Achieveability's Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

Achieveability is a nonprofit organization in West Philadelphia that offers an array of services to its clients. Achieveability has been working to end poverty by helping single parent, low-income families and many who were formerly homeless. They offer education, housing, job readiness programs, and major steps towards home ownership! Achieveability has a new CEO, Marcus Allen whose overall goal is to grow the organization in order to guide those who they serve on the road to self sufficiency. Here are pictures from a ribbon cutting ceremony for one of their newly renovated properties in West Philadelphia that I attended.

Please visit Achieveability's website! Volunteer, send a donation...help those who help us!

http://www.achieveability.org/

Pediatric Stroke Conference

On October 25, 2009, I was privileged to attend Children's Hospital of Philadephia's Pediatric Stroke Conference. Dr. Rebecca Ichord, neurologist and Director of the Pediatric Stroke Program at CHOP presented a very interesting lecture about what happens in the brain during stroke. We also had presentations from a few of the hospital's physical, speech and occupational therapists. The icing on the cake was hearing from the parents of stroke survivors. I was honored to be one of the parents and shared my experience surrounding my daughter's bout with stroke. Some of the parents were asked to put their stories on paper and will be documented in a book called The Spirit of Hope- Stories of Pediatric Stroke Survivors and their Families. Book will be available for purchase in November!

*Group picture are of the co-authors of The Spirit of Hope

Women Against Abuse held their second annual iPledge Campain Press Conference on Drexel University's campus. The iPledge Campaign is a citywide anti-violence movement that calls on ordinary Philadelphians to help end violence at home and in the community. We all have a duty and responsibility to help curb domestic abuse. Not necessarily physically intervening but offering help to those involved. Assist your family member, friend or neighbor in getting resources in order for them to plan a safe escape. If you have a friend who is an abuser, talk to them and strongly encourage them to change their ways. One important fact that I learned was that when an abused woman is seeking a "protection of abuse order" from their abusers, SHE (not the police/sheriff) has to serve the order. WRNB's Mo'Shay LaRen is among a large group of concerned citizens fighting to change this. Women Against Abuse's website has a plethora of resources to get educated on the issue of Domestic Abuse. Take the "Pledge" against Domestic Violence at: http://www.ipledgewaa.org/