Helping Out highlights some of the many charitable events and activities going on in the Charleston area. Submissions should be sent to dailyjournal@scbiznews.com.
The Children’s Museum of the Lowcountry received more than $3,700 from Whole Foods Market through the grocer’s quarterly 5% donation program.
On Sept. 13, 5% of net sales at the Mount Pleasant Whole Foods location was set aside for the museum, and $3,745 was raised. Museum executive director Denis Chirles said the money will go toward the museum’s organic gardens.
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Charleston Halos will hold its second annual Haunted Halloween Bash on Oct. 21. Proceeds will go toward the program’s efforts to benefit child victims of abuse and neglect.
The party takes place from 7-11 p.m. at Cottage on the Creek in Mount Pleasant. It will include costume contests; beer, wine and a signature cocktail; and music and dancing.
Tickets are $35 per person, $50 per couple. For more information, contact Elisa Strickler via email or at 843-952-3715.
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| Employees from Poe’s Tavern work with volunteers from Meals on Wheels to pack meals. |
Poe’s Tavern prepared food for East Cooper Meals on Wheels on Sept. 21 as part of Charleston Chefs Feed the Need. Restaurant employees also worked with regular Meals on Wheels volunteers to pack more than 400 meals.
In addition, agents from the ReMax Carolinas Region kicked off their annual retreat by volunteering with East Cooper Meals on Wheels. The agents from across the Carolinas delivered meals along three routes in Mount Pleasant, Cainhoy and Wando.
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| Agents from the ReMax Carolinas Region prepare to load coolers filled with meals for delivery to East Cooper Meals on Wheels clients. |
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Trident United Way will kick off its annual fundraising campaign with $1.9 million already pledged. The organization’s goal for the year is $10.75 million, which it will use for education, financial services and health services.
Pacesetter companies, which run their campaigns before the official start of the fundraiser, include Roper St. Francis Healthcare, whose employees have pledged $508,856. Employees at Jones Ford donated $23,000, including a company match. That’s a 61% increase from last year’s donations.
The 2011 Pacesetters
| American Red Cross | ARC of Dorchester/Dorchester DSN Board | Association for the Blind |
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CrossBridge Family Ministries, a Mount Pleasant nonprofit organization, donated $10,000 to the Medical University of South Carolina Children’s Hospital on Sept. 20. The money will be used to purchase a centrifuge to spin breast milk into skim milk for pediatric patients born with a heart condition with complications.
Chylothorax, a chest drainage condition, is a serious complication after heart surgery, and babies who have it cannot process the fats in breast milk. The centrifuge will remove the fats so those babies can still have breast milk.
CrossBridge is a nonprofit that helps families of local hospital patients cope with critical medical emergencies.
The donation to MUSC Children’s Hospital is given in honor of Emerson Rose Smith.
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Lowcountry Local First is holding its second annual revival to launch its membership drive and promote the practice of supporting locally owned businesses.
The event, from 6-10 p.m. Oct. 6, will include “The Medicine Man Dr. TrickInaBox & his band of National Lampoons,” with “the Rev. Ben Savensoles (Dana Mitchell from The Have Nots)” parading down King Street. They will head to the Music Farm, where a street fair and Be Wary of Quick Fix Elixirs production by Theatre Marvelosa will take place.
Tickets are $5. New or renewing members of Lowcountry Local First who join at the door will receive 20% off membership and free entry to the revival.
In addition, five community members have agreed to compete in a fundraiser for Lowcountry Local First’s Buy Local Movement. These “Dare Devils” — Angel Postell of the Charleston Wine & Food Festival, Roger Martinez of American Automated Payroll, Cyrus Buffum of Charleston Waterkeeper, Lee Deas of Obviouslee Marketing, and Darcy Shankland of Charleston magazine — will be taking donations, and the one who raises the least money will walk over burning coals during the Be Wary production.
Purchase event tickets or donate to the Dare Devils online.
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National recording artist Eddie Bush, a Summerville resident, has partnered with the Omar Shrine Temple for several fundraising events for the Omar Shriners and Shriners Hospitals for Children.
The events will include a Christmas holiday fundraiser, a celebrity golf tournament and a bike poker run.
Shriners Hospitals for Children provides quality care to children with neuromusculoskeletal conditions, burn injuries and other needs.
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| Julian Smith, executive director of the Cooper River Bridge Run, presents a check for $1,500 to Eric Watson, culinary arts department chairman, and student Christina Lane at the Art Institute of Charleston’s headquarters on Market Street. |
The Cooper River Bridge Run has established a scholarship fund for culinary arts students at the Art Institute of Charleston.
The bridge run donated $1,500 to the institute’s culinary arts department to establish the scholarship. It is part of the new Taste of the Bridge Run event, in which students from the culinary program and several area restaurants provide a high-carbohydrate pre-race meal for race participants.
Halls Chophouse, Jim ’N Nicks, Liberty Taproom and Virginia’s on King are among the restaurants expected to participate in the 2012 event, set for March 30.
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Ten people were honored Sept. 14 for their fundraising efforts for the 2010 Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. The “Pink Honor Roll” inductees were the top fundraisers for the 2010 race and were recognized at a luncheon at Carrabba’s Italian Grill.
Honorees were:
| Nicole Ferraro Paul Vannatta Dr. Thomas Hahm Aimee Goedecke Barbara Backer | Kendra Christmas Katie Spann Trey Rust Karen Manges Lauren Mele |
Those 10 helped raise more than $860,000 for the Komen Lowcountry Affiliate.
Komen Lowcountry is also preparing for this year’s race. It will take place Oct. 15 at the Family Circle Tennis Center on Daniel Island.
To learn more or to register, go online or call 843-556-3343.
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The 34th annual Turkey Day Run & Gobble Wobble has chosen a piece by artist Tate Nation for its T-shirt and poster design.
Nation’s On the Harbor was chosen for its connection to downtown Charleston, where the race takes place.
The 5K race takes place each year on Thanksgiving and benefits Lowcountry charities. Past recipients include Hospice of Charleston Foundation, Camp Happy Days and the Medical University of South Carolina Hospital.
The race set new records in 2010, becoming the largest 5K in South Carolina and 28th largest in the country.
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The 2011 Beach Club Blowout will be held next month at the Kiawah Island Club to benefit Sea Island Habitat for Humanity.
The event, which includes cocktails, open-seating dining and dancing, will be held from 4:30-8:30 p.m. Oct. 8 at The Beach Club pool deck.
Tickets are $75 per person, and no children are allowed. Attire is casual cocktail. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Sea Island Habitat for Humanity’s Women Build project.
Make reservations at 843-768-5726 or via email.
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The James Island Fire Prevention Expo will be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 15 at the Bayview Soccer Complex at 1045 Fort Johnson Road on James Island. There is no cost to attend. At the event, children can see and climb on firetrucks and EMS and police vehicles.
Attendees will learn safety tips for any emergency, and the event features a fire safety house so people can experience how smoke behaves and learn how to exit a home that is on fire. For more information, call 843-795-5678.
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