Read the most recent news and stories from our neighbors thanks for the help of our Bluffton Self Help staff and volunteers.
Volunteer Spotlight | Donna Hastie, Darlene Curcio, Seth Friedman and CJ Strife
We would like to take the time to thank our four dedicated volunteers for their unwavering support and commitment to Bluffton Self Help. Donna Hastie consistently goes above and beyond to ensure the market is stocked with essential staples that are often hard to find....
2014 School School Supply Drive to Support Local Kids…
EVENT DETAILS WHAT: Annual School Supply Drive to Benefit School Kids in Bluffton WHEN: Now through August 11 WHERE: Bluffton Self Help DETAILS: Drop off supplies at Bluffton Self Help prior to August 11 CONTACT: Julie at 843-757-8000 BLUFFTON SELF HELP IS COLLECTING SCHOOL SUPPLIES FOR THE 2014-2015 SCHOOL YEAR! School Supplies are pricier than ever! Bluffton Self Help consistently urges the community to donate brand new school supplies for the beginning of the school year. The supplies are distributed among the social workers of the Bluffton schools. The mission is to help each child begin the new school year with a fresh start, regardless of family income level. With the help of a generous community, the children can thrive in their education with the right tools! 1. STURDY BACK PACKS (able to carry heavy books) WITH DURABLE ZIPPERS 2. Marble composition notebooks 3. 1 ½ inch 3 ring binders 4. 2 ½ inch 3 ring binders 5. High lighters 6. Pencil bags 7. Crayons 8. Markers 9. Colored pencils 10. Index cards 11. Spiral index cards 12. Glue sticks 13. Solid colored folders with prongs 14. Wide ruled loose leaf paper 15. Pencils 16. Dry erase markers 17. Dividers 18. Boxes of Kleenex (not small purse packs) 19. Hand Sanitizers (8 oz or 10 oz sizes) Please call 843-757-8000 for more information!
7th Annual Tiger Bass Series to Benefit BSH
Bluffton Self Help will again be the recipient of proceeds from the Tiger Bass Race Series, now in it’s 7th year at Hampton Lake. This year’s event will include a 5K-, 12K- and 1-Mile Fun Run. It will be held at 8 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 20. The Tiger Bass Race Series is a great example of community working together to create an event focusing on fitness, family, fun and philanthropy. It has become a signature event for the community because of the strong participation and enthusiasm from its attendees, volunteers, sponsors and Hampton Lake property owners. EVENT DETAILS WHAT: 7th annual Tiger Bass 5K/12K WHEN: 8 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 20 WHERE: Hampton Lake, Bluffton DETAILS: If registered before Sept.17, the 5K is $30; the 12K is $35; the 1-mile fun run is $15 CONTACT: 843-815-1718, rob@palmettorunning.com, www.tigerbassrun.com The race committee hopes to reach its goal of 500 participants and make a donation to Bluffton Self Help, whose mission is to help Blufftonians in critical need of short-term financial assistance and food and clothing, while supporting them to become more self-reliant. In 2013, Tiger Bass Race organizers hoped to have 250 participants and raise $10,000 for Bluffton Self Help. They exceeded their goals with 300-plus runners and more than 60 sponsors. This success meant that they were able to donate $12,000 to Bluffton Self Help. (This post is an abbreviated version of a feature story about this event published the August 2014 edition of Hilton Head Monthly Magazine. For the complete story, go here.)
2014 Southern Living Idea Home at Palmetto Bluff
Bluffton Self Help is proud to be a beneficiary of the 2014 Southern Living Idea Home. This year’s home is located in the River Road neighborhood of Palmetto Bluff, and will open for tours on June 28th. The $15 entry fee for these tours will benefit our Club. We will be providing volunteers to staff the home and act as docents for visitors taking the tour. If you are interested in volunteering for this, please call or email Lili Coleman for more information.
BI LO Charities awards grant to Bluffton Self Help
With great pleasure Bluffton Self Help’s executive director drove to Beaufort’s Town Hall to accept a grant for the food program. BI-LO Charities, Inc. has a long tradition of supporting charities. The goal is to support agencies that touch countless lives in the neighborhoods and communities around BI-LO stores. The BI-LO Charity Classic, an annual golf tournament held in Greenville, South Carolina, serves as the primary fundraising event for BI-LO Charities. Funds raised through the tournament are distributed through a grant application process, and priority is given to education, children’s charities, and agencies addressing the needs of the hungry.
Volunteer Spotlight: Cinda Bush
[divider] [image source=”https://blufftonselfhelp.org/media/uploads/cinda-250×200.jpg” alt=”” width=”250″ height=”200″ align=”right”]Cinda Bush has seen a lot of changes in her life and with Bluffton Self Help. She is one of Bluffton Self Help’s regulars and we mean “regular.” Bush has been volunteering for Bluffton Self Help for over 20 years! “I first met Mrs. Ida Martin when I needed help, years ago,” said Bush. “She was always there to help me,” Bush remembers. Mrs. Ida would call me when she received a bag of children’s clothing and say ‘you get over her and see if there is anything for your children.” That’s how she started volunteering. Cinda volunteered two days a week all those years and is currently a regular on the Friday afternoon shift. Cinda, a life-long local resident spent her early years living on the Belfair Plantation with her great-grandfather. “He raised me and two sisters,” she said. He was a farmer. Belfair, at the time Cinda lived there was owned by William Mosely Swain. Cinda remembers attending the one-room school house located on the plantation. In 1949, Cinda moved off the Belfair Plantation and attended Michael C. Riley School. Since 1985, when she wasn’t working or volunteering, she cared for her brother Jonathon who suffered from Hydrocephalus. When his mother passed, she promised to care for her brother. Cinda, with her husband’s whole-hearted approval, took him in. Jonathan died in May. Cinda, a cook by profession for thirty years, still works, earning needed income by caring for a woman three days a week who is homebound. When asked what keeps her going, she said it’s her faith. “I pray daily for the Lord to keep me strong and focused,” she said. Cinda continues to volunteer at Bluffton Self Help because of how it makes her feel. “I get a great feeling when I help someone pick out a piece of clothing they need or hand out a loaf of bread to someone who is hungry.” When Cinda has time, she relaxes in her wide open country setting, visited often by her five children and 13 great grandchildren. Cinda and her husband were married 41 years prior to his passing five years ago.
Bluffton Self Help comes to aid of pregnant woman in need
Courtesy of The Island Packet Taryn was in her second trimester when she was rushed to the emergency room with chronic pain and violent nausea. She was put on mandatory bed rest for the remainder of her pregnancy and could no longer work. Struggling to pay her expenses on a limited income, Taryn called Bluffton Self Help after she received a disconnect notice from the electric company. Following the interview and verification of information, Bluffton Self Help was able to pay her electric bill to avoid an interruption of service. Family members soon arrived to help Taryn with other expenses during the remainder of her pregnancy. Bluffton Self Help provides a broad range of social services for poor working families, the disabled, the sick and the elderly.
