A Quick Reminder ....

Perhaps you noticed on TV or plastered on storefronts: Happy New Year!!!!   Yes ... You still have time to consider a donation dated prior to January 1, 2018 when tabulating your taxes, thus taking advantage of charitable giving.   Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum (IHS) appreciates your attention. There is indeed so much good involved by supporting this all-volunteer public charity whose total devotion is to offer immediate temporary funding assistance for lodging, food, prescription co-pays, etc.   Thank you for considering a truly worthy action.   Contact information: Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum (IHS)  P.O. Box 163  Palmyra, VA 22963  Email: ihsanctum@gmail.com And, as always, please remember that all of us at IHS are non-paid volunteers, and we are all donating what we can to IHS personally. Also remember - for transparency we hold the "Gold Seal of Approval" from the Guidestar.org national clearing house. Please do what you can. And, if you would like to donate now to our cause, please click the button below to go to our encrypted secure on-line donation form.       Much love, T. Wade Clegg III & Sam McLawhorn and the friends who keep our efforts active.

YOU are the answer to this question : "How does this charity let others know how it is serving the University of Virginia Medical Center?"

When you share this e-mail with a friend, a fellow worker, a church member, and emphasize that the 6 minute promotional video on the IHS home page is the most informative tool we have ... then your extra effort allows us to add another friend in order to sustain our participation for the least able to afford their trip to Charlottesville.   For 9 years this charity has maintained an open communication with UVA Social Workers in order to catch that segment of long-distance patients who arrive without adequate funds to sustain their immediate critical needs. For the grossly underfunded patients and perhaps a caregiver, their unexpected need to be at UVA Medical Center without adequate means is often a frightening challenge. IHS was originated to seek to ease the burden on the least able among us. IHS is a non-profit, totally volunteer effort, highly dependent on private donations.   Please allow me to repeat how disconcerting and depressing the experience of arriving at the state's premier hospital, sometimes hundreds of miles from home, arriving late at night without funds for eating or a place to sleep. THIS charity is that 24/7 contact through the Office of Social Workers to assist with last minute unprepared patients.   This rather short reminder of how YOU can extend a hand for future arrivals is so needed. Reach out to your friends by forwarding this e-mail and allow them to review the IHS website.   Encourage your contacts to e-mail and ask what they can do to secure this needed charity.   Contact information: Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum (IHS)  P.O. Box 163  Palmyra, VA 22963  Email: ihsanctum@gmail.com And, as always, please remember that all of us at IHS are non-paid volunteers, and we are all donating what we can to IHS personally. Also remember - for transparency we hold the "Gold Seal of Approval" from the Guidestar.org national clearing house. Please do what you can. And, if you would like to donate now to our cause, please click the button below to go to our encrypted secure on-line donation form.       T. Wade Clegg III & Sam McLawhorn Founding Members IHS

The Special Cabinet

Every day of every year UVA Medical Center Social Workers go to a special cabinet in the far corner of their large office in the main hospital where full-day meal packets are stored.  The cabinet holds about one hundred meal packets, and is restocked every 2-3 weeks. From 2,400 - 3,000 packets will have been placed into that special cabinet by this year's end.  And then ... the cycle will start again. Most fairy tales have a special closet or chest or cabinet which houses an important item. This is not a tale of magic. This special cabinet is the only food for a day for several thousand caregivers, family members and out-patients who simply do not have funds to eat in the hospital café or elsewhere while providing support for long distance travelers. There is something magical in this process which must not be ignored! Dozens of groups, including churches in Albemarle, Fluvanna and Louisa counties; school clubs; scout troops; kindergartens, etc. purchase and make the meal packets over the course of a year.  That's hundreds of individual partners participating annually to make sure that IHS meets its monthly objective to keep the cabinet fully stocked. Many churches will ask if the charity needs meal packets or funds to support other important categories, such as lodging funds, prescription funds, and infant car seats for underfunded parents to be able to get that new baby home. Flexibility with support over the years has been so important. Consistent Support is  so important as we look toward 2018. For the last two years two churches have devoted themselves to meal packet objectives and set the objectives for others to consider. The Grace and Glory Lutheran Church in Palmyra has faithfully made the second Sunday of every month as "meal-making Sunday."  A church group makes 70 meal packets monthly. That's 840 meal packets annually. The Thomas Jefferson Memorial Church (TJMC) UU in Charlottesville  selects two months of the year and makes 400+ meal packets annually.  That's a total from just these two churches of 1,240 meal packets toward present annual need of 2,400 - 3,000 meal packets annually.  Several other churches such as Effort Baptist and First Methodist in Fluvanna County have donated several thousand dollars over the year and allowed for use to meet all categories. Please consider a discussion with your church, club, clinic, business, etc. for adding IHS to their giving this year. If we can enthuse another dozen consistent devotees to set aside just 1-2 months each year for meal-making, that special cabinet in the UVA Hospital will bring so much added joy to the Social Workers at UVA Hospital, as they continue to surprise thousands with that unexpected food packet.  Talk to your group  and contact us at ihsanctum@gmail.com And, as always, please remember that all of us at IHS are non-paid volunteers, and we are all donating what we can to IHS personally. Also remember - for transparency we hold the "Gold Seal of Approval" from the Guidestar.org national clearing house. Please do what you can. And, if you would like to donate now to our cause, please click the button below to go to our encrypted secure on-line donation form.      Sincerely ...  Thomas Wade Clegg III and Sam McLawhorn

An Opportunity Worth Relating to You ... and for Your Further Sharing

As a friend of this charity, you are well aware of our consistent production of full-day meal packets provided monthly to the UVA Social Work Office for underfunded outpatients and caregivers.  The meals, along with lodging assistance for the least able who arrive with inadequate funds to sustain their visit for an appointment or multiple treatments, are the main categories of support for which IHS is known.  However, there are other important support areas for which our support has made an immediate impact for a patient. It is important to share the following, even though this recent case must be related in a less specific manner for purposes of privacy.  It is prominent that friends of the charity understand the full range of actions that IHS makes with your donations. I think you will be pleased to learn of our efforts. E-mail Request to IHS from UVA Clinical Social Worker in 2017: "My immediate supervisor suggested that I reach out to you to ask whether IHS might consider partial funding support for a prosthetic leg for a UVA patient.  This patient has worked throughout their adult life on an old prosthetic leg, which now no longer fits and is not usable for work. The patient is not able to return to work until obtaining a new leg. Once that objective is met, then the patient will be expected to return to work immediately. After UVA financial assistance is applied to total cost of the leg ($10,000+), the patient is responsible for coming up with $2,042 (20% of the total cost). Prosthetics and orthotics reports that the patient will be able to get this limb with 50% of patient responsibility down payment ($1,021) and could bill for the remaining 50% once the patient returns to work. We are attempting to help the patient get funds needed to get the leg,  so that the patient can get back to work and then pay the rest personally. This patient has raised  $572 from family and friends. $449  is still needed.  Would IHS be able to help out with any part of this remaining balance?  I realize this unmet need may be out of the scope of IHS, but I wanted to check, as I am exhausting every resource I can think of to help this patient. Thanks so much for taking time to consider." IHS Response same day to this request: " Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum (IHS) will complete the balance as requested, namely $449. Please e-mail an invoice from the party who is to be paid. This should not be directly from the patient. Your quickest response appreciated. I need the provider of the prosthetic with details for making payment on behalf of the patient. The patient need only know that a  friend of the hospital is assisting. Thank you for allowing us to assist.  Sincerely ...  T. Wade Clegg III, IHS, P.O. Box 163, Palmyra, VA 22963." And, as always, please remember that all of us at IHS are non-paid volunteers, and we are all donating what we can to IHS personally. Also remember - for transparency we hold the "Gold Seal of Approval" from the Guidestar.org national clearing house. Please do what you can. And, if you would like to donate now to our cause, please click the button below to go to our encrypted secure on-line donation form.      Sincerely ...  Thomas Wade Clegg III and Sam McLawhorn

A Special Night for Several Fluvanna Charities

A Note from Rudy Garcia, District Giving Chair, Rotary Club of Fluvanna County IHS received an e-mail on May 31, 2017 from Mr. Garcia, immediate Past President Rotary Club Fluvanna County 2014-2016. IHS was one of several Fluvanna charities to receive the notice. "Hello Friends and Congratulations! The Rotary Foundation of Fluvanna County met in March and approved a monetary grant for each of your organizations. We would like you to be our guest at a special meeting where we will present you with your grant check and give you an opportunity to talk about your organization. The Foundation Grant Award presentation will be June 20th at 6 PM at our Club meeting, at Lake Monticello Firehouse at 10 Slice Road, Palmyra, Virginia 22963.  Kind regards... Rudy" And, as always, please remember that all of us at IHS are non-paid volunteers, and we are all donating what we can to IHS personally. Also remember - for transparency we hold the "Gold Seal of Approval" from the Guidestar.org national clearing house. Please do what you can. And, if you would like to donate now to our cause, please click the button below to go to our encrypted secure on-line donation form.      T. Wade Clegg III & Sam McLawhorn                                                      IHS Founding Officers

Special thanks again to J & E Berkley Foundation of Crozet, Virginia

Special thanks again to J & E Berkley Foundation of Crozet, Virginia On May 2 at a meeting of the Foundation, Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum (IHS) was considered for a Spring Grant to assist with immediate support of the charity's Lodging Program for underfunded long distance out-patients and caregivers.   In addition, the Grant can also be used to support this charity's emergency prescription program  and pediatric support program for purchase of infant car seats for parents in need of that vital safety item who simply find themselves without funds at time of release from UVA Hospital. The Spring Grant from J & E Berkley Foundation of Crozet, Virginia in 2017 is $6,000.00.  IHS is so appreciative of the consistent consideration annually by the Foundation and its Executive Director, Chris Pasmore. Please remember that all of us at IHS are non-paid volunteers, and we are all donating what we can to IHS personally. Also remember - for transparency we hold the "Gold Seal of Approval" from the Guidestar.org national clearing house. Please do what you can. And, if you would like to donate now to our cause, please click the button below to go to our encrypted secure on-line donation form.       T. Wade Clegg III & Sam McLawhorn                                       IHS Founding Officers

A Convenient Way to Support IHS While Shopping This Mother's Day

Mother's Day is Sunday, May 14th: When donors and supporters click on our organization's unique link below, they skip the process of having to search through millions of eligible charities. Instead, you will be taken directly to the special page for IHS located on smile.amazon.com and are automatically asked if you want to support Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum Inc. Do you have to click on the IHS charity's AmazonSmile link every time I shop? No. Once you select our charity, IHS will receive 0.5% of the price of all your eligible smile.amazon.com purchases, regardless of whether they use your unique AmazonSmile link to return to the site. However, to make it easier for you in the future, I recommend that you bookmark to your Favorites and use this special link so you don't accidentally shop at www.amazon.com instead of smile.amazon.com. BEWARE: Only purchases made at smile.amazon.com are eligible for donations. What do donors and supporters do if they have already selected another charity previously  when they click on our organization's unique link? If someone is already supporting IHS, and they click on our unique link, they will simply be taken to smile.amazon.com so they can start shopping. You do not have to re-select our charity. If however you are supporting a different charity and click on our IHS link, you will be asked if you would like to switch to support IHS instead of the previous organization. I hope these instructions will make it easy for you to take part in this wonderful way to donate to IHS through one of the most popular e-Commerce sites on the internet. And finally, please remember that all of us at IHS are non-paid volunteers, and we are all donating what we can to IHS personally. Also remember - for transparency we hold the "Gold Seal of Approval" from the Guidestar.org national clearing house. Please do what you can. And, if you would like to donate now to our cause, please click the button below to go to our encrypted secure on-line donation form.     Thank you so much for your ideas and invitations to expose this charity's vital mission. NEVER shy away from seeking gift-giving from others when you know it will serve the needs of the least able. Sincerely, T. Wade Clegg III and Sam McLawhorn

First Check Received from the 2016 Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign

The opportunity annually for most state employees to become a donor to charities is through the state's payroll deduction program. Donor participation began in October 2016 and ended the last week of December.  Participating charities must complete the Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign (CVC)  application process each year by May 5th, and hope and pray that potential donors will have received exposure to this charity's service objectives and dedicate a gift before the December deadline.

The list of state employee donors who made a gift to Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum in the 2016 campaign:   57

The first check, along with the list of 57, was received during the first week of April 2017. Since most CVC donors use payroll deductions, CVC cannot disburse some of their gifts until they receive those amounts each payroll during the year. The total amount of the gift from these 57 state donors will be $ 3,643.64.

The list of state employee donors who made a gift to Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum in the 2015 campaign: 27
  

The total amount of the gift from these 27 state donors was $ 3,593.00. As you can tell, the projection for this year, even with 30 more donors participating, is only $ 50.64 more than last year.

For employees at UVA who are already friends of the charity, growth from this important funding source can be achieved by your introduction of the charity's value for the least able patients who must come to UVA Medical Center and for those in need of immediate assistance for lodging, food, medications and other important needs. Take time to introduce other office mates to the IHS website and Google BlogSpot postings. 

Lastly, please remember that all of us at IHS are non-paid volunteers, and we are all donating what we can to IHS personally. Also remember - for transparency we hold the "Gold Seal of Approval" from the Guidestar.org national clearing house. Please do what you can. And, if you would like to donate now to our cause, please click the button below to go to our encrypted secure on-line donation form.

 

 

Thank you so much for your ideas and invitations to expose this charity's vital mission. NEVER shy away from seeking gift-giving from others when you know it will serve the needs of the least able.

Sincerely, T. Wade Clegg III and Sam McLawhorn

Thank You ....

To all the friends of this charity for your kindness, your deeply meaningful calls, notes, e-mails and charitable gifts for the last eleven months. I can only hope that I responded adequately to each of you either individually or as a group; however, so much of the last year I tended toward isolation, except for the absolute needs  from University of Virginia (UVA) Medical Center Social Workers and  the UVA Hospitality House to secure lodging, food, prescriptions and infant car seats for the underfunded patients and their caregivers. To all of you who participated in the giving either once or several times this last year, it was and is THE GIVING that has allowed me to live with this eternal separation from my Elisheva.   Thank You for giving so that hundreds of people can come annually to Charlottesville, Virginia for medical treatment without adequate funds to balance their most basic needs while in a strange community, often hundreds of miles from home. I am so often shocked back into the reality of everyday family grieving when a Social Worker ends a phone conversation of a desperate situation and says, " Thank you for all that you do for us." When I place the receiver of my phone back into its place after learning of a particularly sad circumstance, I remember Elisheva's question for me in 2008 when she had witnessed a family sleeping in a car in the hospital garage and she asked, "What are we doing with the rest of our lives?" She already knew the answer. When she died in the UVA Hospital on April 6, 2016, almost nine years later, several thousand of the least able among us had experienced her touch ........ and I smile. Please remember that all of us at IHS are non-paid volunteers, and we are all donating what we can to IHS personally. Also remember - for transparency we hold the "Gold Seal of Approval" from the Guidestar.org national clearing house. Much love to All of You.   Love ...  T. Wade Clegg III  and for Sam McLawhorn

Six straight years of grant support has secured needs for thousands of underfunded UVA Hospital guests and out-patients

As we entered 2017, the Bama Works Fund of Dave Matthews Band in the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation (CACF) provided a grant of $5,000.00. This grant is dedicated to the Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum's (IHS) Food Program. With this grant the Bama Works Fund has contributed a total of $43,000.00 in the last six years. For this cycle the Fund was able to support all of the 72 applications received, awarding a total of $530,000.00 to organizations throughout the Charlottesville area.  The consistency of attention to this public charity and our efforts to provide for the indigent hospital guests is so well-served by this marvelous Foundation. And we say ... THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH! This Grant is impacting on two distinctive IHS Food Programs The UVA Hospitality House (HH). The thirty (30) room facility which can lodge about sixty (60) people is the only affordable opportunity for lodging for indigent and underfunded long distance out-patients and caregivers who must come for treatment at the UVA Medical Center in Charlottesville. UVA Hospitality House does not have a budget for food and kitchen related items, and is supported through donations. Although HH receives a small grant from the Emergency Food Bank, the most consistent supplier is IHS. This annual grant has been the main reason for this charity's ability to secure a monthly fulfillment of food needs for HH guests. The Full-day Meal Packet Program.  IHS stocks a large cabinet in the Office of Social Work in the main hospital, which allows UVA Social Workers 24/7 access to provide underfunded guests (family members, caregivers and outpatients) from long distances to have proper nourishment. The Bama Works Fund Grant has allowed IHS to purchase and fulfill the food requirements requested by the Hospitality House Supervisor and continue to grow its donor group of churches, schools, scouts, clubs, clinics, businesses and others for making full-day meal packets for Social Worker access for those guests without adequate funds for food while inside the hospital. Over the years the monthly production by these groups is from 200-300 packets, which translates into 2,400 - 3,000 packets yearly. A Note from UVA Hospitality House Supervisor,  Mary Jackson "Without any funds allowed in our budget for food, we are completely reliant on contributions in order to provide for our guests.  IHS has remained that dependable asset and Bama Works Fund Grant has remained a most dependable friend in order to secure IHS's reliability. To the Bama Works Fund of Dave Matthews Band in CACF Committee ... Thank you for allowing this group of volunteers the needed funds to assist in the feeding of the least able visitors to our community." Please remember that all of us at IHS are non-paid volunteers, and we are all donating what we can to IHS personally. Also remember - for transparency we hold the "Gold Seal of Approval" from the Guidestar.org national clearing house.     Love ...  T. Wade Clegg III  and Sam McLawhorn