The Utah Council of the Blind (UCB)

The UCB sends teams of teachers/trainers into the community to help people who have lost their sight or who are losing their sight. They teach them to remain independent in their homes. These teams have both a blind and a sighted member.

These people are located and given assistance with marking appliances, acquiring magnifying devices, networking with community services and learning to use a cane to move safely about the home and yard. They have learned where to find treatment for eye diseases and have been referred to independent living centers and Vocational Rehabilitation services to receive training to return to work.

One team worked with a teenager to teach her how to pour water without spilling it and how to tie her shoes. These are all things she should have learned years before. The ten teams have had a great impact on individuals who have retreated into their homes to be recluses or who had thought life was over for them.

A great benefit of this project is the fact that ten people with sight loss have also found jobs as members of these teams. Thanks to all who donate to make these and other programs like these possible.

For more information, check our website at http://www.utahcounciloftheblind.org/

Utah State Library Blind Services

Wasatch Community Gardens

Founded in 1989, Wasatch Community Gardens works to empower people of all ages and incomes to grow and eat healthy, organic, local food. We have provided gardening education and opportunities to record numbers of people in our community--over 6,700 during the past year alone! Wasatch Community Gardens achieves its mission by providing access to gardening, land, and education.

Access to Gardening and Land

Through the Community Gardening Program, we endeavor to provide community members of all income levels the opportunity to grow their own food by providing the garden space, knowledge, and tools. We run seven community gardens in the Salt Lake area with 120 garden plots available for growing fresh produce. In 2010 we launched the Sharing Backyards Project in partnership with Urban Village Cooperative. This online mapping program connects aspiring but land-less gardeners with landowners who are willing to share their yards. In 2010 we also launched Wasatch Community Gardens Network Project with the goal of creating a network of sustainable, flourishing community gardens in Salt lake County with a focus on low-income neighborhoods. We assist local organizations and community groups wishing to start their own community gardens by providing training, resources, networking opportunities, staff consultation, reference materials, and a tool lending library. There are currently 22 community gardens.

Access to Education

The Youth Gardening Program empowers youth with the skills, awareness and knowledge to grow and harvest food and to taste and prepare new fruits and vegetables, in order to make healthy choices for themselves and the environment. Over the past year, more than 1,500 urban youth along Utah's Wasatch Front participated in our youth programs, including City Roots youth gardening classes, City Sprouts summer camps, youth field trips and school gardening programs. Through the Community Education Program, we offer diverse organic gardening and sustainable food workshops, print and online educational resources, and direct outreach activities. In 2010, approximately 900 people attended 30 workshops, with topics including composting, raising urban chickens, fall and winter planting, and food preservation.

For more information about our community and education programs, please visit our website at http://www.wasatchgardens.org/.

Art Access/VSA Utah

Art Access/VSA Utah provides equal opportunities to inclusive arts programs for Utahns with disabilities and those with limited access to the arts.

Through its 11 signature programs and two galleries, Art Access is the only arts organization in Utah whose focus is serving individuals with disabilities.

At Art Access, we strongly believe in the power of art to cause change and impact humanity, and the proof is in our participant experiences. For example, programs such as our Integrated Arts in Utah Schools in partnership with the Utah State Office of Education's Special Education Services gives children a voice through the common language that art creates. Adults who experience our Artist Residencies for Adults with Disabilities program in institutions or community social services programs are shown to have improved mood and mental function and better health as a result. Teens participating in our Literary Arts and Teen Artist workshops gain self-esteem and self-awareness, overcome a range of circumstances that have sometimes hindered cognitive, social and emotional development, and have a better chance of staying in school and leading productive lives as adults. Artists with disabilities participating in our Adult Artist Workshops and Partners Mentoring programs learn skills that further their opportunities to gain self-reliance as working artists. Art TREATS (Targeted Rural Education in the Arts Through Sustainability) expands our services to underserved rural communities that have little or no access to the arts and arts education, ensuring that individuals with disabilities are better integrated into their communities. We are both proud and encouraged by the success and outcomes of our long-established programs.

Our philosophy in all aspects of our programming is inclusion, which incorporates persons with no discernible disabilities in activities for persons with disabilities. We are deeply committed to providing opportunities that foster a sense of belonging to people with all types of disabilities, encouraging them to interact and develop relationships with individuals without disabilities. Through education and engagement, Art Access has seen that inclusion helps build stronger connections and a more cohesive community.

Art Access/VSA Utah was founded in 1984 and is a leading affiliate of VSA International, founded in 1974 by Ambassador Jean Kennedy Smith to create a society where people with disabilities learn through, participate in and enjoy the arts. Art Access serves approximately 20,000 people in Utah.

For more information on our programs, please visit the Art Access /VSA Utah website at www.accessart.org.

DRAWING WINNERS

Dee Thorell, DOPL was the winner of the prize basket giveaway. Her name was drawn from those who attended the Charity Carnival. Thanks to Michaels Crafts for the beautiful gift basket.

Brent Bateman, Ombudsman and Tyler Clawson, Admin were the winners of the Repertory Dance Theater tickets.

Congratulations, winners!

There will be another big drawing on Friday, October 14. You can enter by doing one of the following:

1. Submit a one time donation or pledge through payroll deduction on the website at
http://www.usecf.state.ut.us/
2. Bring a can of food for the Utah Food Bank
3. Submit a completed Charity Quiz

We will be having a drawing every week, so the sooner you enter and the more you participate, the better your chances of winning.

Good Luck!

CHARITY KICK OFF CARNIVAL

Our campaign began on Monday, October 3^rd with a Kickoff Carnival held in the lobby of the Heber Wells Building.  There were many different charities represented with information about their specific cause.  It was a fun event with balloons, popcorn, cookies and most importantly, your chance to take a closer look at the charities.  

Anyone who attended the event received a raffle ticket for a chance at a gorgeous gift basket donated from Michaels Crafts.

Contributions made through the program impact a wide

range of problems, and help to improve the lives of countless individuals in need. Your gift will be working every day of the year, helping others to help themselves.   Thank you for your generosity.

Utah Food Bank





Rocky Mountain Rescue Dogs







Peace House for Domestic Violence



Repertory Dance Theater







Splore                     Ronald McDonald House








Community Shares/Utah

 











LDS Humanitarian Services









Utah Girl Scouts



Utah Rescue Mission





Adopt a Native Elder







Shriners Hospital

There are hundreds of other charities who qualify to participate in this year’s campaign.

Visit the State website at http://www.usecf.state.ut.us/ for a complete list of all the charities and to make your pledge for next year.

   

 

"Thank You for Feeding Me Today"

Few things are more satisfying in life than having someone who has had a hard life look you in the eyes and say, “thank you for feeding me today.”   We go about our daily lives, and a trip to the grocery store followed by cooking for ourselves seems like nothing, but to the homeless in Utah, it is unreachable.  We had the blessed opportunity to help the less fortunate in Utah yesterday.  We volunteered with Eagle Ministries, a non-profit organization who feeds the needy every Sunday and on Thanksgiving, in downtown SLC. 

We arrived at 7AM and helped set up the make-shift kitchen.  We chopped, mixed, and cooked an entire breakfast - including freshly ground coffee, for 300 hungry people.  It was very heartbreaking to see the homeless, hungry, and needy line up for a meal, but it was heartwarming to be able to serve our fellow man.  We worked until noon, and are looking forward to going back and doing it again!

Erika Tedder & Maria Martinez
Public Utilities

Commerce Charity Carnival

Come one, come all

To Commerce Charity Carnival!

There will be food, charities, lots of fun

and a special surprise for someone

Carnival is open from 10-12 on Monday, October 3rd

in the lobby of Heber Wells Building 

We'll have a raffle and free refreshments! Bring a food item for Utah Food Bank and earn an extra raffle ticket!

Once again, state employees are given an opportunity to participate in the Utah State Employee’s Charitable Fund Campaign. This year’s campaign runs from October 3^rd to November 4^th.

We would like to invite everybody to our Charity Kickoff Carnival held on Monday, October 3^rd from 10 am to noon in the Heber Wells Building lobby. The event will give everyone a chance to meet some great charities and to gain a better understanding of the important work that they do in our community.

Please come, bring a friend, have some fun, and support our joint efforts to help those in need. There will be a raffle and free refreshments! Division Coordinators will be available to answer any questions or assist you with your donation process.

See you there!