40K in 40 Days

$40,000 in 40 Days!

Last fall I embarked on a journey that was nothing short of amazing! I discovered the Someone Cares Soup Kitchen in Costa Mesa and was absolutely floored by the number of homeless people in Costa Mesa/Newport Beach needing a daily meal and a helping hand. I realized after spending time at the Soup Kitchen that many of them got knocked down by life's one too many unfortunate punches and needed a help getting back on their feet. The Soup Kitchen provides them that... a hot meal (they can eat as many servings as they like), toiletry items, clothing and more importantly their dignity. The Soup Kitchen was started by Merle Hatleberg at age 65 with $600 and a dream! Her dream lives on in more than 350 people visiting the Soup Kitchen a day! 

I will be blogging during the 40 days to help provide you insight to the world of the Soup Kitchen, stories of the homeless that arrive daily for a hot meal, the volunteers and most of all how the journey unfolds over the next 40 days as we strive towards our $40,000 goal. 

This year the number of people needing a daily meal and helping hand has skyrocketed while donations have dropped significantly. The Soup Kitchen needs your help more than ever! Please join me in reaching the $40,000 in 40 days! There is no room for failure as the Soup Kitchen needs every dollar of the $40,000! 

You can go ahead and make a donation by sending in a check or by Paypal. Please get your friends, family, colleagues involved in this critical campaign for the most basic necessity of life... food! You can definitely make a difference in so many lives! 

Well the $40,000 in 40 Day Campaign is Officially Over but...

That does not mean that you can't contribute or get involved to Make a Difference in the lives of so many others! You can still donate and impact so many lives! Please see the donation instructions to the right of this post. 

Keep an eye out Monday for the final amount we raised during $40,000 in 40 Days. I think it will be very heart warming and surprising especially in light of these very challenging economic times! 

One of the things I learned this year (and saw a bit of it last year) was how much you can affect people's lives! Not only the homeless and hungry but also the more than 800 people that donated their time, money, energy, products and services! They all had an amazing holiday season because helped make a difference for so many people struggling right now. The campaign grew larger than life and it was amazing to see it in action! 

We could definitely not have even raised a fraction of what we did without the help of our core fundraising team this year... Tuesday Nunes, Ruth Reynolds, Grant Reynolds, Jessica Shew, Becca Harvey, Jason Hartman, Nate Secor, Jimmy Weeks, Didi Ariola and Jessica Young. There are so many more people that contributed amazingly to this event that I will be thanking personally over the next weeks as this post would go on for days and days if I didn't!

For 2010 I am hooked! We will expand the Fundraising campaign and include Awareness to the strategic Initiative and make it a year long commitment versus just 40 days! There are so many great ideas that we can implement to make sure that the Someone Cares Soup Kitchen never has to do another emergency plea to the public (like last year... click here for story). We also want to ensure that everybody in the community knows about the amazing work that the Someone Cares does on a daily basis! More details to follow in the next few weeks! :)

For now Happy New Year and I can't wait until Monday to announce the final result of the $40,000 in 40 Days campaign! 

 

There are 2 Days Left!!

The $40,000 in 40 Days Campaign is winding down but we still need every donation possible. It will be critical moving forward into 2010 that the Someone Cares Soup Kitchen can provide a hot nutritious meal for 350+ homeless and hungry people a day.

I have met a number of people over the last 2 years at the Soup Kitchen that needed that extra little help in time of need. They received a hot meal daily, toiletry items and donated clothing... but they also received love and respect! They were able to get back up on their feet and become a productive member of society once again! The Someone Cares Soup Kitchen is a backstop for so many people! 

The Soup Kitchen pinches pennies like I have never seen before... they are incredible stewards of money. Each dollar goes directly to helping the hungry and homeless... children, adults and seniors alike! The Someone Cares Soup Kitchen is so frugal that they can serve an amazing lunch for $1.33 per person or $5.33 for a family! Your Donation Counts!!!

Please reach into your heart and make a donation if you have not already. If you have, Thank you! You have impacted so many people... many that you will never know! 

You can make a donation by sending a check made out to Someone Cares Soup Kitchen to: Avalon Properties c/o Corey Donaldson, 1927 Harbor Blvd #610, Costa Mesa CA 92627 or you can click the Paypal link to the right. It is that easy! Every Dollar and Every Person Counts!! 

It is Not to Late... You Still Make a HUGE Difference!

The $40,000 in 40 Days Campaign is almost over but it’s not too late to Make a Difference! Together we can make a difference for so many people that are struggling this Holiday Season. Donations are down and the number of people needing a nutritious meal daily has exploded. I have personally witnessed through this 40 Day Campaign of Love how many lives have been affected... from the smiles and excitement on the 1,000+ children's faces receiving toys for christmas to the non-stop "thank you's" at the holiday dinner where 1,200 meals were served. Please go now and make the donation if you have not already. It is fully tax deductible and means the world to people that are in less fortunate circumstances this holiday season. After all, the Soup Kitchen can feed a single person for $1.33 and a family for $5.33! Just think of the difference you can make!! 

We Need your Donation! Make a Difference! 

You can donate by two ways...

1. Click the Paypal link on the right hand side of this website page and make a contribution by Paypal

2. Make a check out to Someone Cares and send to:

Avalon Properties c/o Corey Donaldson, 1927 Harbor Blvd #610, Costa Mesa Ca 92627

If you need motivation to donate click (here) for pictures from the toy handout and (here) from the holiday dinner. 

 

What a Magical Day! The Holiday Dinner and Backpacks!

There were more than 1,200 Holiday Dinners served by some Amazing volunteers with Huge Hearts! The Holiday Dinner included baked ham, au gratin potatoes, sauteed green beans, fresh garden salad, apple crisp, sprinkles cupcakes and assorted pies/pastries. After dinner each person was given a backpack filled with 25+ items (socks, outerwear, toiletry items, survival items, etc.), clothing (t-shirts/sweatshirts), a pair of Rainbow sandals and winter jacket. 

Please click (here) for the pictures. 

 

What a Magical Day! The Toy Distribution...

Yesterday more than 3,000 toys were handed out at Lion's Park in Costa Mesa. The line was at least 300-400 people long for most of the day! The children were so excited to receive 2-3 presents each. Parents were beyond thankful that their children would not go without gifts for Christmas. Santa Claus was in full spirit visiting with all of the children! 

Click (here) for pictures.