HOLMDEL, NJ… Starbucks has partnered with Sylvia’s Children, a 501(c)3, to help raise funds for children in Africa. Sylvia’s Children is conducting a clothing drive at eleven Starbucks locations in New Jersey through June 15th. Participating locations are: Middletown, Marlboro, Matawan, Manalapan, Edison, Union, Westfield, East Brunswick, New Brunswick, North Brunswick, and Piscataway.
Items being accepted for the drive include all types of usable and wearable clothing for all seasons, shoes, handbags, belts, small hard and soft toys, including Beanie Babies, stuffed animals, and rag dolls; linens, draperies, comforters and small rugs. For a complete list of items accepted for donation please visit www.sylviaschildren.org. Donated items should be placed in 30 gallon black plastic bags and dropped in the collection boxes at the Starbucks’ locations listed above.
Funds raised from the clothing drive will be used to finance a desperately needed health clinic for children at the Mbiriizi Advanced Primary and Day Care School in Mbiriizi, Uganda.
The school is comprised of 1,001 children, 250 of whom are orphaned due to the AIDS pandemic. It is the first of many models of African entrepreneurship being created by New Jersey-based charity Sylvia’s Children, an organization which raises funds and awareness for orphaned African youth. The non-profit seeks to help the school create a self-sustainable economy for itself, which will then be shared with schools in surrounding sub-Saharan African villages.
Since its launch in 2003, the organization has succeeded in ensuring an annual sponsorship for 117 of the 250-orphaned children and has raised $400,000, all of which has gone directly to the school. It has built a well and a fully stocked library; purchased seven acres of land for corn planting and milling; constructed boys’ and girls’ dormitories with triple-decker bunk beds; built a playground; started a chicken business and sewing business and built three additional double classroom blocks as well as providing a full-time nurse and new stoves for increased cooking efficiency.
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Starbucks and Sylvia’s Children Partner Up For Spring Clothing Drive
Monday, April 11, 2011
Sylvia Allen's Success Story
As a young girl growing up in a suburb of Minneapolis, MN, Sylvia Allen, of Holmdel, N. J., has always persevered against disparaging gender-based inequities; usually leveraged against her for being female.
Allen was a born entrepreneur, as she started her own business, selling holiday and gift cards door to door when she was 12. She told her mother she wanted cashmere sweaters like everyone else in her school. Her mother said, “Get a job,” so, she did. It was so successful that when she went off to college her customers complained!
Following high school graduation, Allen attended the University of Minnesota, where she received her B.A. in Speech and Theatre Arts. Upon graduation she went to work in radio and television in Minneapolis. It was while she was working in television, producing a daily 15-minute woman’s show and a daily two-hour talk show that she encountered the discrimination that made her move to New York. When she asked the executive producer for a credit line, he refused, stating it was because she was a woman. With that, she retorted with “That’s fine. I quit.” That was May 1965 and by June 1965, she was settled in New York City.
Shortly after, Allen worked for a wide range of organizations including Videotape Center, Teletape Productions, Leacock-Pennebaker (where she worked with Bob Dylan, Truman Capote and Norman Mailer, to name just a few.) In addition she has worked for Fortune 500 companies including McGraw-Hill Publishing and AT&T.
In 1979, when it was still frowned upon for women to even be offered managerial roles within corporate culture, Allen charged forth, starting her own company altogether, Allen Consulting. Three decades later, Allen has taken her internationally recognized marketing firm to glorious heights.
As one of New Jersey’s leading PR agencies, Allen Consulting has been heralded for its ability to provide brass ring media relations services to both for-profit and non-profit organizations for 32 years, and has arguably become a cornerstone in the reinvention of many of New Jersey’s downtowns. Last year alone, her firm produced more than 100 events and raised over $1 million worth of sponsorships for clients. She has represented clients such as the PNC Bank Arts Center, the San Gennaro Festival in New York and the world renowned Iditarod in Alaska.
In 1990, while teaching at New York University and running her business full-time, she decided she needed to go to graduate school so she registered at Empire State College, where she graduated Cum Laude with an M.A. in Culture and Policy.
Allen has been honored with over 50 awards including the Athena Award, Outstanding Philanthropist of the Year, New Jersey Governor’s Jefferson Award, Garden State Woman of the Year, Governor’s Tourism Award, New Jersey’s Top 50 Women in Business award, and the Girl Scouts Woman of Distinction Award.
But Sylvia Allen is not only a lauded entrepreneur, she is also an internationally recognized author, having written four books including “A Women’s Guide to Sales Success” and “How to be Successful in Sponsorship Sales,” as well as numerous articles on sponsorship sales and marketing. She is also a fundraising consultant and sponsorship sales expert, who frequently tours the world, traveling to countries like China, India, Ireland and Iceland, to present seminars about selling sponsorships. And in 2006, she was inducted into the International Festival & Events Hall of Fame.
Allen is also a teacher, having been an Adjunct Associate Professor of Marketing and a Program Advisor for New York University for over 20 years. She has commanded leading board positions for myriad organizations, including being the co-founder of Women in Sports and Events (WISE), the Vail International Multi-Image Festival and the American Sandsculpting Championship; Past President of the Jersey Shore Public Relations and Advertising Association (JSPRA) and Tower Hill Choir; and Past Chair of the Sponsorship Committee of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York, among a handful of others.
In 2003, Allen, who was at the top of her game, professionally speaking, decided to travel to sub-Saharan Africa as part of a volunteerism trip with World Vision, and never expected to encounter such a life changing experience, causing her to start her own non-profit organization, Sylvia’s Children.
She founded the organization following a journey to Mbiriizi, a small village in the African country of Uganda, where she came across hundreds of children who had been left orphaned by the devastating AIDS pandemic plaguing their community.
Before departing, Allen was asked by the head of the Mbiriizi Advanced Primary and Day School to be the adopted grandmother of the children, the highest honor in the culture. She graciously accepted this new role, but not without declaring her life’s new mission: to raise awareness and funds to better the lives of the children by providing them with education, shelter, food and clothing.
Allen and her team of committed volunteers have since had the opportunity to make a notable difference to this village and its residents. Sylvia’s Children has raised over $400K; has dedicated a library stocked with books; has built four classroom blocks; and has constructed a fresh well, a dormitory with triple-decker bunk beds to house the students, and housing for the teachers, to name just a few of the things they have accomplished. The organization has also installed computers with Internet access and has supported the children with endeavors that help cultivate their creative juices, by donating musical instruments and sporting equipment. Additionally, Sylvia’s Children has brought a dentist to the school, as well as nurses and doctors, some of which have treated or cured such ailments as Syphilis and umbilical hernias; and have saved lives.
Sylvia’s Children has so far been able to sponsor over 150 of the school’s orphans of the 1,001 students attending the school. No task is ever too big for Allen, as her goals are to implement a corn milling business; a chicken farm, supplying the children with protein and bringing a source of revenue for the shrunken economy; a health clinic; an arts and crafts cooperative; and a uniform sewing trade, in which the children can learn to sew, while local widows can stitch uniforms for the students. Other plans include solar for electricity, a building and computers for the children, and housing for visiting medical personnel.
Allen’s goal is to develop an educational program that includes African entrepreneurship that can then be taken to surrounding sub-Saharan African villages, in order to give them the tools to create sustainable economies.
She is also currently in the process of writing a book entitled Oasis of Hope, which will feature her story of how one person can made a difference in Africa. Following the book, Sylvia plans to start another non-profit called ‘Single Points of Light,” which will expand on her current plans, opening them up to the rest of the sub-Saharan African continent.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Great News
This is the wonderful greeting we received when we got to the school ... 1,000 children singing and dancing and welcoming us to our African home. On the left is Yahaya who is third in command at the school and knows every child's name and recognizes every child by sight ... an amazing man! There is so much to share this will be a list of different items, in random order, not necessarily in order of importance as they are ALL important.
1. Sarah and the kitchen ladies were THRILLED with their new knives. I wish we had taken a picture! Thank you, all, who donated!
2. Thank you to all who donated toothpaste so the children can continue to improve their teeth!
3. As a result of our medical team two weeks ago, 300 children were seen with 40 that needed additional work which meant I took them to the Byansi clinic in Masaka. They needed X-rays, EKG's, CBC's, etc. This brought home to me that we need a van! I think, with a van, we can at least get the children to the clinic on a regular basis until we can afford to build our own clinic. We need to raise $30,000 so we can buy a new one (probably a Toyota). Anyone who has contacts that can help us with this please step forward!
4. March 26 and April 1 there were two Band Aid for Uganda concerts which generated over $2,000 for Sylvia's Children. Special thanks to Lexi Griggs and Danielle Ruda for all their hard work.
5. We need musical instruments! The school wants to start a band because that is one way they can generate revenue by playing at weddings and other celebrations. Any and all gratefully received!
6. We now have five gift chickens ... Derek, Michele, Claire, Clarence and Briane! The flock is growing!
7. Other things we need at the school ... Ace bandages, ice packs, girls panties (they call them knickers!) and sanitary pads.
8. Next trip is July 7 through the 19th and we already have 10 people going! Want to join us? You will work hard but the pleasure of being with the children will far outweigh the hard work ... you will come away loved more than you have ever been loved before. Karyn Young-Engelman, one of the nurses on this last trip, called the school an Oasis of Hope. She summed it up so beautifully ... thanks Karyn.
9. The Starbucks clothing drive starts April 15 and runs through June 19. We need volunteer drivers to do pick ups at the stores! Would you be willing to volunteer? If yes call me at 732-946-2711 or cell 732-241-1144.
10. We will be bringing Geofrey to the United States on one of our return trips so he can visit various schools. I am looking for people to donate air miles from British Airways, KLM, Delta, Brussels Airlines or Continental as tickets are getting more and more expensive because of the fuel surcharges. Let me know if you have "spare" miles!
11. On Saturday, April 9 at 8 pm, Laurie Edwards is producing JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR at the Millstone Theatre in Millstone, NJ. She is doing it as a fundraiser for Sylvia's Children. Go here to order ticketshttp://www.njtheatregroup.com
12. On the next trip we will be setting up individual files for each child so if you are cleaning out your office closets and have too many manila file folders save them for us! (I went to three stationery stores in Masaka and they didn't have any folders at all! Great opportunity for Staples!)
13. Finally, on Monday, May 16 the Association of Fund Raising Professionals is giving me the Outstanding Philanthropist of the Year award for budgets under $1,000,000 (W A Y under!). I would love to have you celebrate with me. Just go to www.afp-nj.orgfor all the information! |
Friday, April 1, 2011
Jesus Christ Superstar!
In time for Easter, come see the stars in
Jesus Christ Superstar!
Saturday, April 9, 2011 at 8pm
Millstone Performing Arts Center
(just minutes from Freehold)
Use coupon code SUPERSTAR
for half-priced tickets!
(Regularly $45 but $22 with discount code)
Just click here to start!
JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR tells the story of the final days in the life of Jesus of Nazareth dramatizing Jesus' entry into Jerusalem, the unrest caused by his popularity, his betrayal by Judas, his crucifixion and ultimate resurrection. Featuring songs including "I Don't Know How to Love Him", "Everything's Alright" and "Superstar", you'll be wowed!
The NJ Theatre Group is a theatre company performing out of the 1,200-seat Millstone Performing Arts Center - just minutes from Freehold. This performance will support the development of a sustainable chicken farm for more than 1,000 children in Uganda through Sylvia's Children.
Use coupon code SUPERSTAR to receive your discount on all tickets purchased! Just click here to start!
Offer Expires: April 9, 2011