Thirty Days of Giving - Day 13

Day 13 

My husband and I were discussing this project yesterday.  I mentioned that the majority of the charities so far have been medical or medical related ones.      He made a request that I include a literacy charity in this Thirty Days of Giving.

After scouring the interwebs, the best I have been able to come up with is the Family Library.  They do a great job of getting children interested in reading.

Thirty Days of Giving - Day 13

Day 13 

From the St John's Ambulance website: 

"We believe that it’s absolutely unacceptable that so many people die needlessly – because no one could give them first aid when they needed it. St John Ambulance teaches people first aid – about 800,000 last year alone – so that they can be the difference between a life lost and a life saved.  As a charity, we’re committed to making sure more people can be the difference between a life lost and a life saved. To do that, we need your help."

The world needs people who are prepared to make a difference in their local communities.  

Thirty Days of Giving - Day 12

I think I need to face facts; I am useless at blogging on a daily basis.  The good intentions are there, but life gets in the way, or I simply forget.  Thankfully, I have not forgotten to donate £1 on the missing days - I managed that.  It was just writing about it.

Day 12

A donation has been given to Breakthrough Breast Cancer.  This charity does fantastic work in researching breast cancer.  A quarter of the research done in the UK is funded by Breakthrough.  They also provide a wide range of information.

However, my one big grumble with this charity is at that the images, the stories, the information is almost exclusively about women.  Men get breast cancer too.  A man's life time risk of getting breast cancer is 1 in 1,000.  This is 100 times lower than a women, but sadly, because a lot of the breast cancer information was targeted only to women (not just talking about Breakthrough just now), there have been men who did not realise that it was possible to get breast cancer and who have died because they left it too late to seek treatment.

Yes, women are the ones who are most likely to be making use of breast cancer services, but it is important for men to be aware of the dangers too.  A bit more information would be good.  A bit less pink would be nice.  And changing the language from 'women' to 'people' would be wonderful.

But they do such fantastic research!  I am happy to think that my money (this £1, and the one pound coins given through the year) is going to fund the scientific reaseach.

Thirty Days of Giving - Day 11

Day 11

Craig's Heartstrong Foundation is a charity set up to to raise the necessary funding to enable the heart screening of men and women between the ages of 14 and 35 here in the Isle of Man in order to detect any possible symptoms of long QT syndrome or Hypertrophic and Dilated Cardiomyopathy and thus help prevent Sudden Death Syndrome (SDS).

Thirty Days of Giving - Day 10

Day 10

I'm now a third of the way through, and I am starting to find this a difficult challenge.  Who, or what, should I give money to?  

It is also tricky because the challenge is to give away £1 a day.   £1 feels like a nice little donation to drop into a collecting tin, but it feels far too small when making an on-line donation, or one given face to face.    I have given one £1 donation to Jo at Methodist Live at Home, but I know her and was able to explain that it was part of a series of donations I was making.  

My inclination is to pop to the shops and see what collecting tins they have by the tills and select one of those charities.  But this does not feel like the best way to select charities to give to.  

In may ways, this challenge would be so much easier taken over a year, with £10 given out each week.  £10 feels like a figure that you could do something with.    

The postie has just been at the door, and I asked him.  He said that there is a collecting tin at work for Cancer Research, and he was happy to take my £1 and pop it in the box for me.

Cancer Research is such a good cause.  Advances are being made all of the time against the range of diseases called 'cancer'.  

And thinking about Cancer Research, it has brought on thoughts of donating to Macmillan Cancer Support, Breast Cancer and also the hospice.  

It's tasty, tasty, very, very tasty!

I have just eaten a wonderfully tasty breakfast; so tasty I wish to record it.

It is not often that I eat breakfast as so much of what is touted as 'breakfast food' contains either gluten or eggs. Neither of those make a tasty breakfast for me.

Today I went back to an old breakfast style. It is a home made 'muesli', but instead of oats, I use a gluten-free rice crispy style cereal. To this was added some cashews, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds and dried cranberries. The quantities were 'what ever is left in the packet'! This was topped with Rachel's low-fat vanilla yogurt. So tasty.

Guess what I will be eating tomorrow for breakfast?

Thirty Days of Giving - Day 9

Day 9

A round half of the people who are diagnosed with bowel cancer every year die.  It is thought that this is because the majority of people don't  seek medical advice until their cancer is advanced, making treatment more difficult and a successful outcome less likely.

A list of symptoms can be found here.

Thirty Days of Giving - Day 8

Day 8

Manx Gateway is a social club for people with learning difficulties. 

As well as providing a safe and social place for people to meet, they also run  a drama group and many sporting activities.

Thirty Days of Giving - Day 7

Day 7 

The Parish Walk celebrates its 100th anniversary today.  

"At 10 pm on Wednesday 28 May 1913, twelve men started the Parish Walking Match to each of the Isle of Man’s 17 Parish Churches. The only prescribed route from the start at the Palace Ballroom on Douglas Promenade was via Broadway, York Road to the Quarter Bridge and Braddan Church. Thereafter the entrants could choose their own course between churches and back to Douglas. Harry Bridson was the first of just four walkers who covered the estimated 79 miles."

"100 years, 24 days and 10 hours later, around 1,500 walkers will commence a similar challenge. The distance is now fixed at 85 miles with a few course changes over the years to accommodate the increased levels of participation.  The printed results and stories are still in demand but much of the information is almost instantaneous.  Radio stations broadcast from the start and throughout the 24 time limit, mobile phone technology will allow spectators to share stories and photos on social media sites and around 30 minutes after the flag has dropped the first photos of the walkers will be available to download."

Today's competitors often use the opportunity to raise money for charity.  "Safe, Strong, Secure (3S)" is a charity which seeks to provided to people who are, or have been, dealing with domestic abuse.  One of the 3S team is  Will Brown; he hopes to be one of the top finishers in the under 21s.  he came in first place, winning the under-21 section of the competition.

3S hopes to raise money, but also raise awareness of domestic abuse.  "We want abuse to be no longer a shameful secret that is hidden away, but something the Isle of Man agrees is no longer acceptable."

Thirty Days of Giving - Day 6

Day 6 

There was a young lass collecting for the Manx Blind Welfare Society.  My £1 coin was added to her collecting tin.

They help over 500 people on the island who have serious sight loss.  Blindness and other sight problems can be incredibly debilitating and isolating.  MBWC works hard, with their staff and huge number of volunteers to provide services that make a significant different in people's lives.  

Thirty Days of Giving - Day 5

Day 5

The charity today is Methodist Live at Home Schemes.

The aim of the Live at Home Schemes is to enable elderly people to live in their own homes, by offering friendship and support. 

The activities/services offered can be a little different from scheme to scheme, but typically they might be befriending, social group, including luncheon clubs, drop in sessions and coffee mornings, signposting service, day centre transport, and transport to essential appointments.

Wednesday is 'TidyDay'

Defrosting the freezer is a big, and often wet job.  But the time has come.  I can't put it off any longer.  The freezer must be defrosted, cleaned and restocked.  

On the dining room table there is a mound of frozen food, nestled safely under towels and a duvet.  I hope the ice cream and orange lollipops survive their migration to the dining room.

At some point today there will also be general sitting room tidying.  

Thirty Days of Giving - Day 4

Day 4

At the end of March, the Isle of Man suffered from extreme weather conditions, described as being the worst in 50 years.  Some of the snowdrifts reached 6m in height.

Thousands of sheep and cattle were buried alive in the snow.  Some were able to be rescued, but it is over 9,000 animals were killed.  This was 10% of the island's livestock.

Today's donation is a bit more than £1 and goes to the Isle of Man Agricultural Benevolent Trust.  "The IOMABT is a registered charity established in 1995 with the aim of helping "genuine cases of hardship in the agricultural and associated sector."

Barrule, a Manx folk band, has released their recording of a  reworked traditional 18th century ballad 'Ny Kirree of Niaghtey' (The Sheep Under the Snow).  They have raised thousands of pounds for the IOMABT.

Thirty Days of Giving - Day 3

Day 3  

Oxfam is one of the charities I regularly support, and have done for years.  

Not only do Oxfam give emergency aid to people in most need, but they do so many other things too.  Along with emergency aid, development is very high on their list of priorities.  Other area in which they work are in water management, improved agricultural practises, health, education, citizen's rights...  This is an organisation I am happy to support.

I was looking at their website today, and one of the banners says "Poverty isn't inevitable.  It's just plain wrong...'

Thirty Days of Giving - Day 2

Day 2

Today's charity is a Manx charity, Sailing for the Disabled. 

A person with a  disability can find themselves prevented from joining in with all sorts of ordinary, every day events, as well as the less ordinary things too.  

 

When I was at school, I was part of the sailing group.  At times it was hard, physical work, as well as being great fun.  It brought moments of great calm and also adrenaline packed afternoons.  Groups like 'Sailing for the Disabled' give people a chance to reach beyond the ordinary, and to try new and exciting things. 

Thirty Days of Giving

I was feeling a bit of a rut, doing the same sorts of things over and over again.  I asked for some suggestions from on-line friends and they came up with a host of interesting ideas.

One idea was "Donate £1 to a different charity every day for a month and blog about which charities you chose and why."  And was born "Thirty Days of Charity".  I did wonder about waiting until the first of July to start, but decided to just go ahead and start today.

Day 1 

I am starting off with the Salvation Army Food Bank.  

It is so easy to think of hunger as being an African or 'third world' problem.  But there are people here too who are facing such financial hardship that they are unable to properly feed themselves, or their children.  

There was a BBC article about the SA Food Bank at the end of November last year.  The need has not changed.  

My church is has decided to have a collecting box. People can drop off canned/long-life foods and we will pass them onto the SA Food Bank for them.  

Pjs and Skirt

Yesterday I make some new pjs bottoms and today it was a new skirt (which I am currently wearing.)

Item 25 is another Bee Sock.  

26. a Twisted Dozen sock

27. pjs bottoms

28. wrap skirt

A couple of socks

I have just finished knitting the Bee Socks.  The ends need to be woven in, the socks blocked, and then a bit of embroidery to finish them off.

Also finished is the first sock of Twisted Dozen.