Andrew's Buddies Corporation (also known as "FightSMA") was created to accelerate the search for a treatment and cure for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), the number-one inherited cause of infant death. SMA is a cruel disease, leaving many of its victims unable to crawl, walk, and even breathe or swallow on their own.  FightSMA’s objective is to raise awareness and funding for SMA research.

FightSMA was created in 1991 by Joe and Martha Slay, after they received the diagnosis of their son, Andrew.  Beginning “around the kitchen table,” FightSMA now has 19 chapters across the United States and Canada.

FightSMA hosts its annual gala, SMAsquerade, to raise funds for research and awareness.  This year’s SMAsquerade, “Make Tracks!” was held at the Science Museum of Virginia, and raised over $150,000.  Some of the highlighted items to purchase at the auction were six box seats to the Kentucky Derby, a Duck Hunting adventure in Arkansas, and an 8-day whale-watching expedition in Baja California, accompanied by a senior editor and senior photographer from National Geographic magazine.

In 2005, FightSMA launched the Fighter Mom™ program.  This model program was designed to help mothers (and other caregivers) whose children face ANY disease, health or behavioral problem.  It gives these special and courageous mothers the tools they need to proactively combat their children’s challenges. 

In recent news, FightSMA has joined together with Families of SMA and the SMA Foundation to create the SMA Treatment Acceleration Act, which has now been introduced in both the U.S. House of Representatives (H.R. 3334) and U.S. Senate (S.2042).  For more information on the bill, or to contact your Member of Congress, please e-mail FightSMA.

And while you're at today, don't forget to give your kids, be they two- or four-legged, a great big hug!

When I put out a call for non-profits to feature in this blog, I'll admit I was surprised to hear from an 800- year old family. It never occurred to me that a family would start a non-profit around it's heritage, but I have to admit, I think it's a lovely idea. And Duncan Carmichael seems very passionate about it.

According to Duncan, the Clan Carmichael is organized and operated exclusively for the following purposes:

• Promoting public knowledge of and interest in Scottish culture, such as literature, music, poetry and art.
• Encouraging and supporting education and training in piping, dancing and athletic contests.
• Supporting educational programs in Scottish culture.
• Engaging in other charitable ventures as shall preserve Scottish customs, tradition and heritage.

There is a US division of the clan whose main purposes are to:

• host clan Carmichael tents at Scottish and Celtic Festivals around the country and throughout the year as a means of meeting other Carmichaels and educating the public about our Scottish heritage and clan Carmichael history. Chief Richard Carmichael has attended a number of these events in recent years in order to support Clan Carmichael USA in this goal.
• maintain a scholarship fund which awards scholarships periodically to applicants who will attend a four-year college, with preference given for studies or research in Scottish history and culture.
• raise donations to restore Carmichael House ruins in Scotland

I had a great time exploring the Clan's website, learning about Scottish heritage, Highland Games and Carmichael Estate's history.

If you're a Carmichael in any way, you might want to consider membership in the group. I have to say, it looks like fun!

As I started to write about this wonderful, Richmond, VA-based organization, I realized I couldn't say it any better than they have on their website. Here is their story.

Embrace Richmond was started when a group of suburban women began to dream of ways of helping their urban neighbors. One of these women, Wendy McCaig, met a homeless woman, named Shannon through a CARITAS shelter.        

When Shannon and her baby daughter exited the shelter they found themselves sleeping on the floor. Wendy recruited her suburban friends to help collect furniture for the family. In just two days these women collected enough furniture to completely furnish the family's home. The story would have ended there, but over the next few months Wendy and Shannon became friends. 

One day, Wendy asked Shannon, “What do you want to do with your life?” Shannon responded “I want to help others the way so many people have helped me.”

That is how Embrace Richmond got started. It was born out of the desire of a homeless woman who wanted to give back. That “pay-it-forward” philosophy is ingrained in everything Embrace does. Embrace is run almost entirely by volunteers.

More than 80% of the volunteer hours served every week are served by formerly homeless individuals.

It is the passion and commitment of the homeless families served by Embrace that gives Embrace it’s unique culture and fuels it’s vision of being a place that unites people from all backgrounds.

        Embrace distributes Home Starter Packages to homeless families as they exit local shelters. Home Starter Packages consist of basic furniture items,  linens, dishes and other household items. The Home Starter Package eases the economic stress of families moving in to a new home and improves the health and well-being of families.

There are numerous ways to get involved with Embrace Richmond. You can host a party to collect household items, volunteer to help move a family's furniture, become a personal shopper or even a family encourager.

Contact Embrace Richmond to learn more about ways you can help.

At this holiday time of year, when you're getting new gifts from family and friends, consider donating an old item for each new item you take into your home. It's a great way to reduce clutter while helping someone else with a hand up.

Founded in 1940 by a group of concerned citizens, the Virginia League for Planned Parenthood's mission is to ensure that individuals and families have the freedom, information, and ability to make their own informed reproductive choices.

The organization provides a wide range of services towards this mission.

At their center in Richmond, VA, the group offers affordable and confidential health care including birth control and emergency contraception, 1st trimester abortion services, reproductive health services for men, women, and teens, HIV testing and counseling, and screening and treatment of sexually transmitted diseases.

They have even expanded to include pre-natal care for low-income women who are not eligible for Medicaid.

One of the primary focuses of VLPP is education. Their Becoming a Responsible Teen program is a culturally appropriate, HIV prevention curriculum designed especially for African-American adolescents in non-school, community-based settings.

In addition to the BART program, the VLPP website offers a host of information about birth control, pregnancy and sexual health. There is even a special section for to help parents talk to their kids about sex.The information isn't just for women; there is lots to learn for men also.

VLPP is undergoing a major project this year and expanding their building and services dramatically. If you know an individual or group that would interested in helping raise money for their capital campaign, please contact VLPP.

As the daughter of a woman who had her first child at eighteen because of inadequate access to education and health services, I'm thankful for organizations like VLPP. Please consider spreading the word if you know a young man or woman who needs information.

In 1694,the signing of of the Declaration of Independence was still 80 years away. George Washington had not yet been born. But commerce in the New World of America was in full swing. That is the year that Fairfield Plantation manor house was completed.A fire destroyed the historic property in 1897.

In 2000, a dedicated group of archaeologists began working to uncover and preserve this important part of America's history.

The purpose of the Fairfield Foundation is to excavate                 and preserve the remains of the plantation and to educate and                 involve the public in this endeavor. Residents and guests can actually participate in the investigation, interpretation and preservation of the site.

Research at Fairfield                 is contributing significantly to current knowledge about plantation                 life, specifically during Gloucester County's "Golden Age"                 of 1675-1725, which coincides with the height of Fairfield's prosperity.

In addition to excavating and preserving artifacts from the site, the Foundation seeks to preserve the site itself so that future generations with more sophisticated technologies can continue the exploration.

Check out their Women's Exhibit online to get a feel for the other work they do.

If you'd like to be a hands-on archaeologist and learn how to properly identify, excavate and preserve historic remains, please contact the Foundation. They'd love to have you over for a dig or just to sit around the table washing artifacts while learning about history.

If you're a history buff and want to help fund the Foundation's work, you can donate as well.

As you're driving around your city this week and look at the historic buildings someone else has preserved for you, perhaps you can think of a way to help save them for the next generation as well.

Helping Hands Women's Outreach Ministries is a Richmond, VA- based program for women dealing with drug and alcohol addiction or suffering from physical or sexual abuse. Typical clients come to the program as they are being released from prison or while on probation.

Says one program participant, "I am so thankful for this program.  I came from an alcoholic family.  Both of my parents were alcoholic.  I started drinking and using drugs at the age of 12."

"I went to prison and tried several other treatment programs, they didn’t work.  I am so thankful that today, I am clean and sober.  I will live my life helping and supporting Helping Hands Women's Outreach Ministries and the Emotional Healing Class. I thank God for all of the wonderful people I’ve met in this program.  They have become family to me."

It is stories like this that drive founder Alice Washington. Just four short years after starting her ministry she was honored as one of 30 finalists for the Women of Peace Award.

HHWOM's program concentrate on three areas of healing - physical, mental and spiritual. Faith plays a large part in the work of the organization and participants. Phase two of the four-step healing process focuses on how faith and spiritual beliefs are important parts of healing process and how faith can provide participants with a sense of purpose and guidelines for living drug-free lives.

"Since taking this class, I have a new life!  I have learned how to love myself and others. I have learned to forgive others because God is a forgiving God.  God has put positive people in my life.  My future plans are to continue working with my sponsor, keep going to church, and continue working on my relationship with my God," says another program participant.

Helping Hands Women's Outreach Ministries’ new transitional housing facility at 2910 Hull Street, Richmond, Virginia opened on September 1, 2007.  This is a place where women in recovery from substance abuse can continue to get much needed support to enhance their chances of a successful long-term recovery.

Founder Washington is looking for help expanding her programs to reach more women. If you can help with donations or volunteer, please contact her at hhwom@comcast.net. She has specifically asked for someone with PR experience to help out.

I need your help.

One of the reasons I started this blog was to share stories about good people in the world. I've started by featuring good non-profit groups but I'd like to expand, if you can help me.

Let's collect some stories together.

Currently, I don't have time to interview each organization and get stories about the people and animals they have helped. Some websites have success stories, but many don't have the resources to post them.

If you know someone who has been touched by one of these groups, can you ask them to write a comment on the post and tell their story? Just send them a link to the site (you can get a link to a particular post by clicking "permalink" that is at the end of each one) and ask them to share.

If you are involved in one of these organizations, would be post a comment and share your story? You can tell us how it feels to volunteer, a story about a special someone you've helped, anything so that we can get to know more about the organization.

I've been getting lovely emails from the groups on the blog but it would be so nice for others to join in te pleasure.

There is so much power in a good story. Please share yours. You may never know who you inspire to change the world.

And don't forget to subscribe so you know what new group is featured each day. It will save you having to remember to run back to the blog and check. If you're anything like me, having to remember something is a hit or miss affair.

Thanks again for all the wonderful things you do to make the world a little better place.

FURS, Friends United with the Richmond Shelter, is a wonderful organization that rescues dogs from the shelter to keep them from being euthanized. What sets them apart from other groups is that many of the dogs they take in have special needs.

Says long-time volunteer, Leah Engel,"I have been volunteering with them for about five and a half years, and it's been an incredibly heartening and rewarding experience -  not only to work with such dedicated, passionate individuals - but to see so many of these dogs who were in SUCH rough shape coming out of the shelter, often having been passed over or given back by other groups, just blossom and flourish and see that they realized that somebody hasn't given up on them.  That they haven't been forgotten.  That they WILL get their chance at a happy life after all!   It brings a tear to my eye every time."

The FURS volunteers are truly dedicated. Each Saturday they set up an adoption stand at the corner of Cary and Auburn, in front of the 7-11. From 12-4pm, you can visit the dogs, make donations and maybe even find a new friend to take home.

One of the great things about FURS is that 100% of your donations goes to the animals. All administrative and legal services of the organization are donated.

If you can make a donation, please contact FURS.

Thinking of buying your furry friend a new bed, toy or other treat this holiday season? Consider buying something for a dog at FURS as well.

You can drop off your donations at the adoption stand.

One last thing - if you, or someone you know has adopted a dog from FURS, will you comment on this post and tell your story? Please feel free to email me photos and I'll post them for you.

That is the motto of the Richmond Triangle Players.

Formed in 1992 by three gay men as a way to raise money to combat the AIDS crisis, Richmond Triangle Players has grown to produce shows that passionately explore the gay experience in its many forms including breast cancer, diversity, aging and dying, and, of course, relationships.

Their website explains their purpose best. "Richmond Triangle Players is committed to the passionate exploration of theatre and its role in the global community. We embrace a wide audience with a focus on works relevant to the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender communities. Our highest aim is to enlighten those around us with theatre that warms the heart, educates the mind and entertains the spirit."

Their productions have run the gamut from humor to serious issues and have featured such well know titles as "Kiss of the Spider Woman" and "The Judas Kiss." They are the only theater company that Harvery Fierstein allowed to produce his "Forget Him."

In their short history, they have produced an impressive 60 productions and over 600 performances. If you haven't seen an RTD production, you are missing out on something special! The intimate theater at Fielden's holds only 76 guests so, no matter where you sit, you feel as if you are a part of the action.

Their next production, "Visiting Mr. Green" is a world-renowned play that explores what happens when a 29-year old law-breaker is given a community service sentence that requires visiting an elderly widower.

RTP also gives back to the community that has supported it so well for its 15 years. Richmond Organization for Sexual Minority Youth, Diversity Thrift, Arts Fund, Richmond Theater Arts Fund and Gay Pride Virginia have all been recipients of RTD's generosity.

The Jackson-Feild Homes for Girls is a special place for girls 13-21 who are at-risk for mental health problems, delinquent behaviors and/or failure to complete their education.

Started in 1855 as an orphan asylum, it now operates two campuses in Virginia to help young women succeed in life.

They offer multiple programs promote emotional, physical, behavioral and spiritual well- being. Most girls start in the residential facility and then move onto an independent living program that teaches them how to maintain a home, budget and manage work and home life.

Twenty year-old Ashely is a great example of a JFH success story. She spent three years on the main campus before moving the apartment living site. She finished her high school studies and now maintains a 12-credit hour schedule a local community college while working part-time. Her goal is to someday buy her own home and car.

If you can help volunteer, donate or supply goods or services, please let them know. You never know whose life you might impact. One day you might be a patient of someone like Crystal, who graduated from a nursing program after her time at JFH.

While you're at it today, take a moment to be grateful to the folks who raised you to be a contributing member of society. Whether it is your parents or other family members, a teacher, mentor or community program, call or write someone to say thanks.