker can arrange a room for tonight, so he doesn’t have to suffer the embarrassment of staying in a lobby or car with a child who will enter the hospital tomorrow for treatment of a critical disease. IMAGINE PLEASE… AND MAKE AN EFFORT IN THE SMALLEST WAY THIS MONTH.

We have asked periodically for your consideration for as little as $5-$10-$20 monthly as a charitable contribution for an annual tax deduction. We know the range is wide, but if we could simply encourage each of you to consider a consistent pattern, it would be so appreciated.

Thank you for hearing….Blessings… Elisheva and T. Wade

A Personal note from Rev. Elisheva Clegg

2010-05-13T08:56:00.000-07:00

This will be a short note with a reminder of another permanent project to meet an unmet need on behalf of patients and families who are being served by the University of Virginia Medical Center. This charity is the net that is catching many of those most in need who are not served by any other source.

I’m sure you remember that emotional appeal about two weeks ago from Social Worker Teresa Bevins in the UVA Medical Center Pediatric Surgery Clinic. Teresa
stressed the need for food assistance for the parents who linger for weeks and months constantly by their babies as they await major surgery, including so many transplant procedures.

The toll on a parent who must divide their income while sleeping next to their child and also seeking to maintain a home with other children hundreds of miles from Charlottesville is simply unaffordable, and many of these parents simply go without eating because of lack of funds. Teresa made it very evident what was happening in her long e-mail which I posted as the last charity blog entry at http://www.interfaithsanctum.blogspot.com/.

The staff in pediatric surgery voiced their appreciation to Teresa, who called me about how much this support means. Then today, May 12th I received a follow-up to alert me that the staff has been monitoring the food supplies and that first delivery to cover about 3 weeks need is almost depleted. I have responded that IHS will make another food purchase tomorrow and deliver directly to the hospital on May 13th. The deal was: “Let us know when to resupply, and we will.”

Please know that we are personally allowing most couples this year to donate half of their weekend wedding fees directly to the charity for our services. They receive a tax deduction for the donation. We are limited as to how much we can personally allow from personal earnings, and I will be very open with you, that we have reached a limit. As you know, no one associated with IHS receives a salary.

Remember: $5 a month buys 5 meals; $10 a month pays for onenight in UVA Hospitality House; $50 a month allows a family with a child to stay for one night in a commercial hotel until there is room in Ronald McDonald House.

Someone asked if we have a church or a congregation, and T. Wade said, “Yes we do, but they don’t know us; they are those who come from everywhere to be served by a wonderful medical facility, and we are here to make sure they don’t go hungry, and never have to sleep in a car with their children.”

Your compassion with assistance to eliminate these situations of hunger and the stress of where to sleep is making such a difference.

Blessings…Elisheva

A Very Important Request for families of pediatric patients

2010-04-26T17:49:00.000-07:00

A Personal note from Rev. Elisheva Clegg

On April 19th I received a very heartfelt and emotional e-mail from Teresa Bevins, social worker at UVA Medical Center. I will not seek to summarize what is so concisely written in her appeal on one detailed page. Names and detailed information is often altered for privacy purposes.

On April 23rd, T. Wade and I met with the Assistant Manager Katherine Runkle at the Barracks Road Kroger Store in Charlottesville, Virginia, who assisted us with sales items and a $10 gift card, and provided at her own expense four(4) insulated carrying bags for frozen foods and then donated half of the expense of the needed items to the charity for the pediatric ward for a 2-3 weeks supply. Teresa’s request was honored within the week, and future deliveries monthly will be determined based on need.

Whether it’s $5.00 for a few frozen meals, $10.00 for a one night stay at UVA
Hospitality House, $50.00 for a commercial hotel room, or whatever is possible for the general fund to meet all of these needs and more, your consideration for support is vital to these patients and family members.

Dear Reverend Clegg,

Thank you so much for your call on Friday. I will give
you a few case scenarios of the types of issues , families of our pediatric patients face while here at UVA.

Case 1: Adam is a 10 year old boy recently diagnosed with congestive heart failure, previously healthy, and now awaiting a heart transplant. This child cannot leave the hospital until a heart is found. His health condition is so precarious that the doctors cannot risk him being discharged at this time. He has lost a twin sibling of the same disorder several years ago. His single mother is struggling to be here and has not been able to work at her job which only pays minimum wage. They live 4 hours away from UVA and mother does not have a car. She relies on gas vouchers I donate for a friend to bring her to be with her child, but also to return home as needed for other children. She has no funds to eat and I secure a donated food box weekly from a local charity, but its contents are not enough for her to survive. She is very gracious and grateful for any food.

Case 2: Carmen is a 2 month old infant with a congenital heart problem at birth. She has never been home and her mother stays by her side and also awaits the time that her child is strong enough to go home after numerous surgeries. Mother speaks little English and father must try to continue to work so they have a home to return to. Father is struggling on low wages and little is left over to feed mother at the hospital and buy the gas he needs to travel here on weekends. Family lives 3 hours away. Mother is scared to leave her child for more than a bathroom break or shower. She also gets a food box but it does not meet all her needs. She is also very grateful for the assistance she gets.

Case 3: Johnny is a 7 year old receiving IV antibiotics for a clean out for his Cystic Fibrosis. He will be here for several weeks. He is one of 4 children in his family. Mom is divorced with no dad present, and her minimum wage job barely feeds the children at home and pays the rent. Mother has no money to eat and also relies on weekly food box from local charity and this doesn't meet her needs when she is here. She relies on extended family to care for the other children and Medicaid taxis to bring her here for the few times she is able to go home and check on the other children.

Case 4: Shania age 9. She and her family were in route to visit grandparents and were hit by another driver which resulted in her breaking a leg and arm. Her sibling sustained a head injury. Her father was injured also and is at another hospital. Mother accompanied the 2 children when they were transferred to UVA from Northern Virginia area. This family lives hundreds of miles away and has limited means. Mother is unable to afford the prices of cafeteria food and the food box she receives is not meeting her needs.

Although, we use food box donations, they are shrinking in size due to the increased numbers needing assistance in the local community. Often, parents have special dietary needs and cannot eat some of what is donated. Also, it is a 24 hour turn-around time before we can receive them and if the admission is on a Friday or the weekend we cannot order a food box until the following Monday which makes it arrive on Tuesday. These parents are struggling to survive and take care of their children. They often sleep bedside by their child and are not getting sufficient rest. Unfortunately, Ronald McDonald house stays full due to the large number of Cardiology patients we receive from all over Virginia due to the fact we are one of the few hospitals that do pediatric cardiology surgeries. We are also the trauma center for a large portion of Virginia and many patients are transferred to us from outside hospitals that cannot meet their medical needs. We in the social work department would be extremely grateful to be able to receive frozen meals for the parents/caregivers of these children so they can focus on being a support to their children. Most of the families we see are struggling financially before they have a health crisis and these crises often cause much stress for them and may lead to other issues without intervention from social work . We would like to be able to have emergency supplies of frozen or microwavable meals to provide support to these parents. If there is anything else you need from me, please do not hesitate to ask and I will gladly comply. Thank you for considering helping these families.

Sincerely…Teresa Bevins BSW, Clinical Social Worker

What we ALL do together matters. Love…US Elisheva

Things You Need to Know To Help Us Grow

2010-03-23T19:20:00.000-07:00

The other night I returned about 10 PM from a trip to UVA Hospitality House(HH) in Charlottesville. I had received a call about 5 PM from the Manager requesting assistance with food for a visitor who was simply without funds for eating. HH had some can foods on their shelves, but little else, and the staff had gone out and personally purchased cereal and a few incidental items, but nothing substantial for three days of eating.

One doesn’t need to ask, “How does one come from such a distance with so little to stay for an unexpected duration?” When a person’s spouse is near death, that’s all that one needs to know.

On several occasions in the last months, a person will be staying in HH and we will cover lodging for many days, sometimes working with the HH manager for a negotiated rate for as much as thirty (30) days. Perhaps it is a spouse, as described above, or an outpatient for extended radiation treatment. Too often, the person will already feel that what is being provided with lodging is already generous, and they will not say that they don’t have food money.

Sometimes this situation will not be related by a patient or family member to a social worker, and only discovered later, perhaps at Hospitality House by a staff member.

We are applying again for food grants this year, and hopefully someone will read our requests and offer a boost. Meanwhile, we must continue to allow you to understand the “boots on the ground” reality which continues. One can not depend on grants; at least 80% of all financial support must come from private contributions.

Let me back up and indicate how little it takes to feed someone as described above for the three days. When lodging is available, the per night stay at HH is $10 per person. It’s not asking a lot, but when one simply has no funds to last out their time in Charlottesville, then that $10 might as well be $100. But as you can calculate, as happened above, a 5-day HH lodging stay is $50.

As for food, the request for food stated above was for only three days. I drove straight to a local food store and located the best of the frozen dinners on sale, mostly two for one sale items. I received some good directions over the last months from the Nutritionist at the UVA Cancer Center for what is the best quality, especially for outpatient cancer patients we are assisting.

I came away with nine(9) excellent meals, and a case or 24 bottles of water. The dinners average $1.57 each, and the case was an astounding sales price of $2.50, or about ten cents a bottle. Not counting tax, that was $14.13 for nine dinners for three days of eating, and enough water bottles for extra guests at Hospitality House.

In other words, one person was fed for a total of about $1.67 per meal, or
$5.01 per day, or $15.03 for three days!

Can you see how much a difference you can help me make with $10 for a room, or $5 for a day’s food for one person? Please look at these figures again. Know that I will drive that 20 miles to town every day if asked, but we cannot do it alone. We really need the assistance from private donors.

We are still the largest single contributor but it only stretches so far…

I want you to know that we began this year to offer couples who are hosting large weddings, especially in larger venues of Virginia, Maryland and in Washington, DC, an opportunity to receive a total tax deduction for an increased wedding fee. We allow for a total tax deductible donation to support this charity in lieu of our ministerial fees, but we can only do this a few times monthly in summer.

This extra giving through our own funds can only stretch so far; therefore, I wanted you to know that we are continually giving of our own funds, our own time on call every day for social staff, and we still do not take a salary from this charity.

I am only asking for each of you to consider what is possible on a consistent basis for $5-$10 monthly which is a tax deduction. I know many can afford more, but even these small donations help so much.

Perhaps this very personal description assists in bringing our constant need home, especially lodging. Keep in mind that in our first nine (9) months we have
placed 176 people into 256 overnight rooms. About half were commercial rooms at $50 average per night. March bills are coming due. Don’t forget us.

We feel so very correct about the service we are providing to the patients and families who come with such meager funds from long distances to be served at this marvelous Virginia medical center. Consider us in your giving.

Blessings…T. Wade

The Snows kept coming…as did the need…and the needs were met!

2010-02-10T17:08:00.000-08:00

Allow me to come straight to the point. It’s cold, freezing, snowing and this is the third time in the last six weeks! Central Virginia and especially Charlottesville has been front row to each winter blast. Phones, electricity, computers have all been disrupted, and travel eliminated on several days each hit we took. However, business at the University of Virginia (UVA) Medical Center was as active as ever.

The Social staff at the Medical Center were not deterred, and as needed, each one reached us within hours even with excessive disruptive communication. You will be pleased to know that every request for assistance was met with a YES WE CAN!

We really do need your help. Requests for lodging assistance was and IS very active. During January alone, this non-religious, nonprofit, no stock, public charity with no paid staff booked 42 overnight rooms, serving a total of 32 people. Now it’s time to pay, and only a few consistent contributors remembered us.

As you know by now, as important as there are individual stories to tell as to how we assisted a patient with a child far from home, or a family with children arriving to be near a dying parent, this is the limit which can be stated due to privacy considerations. In several cases the snow simply eliminated travel home to West Virginia, southern and northern Virginia. Without our quick late afternoon and evening intervention with hotel rooms when children were involved or with payments at the UVA Hospitality House for patients to await a ride home, the ability to balance the extra days for these long distance visitors to this major hospital would have been non-existent.

April 15th is just around the corner. Your donation to Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum (IHS) is tax deductable. Our tax exempt IRS letter is located as a hyperlink on the home page of the website. By PayPal or check, just keep a record of the donation and file it for the deduction.

Most of you may not think of becoming a benefactor for a charity, but a consistent monthly bequest personally or from your business could truly make this endeavor so fundamentally sound…and always allows us to say YES. Whether $10 or more…it’s the consistency which is so very important.

Love…Rev. Elisheva

The snow is melting…the road to UVA Medical Center is active again

2010-01-06T19:16:00.000-08:00

Latest entry from Rev. T. Wade Clegg III

The biggest snow of record has melted in Charlottesville, and although extremely cold, activities are now at an increased pace.

The night the snow started falling caught so many off guard along the two lane Jefferson Parkway Highway (Highway 53) in front of Monticello, within hours the highway was shut down from so many cars off the side of the road, and eliminating passing. This was an indicator that anyone being dismissed as a patient from UVA Medical Center from a distance would be in for a surprise.

Fortunately only two people were stranded with no funds to take them through the three days they had to remain in Charlottesville. Both were from West Virginia, and the Hospitality House (HH) was full. There was simply no going over the mountain in a normal vehicle to reach West Virginia. They were extremely appreciative to know that someone was waiting to assist.

Today is January 6 as I write this update. As of the first five days of January, 14 patients and/or family members will be staying in lodging (hospitality house and commercial hotels) for a total of 17 nights. That’s 17 rooms booked in only 5 days. That’s a fast start and considerable expense in just under a week.

As you may know, when I tell little stories of specific situations concerning patients and/or families coming to UVA Medical Center, no names are mentioned. Also, sometimes the distance or place of residence will not be mentioned so as not to touch onto privacy. But – it does assist to let you know again and again the necessity for this charity and the service performed.

Very recently, a patient from no less than 100 miles away, needed to be here for a surgical procedure, not just a routine procedure, but a critical need. The patient has several children, and no supportive partner, just another adult to assist during these trying times. The Hospitality House (HH) can not accommodate the patient who needed the children nearby.

Without a place to stay the day before the procedure, the patient told the social worker that a cancellation was necessary, since funds for lodging were not available. There would not be enough money to feed the kids. They had to be with the patient.

The social worker called and said, “I know it’s late (about 5:30 PM) but this is the situation and this patient needs to have this surgery on schedule tomorrow. Can you help?”

The answer is always YES. Three days in a commercial hotel for the children and adult as they stayed close to the patient, but were able to return to a hotel room each night.

What a difference WE (you and you and us) are all making by securing these rooms, whether in HH or a commercial hotel. The four commercial hotels are five times higher than HH, but we are still afforded the best rates in the community. But as you begin to crunch the numbers, 17 rooms in 6 days is pointing to an expensive month.

Don’t forget about us. Whatever is possible will keep us saying YES when a social worker calls.
Remember – once a social worker calls, the need is now and the person(s) have been screened and the need is absolute. Also - the co-pay fund for indigent clients was fortified again two weeks ago with an additional $200 for the fund to meet needs.

Another reminder! So Important!

In closing, please know that January 19, 2010…that’s a Tuesday from 9 AM – 9 PM, we have been selected for Charlottesville’s Whole Foods Market 5% Day. Such an opportunity! 5% of the net sales to this charity. We will need volunteers for bagging groceries from 11-2 and 4-7 that day, while the advisory group and those less mobile handle a table with handouts.

At this time, we have only two volunteers for the 11 AM-2 PM shift and two volunteers for the 4-7 PM shift for bagging. We could use from 5-6 people each shift. One volunteer couple is among those we married two years ago and lives in Charlottesville. If more people are available, we might add some volunteers to the grocery staff for bagging from 2-4 PM

I just received a note from another couple who is driving up from Asheville, NC on the 18th to spend all day with us on the 19th to assist. That’s about 375 miles one way. Such consideration is so valued. If you are near and can assist, then please e-mail. Of real importance is to contact any friends in the Charlottesville area, and ask them to save their shopping for January 19, 2010.

The address is Whole Foods Market, 300 Shoppers World Court, Charlottesville, VA 22901.
This address is on Highway 29 North (also known as Seminole Trail). Anyone lost in the area that day in route to shop or assist, we will have our cell phones handy at (434) 825-0881 and (434) 825-0556. Cell phones are activated when we are away from home. Remember – Whole Foods has a marvelous deli, one of the best places to dine in town, so come on over and enjoy the visit. Thanks so much for whatever is possible, even if just an e-mail to a friend to SHOP, SHOP, SHOP!

Blessings…T. Wade

If I Had Known Then, What I Know Now … Would I Do It Again?

2009-12-10T10:51:00.000-08:00

It’s 10:30 pm…the phone rings, and, the Social Worker on duty at UVA Medical Center is asking if we can help a father with his two little girls with lodging for two or three nights.

The Case: His wife was transported from a distance of four and half hours to UVA Medical Center for emergency surgery. Because of the children he cannot stay at the UVA Hospitality House. And, he doesn’t have the money for a hotel room. The few dollars he had went for the gasoline in order to drive to Charlottesville. He was also not able to find a babysitter so he had to bring the girls. He does not speak English, and is part-time employed at $8.00/hour.

The process works like this. I call one of the four hotels which is working with us to see who has a room available. I realize that it is going to be hard to place since there is a major concert event in town, and most hotels are booked beyond capacity. I pour another cup of coffee and begin to make the necessary calls. On my third attempt I am able to obtain a room for two nights with the instructions to call back in two days as a third night might be a possibility.

Then I call the social worker back to give her the confirmation number for the hotel. The next couple of hours are occupied with checking bank accounts, paying outstanding hotel bills, going through numerous emails to find out who made a donation, making notes for the next morning to write grant proposals, while uttering at the same time, “We need more money!” In October and November alone, the requests for help were up approximately 200%.

As I refill my cup of coffee again, I thought about that day in October 2008 when we made the decision to form Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum (IHS) in order to help those people whom we classified as having “unmet needs.” Those unmet needs are well described on our website (http://www.interfaithhumanitariansanctum.org).

I remember sitting with Wade and Sam discussing how we cannot let those people, and some of them with children, continue to sleep in the lobby of the hospital or in the garage if they even have a car. They are not homeless people. These are people caught up in the injustice of the American financial and medical systems. They could not predict in advance that either they, themselves, or their loved one, would end up in a critical situation in the hospital from either and accident or illness.

We are speaking of those individuals who reside more than 60 miles or more from UVA Medical Center. Most are from two to three hundred miles from Charlottesville, Virginia. How hard can it be to form a charity? How hard can it be to give people the evidence that help is needed so the money can just “fly in?”

So we formed this 501 (3)(c) non-religious, nonprofit public charity with no paid staff and ready to respond 24/7 with four telephone contact numbers available day or night to reach us.

After seven months and many thousands of dollars for attorney, accountant, IRS, filing fees, etc., we finally received IRS approval. The last eight months have been trying. The money is NOT “flying in,” but rather traveling by “slow boat.” We are grateful that we have managed so far to respond to every request for help.

The small base of donors who have so graciously signed on with monthly donations, as well as the contributions from friends and family, and with the help of our own personal monies included, we have managed to accomplish the impossible.

It’s now early in the morning. The bills are paid. I am tired and have a slight headache, and I’m asking myself if I had known then what I know now, how hard it is and how hard it was, to do this necessary work, would I do it again?

Just then the phone rings again, and the social worker is on with another request. A cancer out-patient is being dropped off on Saturday for a Monday appointment. The patient’s ride to Charlottesville must return home and come back after the weekend for the patient. Unless an arrangement for a room can be secured, the patient will have no place to stay.

Thank goodness; it’s after the concert and rooms are most probably available.

After securing the room and calling the social worker back with a reservation number, she says, “Thank you so much for helping. The patient could not have come to UVA for the treatment without your help. God bless you!”

Well, there was my answer! Would I do it again? YOU BETCHA … YES YES YES!!! … now I have another cup of coffee.

Blessings…Rev. Elisheva Clegg

When a social worker says “very sick”…it’s critical!

2009-11-07T10:13:00.000-08:00

Oct 30 The social worker said, “The wife of a very sick fellow in neuro-intensive has been in hospitality house (HH) for a few days, and simply can’t afford the fee for the extra days. She feels she needs to be near her husband. With his condition, it would really be a relief if she could remain for the week, perhaps six days. She’s about 150 miles from home. Can you assist?”

I suppose one could review this situation and without further info, consider suggesting a return home and return later, but quite literally a round trip home one time by car would entail a gas cost of about $40. When there is room in the hospitality house, that’s four(4) nights to stay and monitor a loved one. It’s a no-brainer to stay if $40 is available to assist.

In addition, one needs to know some of every back story to realize why running back and forth simply is not affordable in so many cases. For one thing, the patient in this case is “very sick.” He is now without work while being treated in intensive care at the hospital. He is the only person employed in the family. This is not a family with savings to run home and back. Indeed, it has been clarified that the wife has already reached her limits for staying in a $10 per night room. Perhaps she needs that amount daily just to eat. The balancing act can be extremely stressful on a family member whose other half is fighting for life just across the street.

If the hospitality house had been filled, and no available beds for the next few days, then this same situation would necessarily be limited to placement in a commercial hotel room for about $50 per night, and that stay would have to be limited to about 2-4 days. As you can readily see, the situation for funding becomes critical when space at HH is simply not available.

Families in such stress do have to make a plan with other family members or friends in these situations, especially if the patient remains for an extended time. But, as we have experienced, sometimes there is no one else to assist, while the waiting becomes excruciating. IHS is providing that extra measure of relief and a treasured measure of time.

When you’ve read the “vision” statement on the website, you will understand why the idea of a large farm house to be able to provide some extra flexibility and access to a kitchen with nutritious meals has to remain an active goal. A house with six rooms initially, then fifteen, then who knows. But consider that HH only has 31 rooms. Fifteen more rooms at a location which can expand would provide for an increase in space of fifty percent. That’s a huge increase. Next year we will pursue ideas of how to realize that goal…but for now we are using every penny to secure nightly sleeping arrangements as requested by the UVA Social Worker staff.

This holiday season please squeeze us on your gift list … and then think of us monthly. October has been the busiest month for needing our assistance. The winter months are the tough ones. We could really use your contribution. Allow us to remove some of the stress so that another family member can bring comfort and security when it is needed the most.

Blessings…T. Wade and Elisheva

Treasured Moments

2009-10-26T03:39:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I just stop and say thanks for a treasured moment..this happened again this week.

The social worker called from the UVA Cancer Center and said I have a young woman from northern Virginia who needs to be kept over until Monday for another diagnosis. She’s here alone; she can remain. Her ride must return home. Can you help with these five days for her fee at hospitality house? I said yes. Does she have food money? The answer: She has $3.00 total.

On Thursday we sent a note to Dr. Weber at the Cancer Center for advice on what to buy in frozen dinners for a patient in order to maintain a proper diet to do no harm. I am aware of ingredients, since cancer has more than touched this family. He e-mailed back with a note that the Cancer Center Dietitian would relate information. The response came quickly and off I went to buy 40 dinners (Lean Cuisine, Healthy Choice, etc.) for delivery to HH to supplement their can food and mixes (non-perishables) which are provided through food drives.

Those forty dinners will provide an opportunity for easily prepared hot meals for this particular patient and a few more patients at Hospitality House without funds over the next few days. That's 40 meals, an hour to shop, an hour to ice them down for travel and delivery to town… and the task was secured.

I was delighted with the kind note from Dr. Michael Weber and follow-up from Dietitian Carole Havrila; but, there was another person in the mix today who made me stop and take a breath.

While checking out at the local food market, the young man bagging the frozen dinners said, “Wow, you must really love those pot pies and dinners.” I smiled and said, “They are for a charity in town.” The young man stopped for a moment, reached into his pocket and handed me five dollars and asked me to buy a few dinners from him.

This kid, I learned is working two jobs, and going to school and just handed me enough money to buy a few more meals. It was such an easy, lovely reaction. It was also unsolicited and unexpected. I waited to feel the emotion once outside.

Winter is coming. The increase in lodging requests is rising. Many of those stayovers are waiting for a doctor to see them in the Cancer Center. Many will not have funds for a hot meal. This holiday season try to initiate a habit of just a few dollars for this very intimate and effective direct and immediate assistance program. Your generosity is needed. Your check, even the smallest, is tax deductible.

Blessings…Rev. Elisheva

Whole Foods is supporting IHS during October 2009

2009-10-20T12:09:00.001-07:00

This month without knowing when the start time would be, Whole Foods Market, 300 Shoppers World Court, Charlottesville, VA 22901, placed us on their list of supportive charities, and for the whole month your visits to Whole Foods can benefit this charity. Therefore, please allow me to explain: When a customer brings with them their reusable bags, you receive a nickel back BUT YOU HAVE AN OPTION. You can take that nickel off your bill, or receive a wooden nickel and give it to a non-profit featured in the store. There is a box located in the front of the store to hold these wooden nickels and they can really add up. Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum signed up for the program, but we did not know how quickly we would be on the list.

This is just another way to develop funds for hotel rooms especially. October is turning into a very active time for lodging. As of October 20 (just twenty days) we have reserved during the month no less than forty-six (46 nights) in commercial hotels or hospitality house. 31 nights in hospitality house and 15 in commercial hotels. The month still has 10 days remaining.

Never has a wooden nickel meant so much for so many. Get your reusable bags and go shop at Whole Foods Market, and take your refund in wooden nickels for our box in the front of the store..

Children with Families in Turmoil

2009-09-27T10:01:00.000-07:00

The social worker on the phone said, “I have a situation which needs your attention. I’m not sure anyone else can make a difference.” My response, “Let’s talk.”

This social worker is a no nonsense, excellent judge of situations which can evolve into more drastic circumstances. As a social worker in the critical care arena at UVA Medical Center, she understands the tense situations which can arise. This was one of those situations.

She said that there had been a physical confrontation between members of a family in a patient’s room. The wife of the patient just had a shoving match in the patient’s room with the patient’s Mother and Father. The atmosphere was really tense, and if necessary security can be summoned to control and settle the matter.

She went on to indicate, in conjunction with the hall nurse, that the worrisome part of the family confrontation is that the wife has no place to stay and she has a four year old boy who is witnessing all of this dispute, and also worrying about his Dad. It was a setting which was giving everyone real concern, yet the Mother and child have no place to get away for quiet time and allow the child to be removed from the environment with his grandparents.

“Can you help?” she asked.

I immediately obtained a room for the Mother and the boy for that evening. The Mother was told that this opportunity was to give her time to take the boy and relax and remove themselves from the conflict of the moment.

This was one of those unexpected situations for which there is generally no simple answer or most certainly no opportunity available for temporary relief of such a stressful situation. Fortunately, a very alert social worker allowed her concerns to reach out to us as a potential helping hand, but especially for the sake of a child hearing arguments in the presence of a family in turmoil and a father in critical condition.

The flexibility to offer relief for the child was a no brainer, and because of the charity’s flexibility to assist even temporarily, I am told that the Mother was able to plan what was best for the present dilemma.

The ability to project lodging even for a temporary overnight situation can be the result of so many scenarios. This particular situation called for a social worker to think outside the box and reach out for a chance for a child to be removed from harmful family exchanges which could escalate and leave such negative memories, especially with a parent at death’s door.

Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum is that opportunity for UVA Medical Center social workers to explore as a chance to assist patients and families when no other opportunity exists. Contributions, even in the smallest amounts, allow for maintaining a vital route for assistance for just such moments. Moments that matter!

Your tax deductible contribution will allow for a continuation of this vitally flexible public charity, dedicated to serving UVA Medical Center patients and families who travel over great distances, too often without adequate funds to balance for lodging, food, transportation and even co-pay assistance. Although our intent is to fill specific unmet needs for temporary assistance for this group of visitors to Charlottsville, we have allowed for some flexibility to reach out as funds allow, and assist others who are seeking to serve these same people. Sometimes there are gaps which exist when no other charitable or hospital entity can assist with immediacy, based on their procedural restraints, monetary limitations, and lack of space regarding lodging. IHS is only restrained when funds are limited. That is why your contributions are so very important, even if as little as $10-20 monthly.

Thank you for listening.

Blessings…

Rev. Elisheva Clegg
Chaplain Volunteer & Founding Member, Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum

A public Charity, independent of, serving UVA Medical Center

What Did I Say That Made a 7-year old Boy Squeeze ....

2009-09-19T16:42:00.000-07:00

What did I say that made a 7-year old boy squeeze my leg with such delight and say ”thank you,” as if he had just received a Christmas present?

What I said was, “Tonight you will be sleeping in a hotel room in town.” Why did it make such a difference to a small boy? Because he had been sleeping in the UVA Medical Center garage in the car with his Mother and 8 month old sibling. For three days!

No single incident in my experience as a volunteer overnight Chaplain at the UVA Medical Center brings home the absolute sense of contributing to the well-being of a family than the opportunity to assist this struggling family.

On that night I had exchanged words with a young woman in the elevator who inquired about entry into the garage and directions after hours. I had offered some information, and she continued on her way. Little did I know that my next summons within minutes by beeper would bring me into closer contact with this same young woman within the hour.

The beeper call from the overnight social worker requested that I come to her location. The social worker had actually tried to reach me at home around midnight, only to be told that I was the overnight Chaplain on duty, and could be reached personally in the medical center. The social worker was very happy that I was so near, for she was very anxious to speak with someone to assist her.

Upon arrival, the social worker told me about a mother with children staying in a car, and that she had just learned of the situation. The young mother had rushed to be with her husband who had been air lifted into the hospital. The patient had been without work for over a year, finally found a construction job, and on the first day had slipped off a roof and broken both hips. His wife had hurried from hundreds of miles away to be near him and with no one to immediately assist with the children simply placed them in the car and came running.

The wife had anticipated having enough money for eating, a few days in a motel, travel, etc, but the funds simply were insufficient. Hotel rooms were beyond her expectation, and she decided to make the best by having snacks and baby items in the car, so she could be near until some decisions could be made. There was no immediate family to assist. The Hospitality House with its $10/per night rate for families was not available to her since there is a restriction which does not allow children.

When the young woman was summoned, I greeted her with her baby and the little boy, and indicated that she and the children would be staying in the Holiday Inn University in town tonight, and perhaps extra nights, in order for her to refresh and collect her thoughts for a plan to return home and seek assistance for the children. This way she could return and stay in the Hospitality House without limitations.

This was when the small boy grabbed my leg, holding onto me and expressing a smiling “thank you.” This was a time when one’s composure is tested. There is a need to touch and squeeze and reciprocate, which I did; but there is also a sense of wanting to openly weep that this family, as with many, who endure such hardship on top of such stress, and silently experience the sense of nowhere to turn.

I have seen many families over the last three years, while serving in the Chaplaincy program, who rush to Charlottesville to be near a critically injured or ill family member. They are desperate to be near their loved one, often neglecting to make a plan, and far too often without adequate funds to balance their lodging, eating and travel expenses.

The social workers at UVA Medical Center continue to have my deepest admiration. They are sensitive to such situations, and sometimes only through their inquiry do they discover the tragic situations whereby families will neglect themselves and sleep in cars, waiting rooms, and literally exist on soda and crackers. It happens frequently…and this night made our role as a charity, independent of the Medical Center which can react quickly and efficiently to ease this family’s plight, such a significant contributor.

Generally, a social worker will call me at home and indicate that the UVA Hospitality House has full occupancy, or a family member with a child has arrived and they barely have enough to eat, and most certainly no lodging money. Of course the one restriction which seems to be most prominent with on-going concern is the fact that children under 18 are not allowed to stay in the Hospitality House. This is generally not a matter explored by a family member who is terrified for a loved one in ER or Critical Care. The urgency to simply get to Charlottesville is overwhelming. This person who may die is their Dad, Mom, child or closest friend.

The reality is that the UVA Hospitality House has no plans to expand; nor does the Ronald McDonald House, which assists families who have a child in the Medical Center as patients. The limitations will continue to be evident, and the need for a Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum ( a public, non-religious, no stock, nonprofit charity with no paid staff) to BE that extra safety net. There is no other net at this time to catch these children who have come along for a very desperate ride.

Therefore, when we say that your tax deductible contribution of $5, $10, $20 or more monthly as a consistent contribution can make a difference…that’s an understatement. We have three generous hotels who allow a $50 per night rate, and presently only about 25 people are contributing to keep the rooms, food as needed, and travel and co-pay assistance available.

The three people, who are this charity, devote full time to securing the funds, working the phones, expanding opportunities, and using our personal income to make this opportunity happen. The numbers who come to Charlottesville with the needs expressed in this short article are growing and there is no reason to believe it will cease.

Consider what you can do. We promise that no one who shows up in Charlottesville in need of temporary lodging, food, travel with a loved one in the Medical Center, or a patient who needs a cancer diagnosis and can not come here for a 1-2 day stay because he or she can not afford lodging, will be left without assistance. That promise can be met and sustained with your participation.

We have a very real request: Please never allow me to look at another child and not be able to place him or her in a safe place for the night, and know that he or she is well nourished. This is generally only a temporary fix, but when it happens it is not a matter of discussion; it is urgent. I can not take these lovely faces home. I need to be able to continue to provide for these desperate times, which are frequent.

The holidays are coming; make a pledge with your children of $5 or more for each month. $5 X 12 months = $60. That’s one night in a hotel for a family and food. It only takes a few giving families with similar contributions to allow that necessary stay over of a few days for these families in need.

The stress for these visitors to our community is often unbearable. Too often their worst nightmares come true, as they plan for a life with more challenges than they have ever known. While they are here, their well-being is in OUR hands. ME AND YOU…WE ARE THE KEEPERS.

The people at UVA Hospitality House and Ronald McDonald House are the keepers also. This new charity has been established to meet the overflow when the established entities simply can not provide. These original providers have a limited number of rooms, a very real situation. Who will assist with the unmet needs? This was our question, and the answer is our charity.

Right now, I am seeking assistance for the immediate matters at hand; but our vision for the future must encompass an ability to provide a comfort zone with active involvement for those who come with inadequate funds to balance for lodging, food, travel, etc…and then learn that the closest person in their world is never coming home. This is the juncture when so much more is needed than a hotel room and meals. Much more.

Please read the Vision statement in our website (http://www.interfaithhumanitariansanctum.org/vision.php) and it will be clear that we are looking ahead to establish a real place to meet real needs. Thank you for listening.

Blessings…Chaplain Elisheva

How You Can Help with Our Cause thru Your Cause ...

2009-08-29T05:27:00.000-07:00

Some quick updates from the past two months are in order. If you ever want to know what preceded some of our projects, then simply scroll back through the few blog entries. Also, if you or a new reader to this charity needs a quick history of why we initiated this effort, simply scroll back to the first blog entry of May 18, 2009 and begin to read. It’s a little wordy, but provides in just a few pages objectives and goals.

We have a rather urgent need for contributions for lodging funds at this writing. Presently we have only twenty (20) contributors, of whom many are making a dedicated monthly donation from $25-$100. Elisheva and I are included in this rather small base, as the largest contributor with our personal on-going allowance to couples to make a donation for a tax deduction as part of their wedding fee. We are even offering for some couples and their families an opportunity for a slightly increased ministerial fee, at least once monthly, which can allow for a total tax deduction for our ministerial service, but regretfully we can not provide that opportunity for every wedding.

During July 2009 IHS paid for 12 nights in commercial hotels and 17 nights at UVA Hospitality House. For August to date we owe for 12 nights in commercial hotels and 2 nights in UVA Hospitality House. These are the slow months.

During this period we diverted funds ($1000) to make sure we could make the Remote Area Medical (RAM) clinic contribution to satisfy narcotic medication needs for the July clinic at the Wise, VA Fairgrounds. There were 240 UVA Medical Center volunteers devoted to this event, and they served over 2,700 people who have no other source for being diagnosed for medical and dental necessities. Many of the follow-ups from that annual outdoor setting will be scheduled over the months ahead for Charlottesville and hotel rooms will be needed as hospitality house becomes fully occupied.

The time is also near for adding funds to the co-pay and transit assistance funds in the next month. If possible, your consideration of a small consistent monthly contribution of $10, $20, even more, would most certainly assist. We will continue to innovate and promote funding ideas, but we are indeed dependent on those friends who know us well, and our objectives on behalf of the UVA Medical Center patients and families who come from great distances under difficult circumstances.

Note: You may have received an earlier e-mail as one of the core friends of Elisheva and T. Wade Clegg about a new social networking idea. Forgive us for the repetition in that case, but it is such a worthwhile opportunity.

Our exploration of ways you can personally assist and extend our exposure

We have discovered a marvelous opportunity which allows for your personal involvement in promoting our charity. A new organizational website called "Your Cause.com" allows you to create your own "cause" page which becomes a tool to send to others whom you feel might be interested in supporting IHS with a tax deductible contribution. From your short time to create this simple page, IHS can gain exposure to so many others through today's social networking system. In essence we are asking you to create a small testimonial as to why you believe in and support this charity. By forwarding your personal page to your friends, you are leaving it up to them whether they wish to participate or not. But, your personal touch leads to a validation no one else can supply.

The very simple instructions follow:

Here are the step-by-step instructions:

Go to http://www.yourcause.com/ and in the SEARCH box at the right type "Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum" and press enter ...

On the "SIGN UP NOW" page that shows ... click on the charity "Start Your Cause for This Charity" button next to the IHS logo at the bottom of the page.

Then on the "SIGN UP PAGE" create a new membership for yourself and then follow the instructions to create your page.

If you need assistance, then feel free to call Sam McLawhorn directly at 434.589.6363 at home - or email him directly at vasammc@comcast.net. He will be more than willing to help you with any problems you might encounter.

Here is Sam's personal YourCause page as a guide. The most important thing to remember is to create the "Description of Your Charity" and "Mission Statement" to reflect YOUR personal ideas and thoughts about what we are doing in regards to IHS. Click below now:

http://www.yourcause.com/smclawhorn

Once you have created your page, then here are some tips to help us with acquiring donations for IHS. Through your generous time creating a page, your time to propogate through your address book either through email, facebook or twitter - donations to your site will accrue directly and be deposited directly into the IHS account. This new and exciting way to acquire contributions will lead to a successful charity and at the same time help so many who need compassion, love and help.

Here are some helpful tips:
Email your Cause link (created when you compose your account), creating awareness toward your campaign.
Promote your Cause on social networking sites, informing others of your goals.
Sit back, relax, and know how much you have contributed to make life better on this planet :-) ....

For those individuals who would like to see our IRS Tax Exempt status, we can refer them to the home page of our website (http://www.interfaithhumanitariansanctum.org/index.php and click on the "tax exempt" hyperlink in the second paragraph. This will lead them to a PDF file image of the IRS Letter of approval. Also, for those familiar with the national clearinghouse, http://www.guidestar.org/ , from this site, they will find us listed with more detailed information and specifics. If you wish to make a contibution now please click this line.

Blessings,
Elisheva & T. Wade

Initial Request for RAM Clinic assistance - MET!

2009-07-08T07:58:00.000-07:00

We received a request in April from UVA Medical Center’s Director of Social Work for support for the Wise, VA Remote Area Medical (RAM) clinic. Noel Dianas-Hughes asked if we could provide funds to support vouchers for medication (narcotics) for pain control, especially for dental work, at the RAM clinic from July 23-26, 2009. Support of up to $1000 was needed at that time.

IHS is pleased to announce that a check for that request was presented to Director Dianas-Hughes this past week for the RAM clinic fund, which also allows for any funds raised above the needed medications to be utilized for diagnostic tests for RAM patients who are not insured and mostly not employed.

If you are not familiar with the project in Wise, there were patients from past clinics who left the fairground setting following a dental procedure without money to pay for a pain control medication. Vouchers are issued so that patients can obtain their medications at area pharmacies in Wise, VA. Last year over 2,600 were treated in the fairgrounds at Wise, mostly by volunteer medical personnel from UVA Medical Center in Charlottesville and VCU Dental School in Richmond. Several hundred volunteers are preparing to travel for this year.

IHS is a nonprofit, non-religious, no stock, and with no paid staff, public charity, an approved 501(c)(3) organization, qualified to receive tax deductible bequests, devises, transfers or gifts. Contributions to IHS are deductible under section 170 of the IRS Code. Elisheva and T. Wade Clegg III of Palmyra, VA started this charity with the confidence that medical professionals and community interests will recognize its importance, and join us in making a very significant difference. You may designate your tax deductible check: For medication and diagnostic tests at Wise, VA RAM clinic, or allow your contribution to be used for immediate lodging, co-pay, transportation and food needs which are on-going.

Just today, as we write this July notice, a patient scheduled for cancer surgery from SW Virginia now has a hotel room for 3 days for her arrival and then for her husband and child to remain near her. Because of a child with special needs who can not be left alone, and must accompany the parents, the Hospitality House can not provide lodging. Therefore, the only alternative for emergency lodging for this short duration is IHS. We continue to make a difference.

Your support through cumulative contributions of $10, $25, and more will never allow anyone to leave the RAM clinic without a chance to obtain pain meds, or cause a patient to delay cancer surgery based on lack of funds for lodging.
Thanks so very much for your attention…The Cleggs.

May 2009 Notice and Project Alert

2009-05-24T13:15:00.000-07:00

This one page notice provides latest participation in support of the UVA Medical Center. Beginning in April, now in May, we are funding two accounts in the UVA Medical Center Office of Social Work. One account pays for co-pays for Pay Range 1 (indigents) and the other account pays for local bus tickets for this same group for return home across town. These were unmet needs which encompass many local patients, but simply needed our earliest participation. It was simply too alarming to know that a patient could receive prescriptions, and not be able to meet the smallest co-pays, and then not have money for a bus ticket home in Charlottesville. We started where the need seemed most urgent, and we will fund these accounts monthly.

We have begun to assist those patients and families who cannot afford the $10 per night lodging offered by UVA Hospitality House. The first family stayed almost three weeks. It was a situation which involved three women visiting a dying brother who did not have the funds to stay during his last days. Our help allowed them to remain nearby at a pivotal time during their family’s sadness.

Project Alert: We received a request from UVA Medical Center’s Director of Social Work for support for the Wise, VA Remote Area Medical (RAM) clinic. Noel Dianas-Hughes asked if we could provide funds to support vouchers for medication (narcotics) for pain control, especially for dental work at the RAM from July 23-26, 2009. Support of up to $1000 is needed. Vouchers are issued by pharmacists to patients at RAM that cannot be issued on site, so the patients can obtain their medications at area pharmacies in Wise, VA. Last year over 2,600 were treated in the fairgrounds at Wise, mostly by volunteer medical personnel from UVA Medical Center. 200 team members will be at RAM in July.

Your tax deductible contribution with a check for $10, $25, $50 or more, can quickly meet this need. For your convenience you may use our PayPal Donation button located on the “Donate Now” page by clicking here: http://www.interfaithhumanitariansanctum.org/donate.php .Remaining funds will be directed toward the other accounts.

We’re back with a Powerful New Vehicle for Good Works

2009-05-18T17:28:00.000-07:00

There is a point in life when one is walking the talk, and it can be very consistent; but, then there is that vital intersection when one must LEAP! This message is about our faith in our contacts and friends and all others who feel the compassion for those truly faced with burdensome challenges in our community.

We can and have established a vehicle, a charity, and placed ourselves in the marketplace to channel an opportunity for others to make a difference. Our initial handout (4 pages) was printed and is available. That item is now presented for your further review with more facts and figures. It follows this introduction. I know this is a lot of reading in one blog offering, but initial education with substance is needed to sense the good works which this represents. And this my friends is the best idea we have had in years!

Last December was that point where we were having discussions with the University of Virginia (UVA) Medical Center Department of Social Work, Chief Chaplain, UVA Hospitality House and Ronald McDonald House, along with other supporting staff. Those discussions were about the numerous unmet needs which existed for those patients and visiting families who arrive in Charlottesville with meager means, often without funds to balance lodging, food, travel and even co-pays (for patients in what is known as pay range 1, indigent category).

There was agreement that another helping hand could be a tremendous help in filling the gaps. So – T. Wade and I decided to move to a new level of involvement, and start the process for a new charity, a non-religious, nonprofit, no stock organization to raise funds to “weave a new safety net.” It needed to be registered with IRS for allowance of donors to receive tax deductions. This is vital for a private person or company to be able to donate and receive that deduction in order to continue a sustained contribution.

Such an undertaking is a considerable challenge, and preparation has been rather consuming, but we are ready to serve for the years ahead. We now need for those who appreciate this community and the marvelous institution which is the University of Virginia and its Medical School teaching center and trauma center to provide a sustaining gift monthly to allow for relief for so many being served by the medical professionals.

The last months have been dedicated to establishment of Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum (IHS). This is the new charity. It has a website, thanks to Sam McLawhorn, who has joined us in a full time capacity as needed, also without pay, to make this safety net strong. It has a list of valued advisors, all with intimate knowledge of our objectives and first-hand knowledge of these unmet needs for patients and visitors to the hospital. The list of people making valuable contributions are many, but the leadership list is located on the website at www.InterfaithHumanitarianSanctum.org.

Please be aware that we have several websites, but our charity efforts are from IHS as described above. Therefore, it is vital that e-mail from IHS is recognized as being from us, and not be routed to junk mail.

Please know that our initial involvement has begun. As of April 2009 two accounts have been opened in the UVA Department of Social Work. One account is receiving a monthly IHS check to cover co-pays for pay range 1, and the other account is for purchase by that office of transit tickets for these same patients to return home across town. It is a beginning, and will be sustained. NOW – we must move toward assistance with lodging.

Let me tell you about a family with a patient in the hospital who is 20 years old, and dying of cancer. I will not be specific in this description, but his two older sisters and mother arrived with funds for one week to be with the patient. They only had funds to support themselves for one week. The doctor indicated that they needed to arrange a stay for about two more weeks, but they simply could not fund for lodging and food.

Fortunately, UVA Hospitality House (HH) received an opening for them for the extra two weeks, but they still did not have funds to pay for the $10 per night room rate. IHS sought and received consideration for the extra weeks and will pay for lodging, and has also given the family food money for a few days until more access is available to them at HH.

This is only one family which desperately needed these final days with their son, their brother. We were able to lift the stress of how to fund these valued days. We simply must allow this opportunity to repeat itself for future families.

Before we leave this initial blog message and present the handout for your further reading, allow me to return to the pages of A.L. Alexander’s marvelous book of poetry, “Poems that Touch the Heart.” There is a poem which has rippled down to us through the years and most of you know of it, but perhaps not the entire poem or its author, James W. Foley.

This lovely poem echoes through us as we go forward with this new charity. What we all drop into the pool of contributions to make good works happen will ripple through the hearts and minds of those served, and create a ripple which they experienced when they had a need to visit a small town in central Virginia. Charlottesville will be a point of many ripples, because kindness flows from this center of compassion.

Thank you… and enjoy James W. Foley’s poem and please read the new handout which follows. You will learn much more and feel secure with our appeal.

Drop a Pebble in the Water

“Drop a pebble in the water; just a splash, and it is gone;
But there’s a half a hundred ripples circling on and on and on,
Spreading, spreading from the center, flowing on out to the sea.
And there is no way of telling where the end is going to be.

Drop a word of cheer and kindness; just a flash and it is gone;
But there’s a half a hundred ripples circling on and on and on.
Bearing hope and joy and comfort on each splashing, dashing wave
Till you wouldn’t believe the volume of the one kind word you gave.

Drop a word of cheer and kindness: in a minute you forget;
But there’s gladness still a-swelling, and there’s joy a-circling yet,
And you’ve rolled a wave of comfort whose sweet music can be heard
Over miles and miles of water just by dropping one kind word.”

******

Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum, Inc.

"Weaving a new safety net for patients and their families at UVA Medical Center who need temporary assistance with lodging, food, travel expenses and co-pays."

A personal appeal from Rev. Elisheva Clegg, Interfaith Minister, Pastoral Counselor, M.A. and Chaplain Volunteer, UVA Medical Center, Charlottseville, VA ... and founding member of Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum, Inc.

Last year I began conferring with UVA Medical Center’s Director of Social Work and the Chief Chaplain, along with other supportive staff. They confirmed that there is a growing population of hospital visitors (both patients and family members) who arrive in Charlottesville with meager means, often unemployed and not insured.

These visitors, mostly families clinging to hope as a loved one lingers in critical status, face a gigantic balancing act to pay for lodging, food and travel. There are also patients who arrive for appointments for diagnosis and treatment. All are seeking to balance their health care needs with the cost of basic necessities.

It was determined that there are four major categories of unmet needs: lodging, transportation, food and co-pay assistance.

Where shall I start?

In February 2009 alone, UVA Medical Center Department of Social Work received requests for lodging from 61 contacts (individuals and families) who could not be accommodated. Those 61 contacts were unable to obtain lodging at the UVA Hospitality House (HH), with its $10 per night room rate (plus 4 very reasonable rental suites). Why? Because they did not meet certain qualifying guidelines:
> Age restrictions: 20 > Multiple family members: 11 > NO vacancies: 30

UVA Hospitality House (HH) and Ronald McDonald House (RMH) offer the most affordable room rates. Their professional caring staffs work diligently to assist guests. Total rooms at HH: 31. Total rental suites through HH: 4. Total rooms at RMH: 18. These same assets experience frequent full occupancy, and due to limited capacity, have necessary restrictions.

Let’s do the math: Using February 2009 as an example, that’s 732 contacts who will be directed elsewhere for lodging in 2009!

Where do all these people go?

Some will opt to use their funds for the most reasonable hotel rooms for as long as the money lasts, and sacrifice other necessities, especially eating. Some families must go home and leave the person who needs them for support. Some will huddle in the hospital lobbies, and waiting areas, all day, some with children… until night… and then…they will all sleep in a car somewhere near the medical center. Many will snack on crackers and soft drinks, and try not to risk their gas money for return home.

These are not the homeless, although many face an economic crisis due to their health care needs. The situation I am describing is so diminishing, so desperate, so depressing…yet so few outside of Social Work, Chaplaincy, and perhaps nurses and security personnel know the sadness which surrounds this healing center, when there is no fund, no alternative for immediate lodging, food, travel and co-pay money for prescriptions.

WAIT…there’s more!

A growing patient population in the indigent category (verified pay range 1) can not afford their co-pay for prescriptions. All too often, prescriptions are simply not filled. Let’s do the math: There are about 50 monthly requests for co-pay assistance for which there is no fund. That’s no less than 600 requests for 2009!

There are also 45-50 monthly requests, according to Social Work, for gas or transport funds for those over 60 miles away. Let’s do the math: That’s 600 requests for 2009! In addition there is also a need for transit system bus tickets locally.

The Department of Social Work has very limited funds for providing food assistance. Out of necessity these hospital visitors are directed to Charlottesville Soup Kitchens. The other alternative is a one-time weekly box from the food bank accessible through Embarq; however, the food box is more suited for preparation in a kitchen.

“We sincerely believe that once the facts are known, there is no need to create an emotional appeal. Isn’t one member of a family in crisis enough suffering? Must the entire group endure unbearable circumstances just to be supportive?”

Don’t forget about the annual RAM Clinic…

There is a group of patients referred to the UVA Medical Center each year following a screening at the annual Remote Area Medical (RAM) Clinic in Wise, VA. Last year the RAM Clinic treated 2,600 people over a 3-day period at the Wise Fairgrounds. Most of the professional volunteers (doctors, nurses, social workers, technicians) are from Charlottesville. Last year over 50 people at the RAM Clinic were referred to the UVA Medical Center.

The RAM patients can not afford a doctor appointment in their community. Their only option is that one-time annual review in a fairground. Therefore, when a critical diagnosis and treatment is referred locally, that unemployed and uninsured patient still must make decisions regarding travel, food and yes, even lodging, when Hospitality House is full. The number of patients from RAM Clinic is always subject to increasing numbers.

What about Ronald McDonald House?

This facility is available to families who have a child patient in treatment. There is a reasonable fee, and the professional staff is outstanding. There are some restrictions, but the families who stay at Ronald McDonald House (RMH) tend to need lodging from one week to many months. When RMH is full, many families will not have anywhere to stay for extended periods.

Try to imagine a mother who is a guest staying at RMH with several other children, some back at home with a relative and little support, having to stay in Charlottesville for many months, while one child awaits a heart or lung transplant. She is asked to stay near the sick child as much as possible, and yet the other children must be monitored as they accompany that mother every single day. The stress can be over-whelming even when everyone at RMH is bending over backwards to find ways to assist. This is a typical family dilemma at RMH.

There were 40 requests to stay at RMH in February 2009 who had to be referred elsewhere because the facility was full.

Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum, Inc. (IHS)

This new independent charity partners with, but is not affiliated with, the UVA Medical Center. Our immediate objectives are easily understood, namely to raise funds for all the unmet needs herein described, but we remain open to filling larger gaps as the need presents itself.

“This charity was formed expressly to seek to be another helping hand, another safety net, for the overflow of UVA Medical Center patients and their families in need of temporary assistance for lodging, food, travel and co-pays.”

The value of your tax deductable contribution of
$50.00 will support one night of commercial lodging for a patient’s family…
$100.00 will support one night lodging and meals for 2 days for a family…
$150.00 will support one night of lodging, 2 meals for 2 days and gas for return home.

Where we must go and why

To reduce dependency on commercial lodging, which is costly and subject to availability, especially in summer, over holidays and on evenings or weekends of large UVA events, IHS has a long-term vision.

Our Vision is a permanent location, preferably a farm, which can be developed for consolidation of the overflow of lodging and food needs, for both short-term and extended periods.

Imagine a pastoral setting with dedicated buildings and staff to (1) meet the physical needs of UVA patients and their families with lodging and food service; (2) counsel and care for the psychological and spiritual needs of guests; (3) develop an active farm to meet the food needs of our guests; (4) provide a guest-friendly, outdoor environment, for relief of stress on all family members, especially for children; (5) make available as a community space for weddings, memorials, funerals, meetings, concerts, whereby all fees derived would be dedicated to maintaining the charity’s location and its programs.

Please visit our website and note that our volunteer advisors and officers are intimately familiar with our goals. We anticipate paid staff only when a permanent location dictates professionals on site. Your consistent tax deductable donations to IHS will establish that the Charlottesville community, with all its advantages, extends a compassionate, helping hand to its visitors with the greatest need.

Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum
P.O. Box 163,
Palmyra, VA 22963

Website: www.InterfaithHumanitarianSanctum.org
Ph: (434) 591-0700 e-mail: info@interfaithhumanitariansanctum.org.
Alt Ph: (434) 589-4864