Awesome Foundation - Proyectos

San Antonio, TX – Shelby's Sweets

2019-05-24T00:00:00Z

Shelby's Sweets is an organization founded by myself and Shelby Struxness. We hope to one day open a bakery that offers vocational training and employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities in the San Antonio area. We are working on getting our nonprofit status, but we currently fundraise by selling cupcakes and other baked goods made by Shelby and other friends who have disabilities. We are involved in many projects. We support the nonprofit organization Aid the Silent by donating cupcakes to their events. We also will donate eight dozen cupcakes to Gabriela's Cupcake Run, a 5k supporting childhood cancer research. Finally, we have partnered with the Food Bank this summer through the FeedSA initiative to help raise food and funds to provide children with meals this summer. All of our products are picked by Shelby, who has fetal alcohol syndrome and learning disabilities. She is also fully involved in making all of the products, creating invoices, and choosing our partner initiatives. Shelby has said that being involved with Shelby's Sweets has increased her self-esteem, and made her feel like she is "capable of anything." We have a team of about ten individuals with disabilities, and around fifteen of their typical peers. When we have a big order, we host "baking parties" where products are made, but more importantly, friendships between people with and without a disabiliity are made! As a home bakery, we follow all local cottage food laws and regulations. This includes helping our volunteers learn about food safety, and even working with them to obtain their food-handler's certificate. While we do not currently have the resources or facility to actually employ our volunteers, paying for food-handling courses and assisting them with completion helps them find jobs in the community as well! In the future, it is our goal to open an inclusive bakery and coffee house where people with and without disabilities can congregate.

Kitchener-Waterloo – KW May Day 2019

2019-05-23T00:00:00Z

Here is a synopsis of last years event, followed by a brief piece of this years call out: We saw over 200 people gather in Victoria Park for a May Day celebration. We invited many community groups and individuals to share their projects, food, workshops and celebrate in the streets. The open mic held space for poetry, powerful words, music, and performance. There was a children's obstacle course, and games for folks of any age and ability to participate in. We had a build your own burrito food station as well as a potluck. to close the evening, we had a celebration in the streets that cumulated in an outdoor dance celebration at city hall. In the lead up, we also hosted several art gatherings that brought together community to create art for the day of. This year, we will include a similar amount of fun and activity inviting many community organizations to join once more. In addition to the main event on May 1st, we will be hosting a film screening the next evening, and dance party on the Friday. Here is the first part of our invitation to the community to participate this year: Join us Wednesday, May 1st for our second annual May Day community gathering, as we shake off the icy winds of winter, celebrate the coming of spring, and remember once again what it means to be resilient, radical, and rejuvenated! Let’s gather to share our stories, our grief and our joy, and to reimagine and remember what we want and need in this world! In this space we can feast, create, dance, celebrate, and resist, while we continue to build connections with ourselves, one another, and the land. Our goal is to create an event that is inclusive and free to everyone; grounded in mutual aid, voluntary participation, and personal/collective autonomy, without authority. We are dreaming up a fierce, fun, family friendly event that will kick off with diverse activities and a potluck in the park, followed by a most marvelous march. Let’s put our dreams into action together!

Yerevan – Փրկելը հիասքանչ է

2019-05-23T00:00:00Z

Դինգո Թիմը ավելի քան 12 տարի է, ինչ զբաղվում է անտուն կենդանիների փրկության և որդեգրման հարցերով: Այն փրկել և տնավորել է հազարավոր կենդանիներ, որոնք փրկվել են մահից և մարդկային դաժան վերաբերմունքից: Ամեն փրկությունն իր պատմությունն ունի, ամեն փրկություն յուրովի հուզիչ է: Կենդանիների նկատմամբ դրական վերաբերմունքի մշակույթի զարգացման հարցում չափազանց շատ կարևորելով ապագա սերունդների ճիշտ դաստիարակությունը՝ Դինգո Թիմն իր «Փրկելը Հիասքանչ է» նախագծով նպատակ ունի փրկության պատմություններից մեկը դարձնել հեքիաթի գիրք: Դրա շնորհիվ երեխաների համար դեռ փոքր տարիքից անտուն կենդանիների փրկությունն ու որդեգրումը կդառնա անգիտակցական մակարդակով նորմալ ու սովորական երևույթ, չէ որ ի՞նչն է երեխաների վրա ավելի լավ ազդում, քան հեքիաթը: Այս հեքիաթը, որը կդառնա կրթական նոր նախագծի առաջին քայլը, փոքրիկ Ջինայի պատմությունն է, ում մի բարի մարդ փրկում է խեղդվելուց, տանում տուն և նա դառնում է գեղեցիկ ընտանիքի մի երջանիկ անդամ: Հեքիաթի հեղինակը Դավիթ Մակիչյանն է, նկարչուհին՝ Գոհար Սարգսյանը:

Newcastle – Cuplet Poetry Night

2019-05-23T00:00:00Z

Cuplet is Newcastle's newest monthly poetry night, focusing on touring interstate and international acts. The project was launched at its gorgeous venue The Beaumont (Hamilton) on August 15 to a packed crowd, with seven feature poets - three international, two Sydney based, one Melbourne based and one Newcastle based poet - taking over the stage for an evening of world-class poetry. I decided to develop Cuplet after a trip to Sydney, to read at the 'Avant Gaga' poetry night at Sappho Books in Glebe. The Sappho poetry nights have been running for over 15 years, most recently under the stewardship of Toby Fitch - poetry editor of Overland Literary Journal. I realised that Newcastle was missing this kind of event, and I wanted to fill the void. While Newcastle has a robust scene of open mic nights and local poetry readings, Cuplet offers an opportunity to have touring poets come to us - outside of our two major writers festival periods (Newcastle Writers Festival and the National Young Writers Festival). Newcastle's arts and cultural scene is strong and deserving of a regular, high class event with a wide range of local, interstate and international artists. The support for the launch was extremely heartening - we had a full house, six poet sponsors (individuals who sponsored the reading fee for a poet), and most audience members donated to cover the remaining costs. The venue was happy to host, and supplied mic and PA as well as offering drinks for the poets. Newcastle Live, the Newcastle Herald and HunterHunter all covered the launch. Responses to an audience survey showed that the majority of respondents were more likely to come to a poetry reading if there were an interstate or international artist. "A wonderful generosity and buzz of excitement. A terrific addition to the burgeoning Newcastle poetry scene." - Dr Trisha Pender, University of Newcastle "Cuplet is the poetry event I wanted to find when I first moved here." Anupama Pilbrow

Chicago, IL – TRQPiTECA Queer Pride Chicago 2019 - Sound System

2019-05-22T00:00:00Z

TRQPiTECA Queer Pride Chicago 2019 is a FREE, ALL-AGES festival celebrating LGBTQIA existence and resilience at the beautiful and iconic Ping Tom Memorial Park in Chinatown. It will take place on Sunday, June 30, 2019, from 3pm - 10pm. This event was selected to be a part of Chicago Parks District's Nights Out in the Park, which features arts and cultural programming in parks throughout the Chicagoland area. Programming with include two stages of live music, DJs & dancing, performances, art installations and visuals, as well as vendors, health & wellness providers, and community organizations. TRQPITECA Queer Pride 2019 will coincide with a teen-led Queer Family Picnic and Open Mic from 11am-4pm also at Ping Tom Memorial Park, sponsored by the Chicago Parks District. Our goal is to provide an inclusive space for people of all ages to uplift and affirm each other, to receive community care through health and wellness resources, and to enjoy our community's artist and personal expression. Because the majority of LGBTQIA funding and resources go towards community on Chicago's North Side, we are hoping to provide space on the South Side that celebrates all identities, not just those centered by mainstream Pride celebrations.

Chicago, IL – AMFM Presents: Feast "A Festival in Three Courses"

2019-05-22T00:00:00Z

We created a festival that creates a platform specifically for local musicians and artists to perform and share their work on a larger stage in the city they live, thrive and create in. We also center our festival on the West and Southside of Chicago to address issues of food equity and hunger in the city's food deserts. We utilize arts and culture to cultivate community and bring awareness to a large issue facing many people in this city. We give a new meaning to the saying "it takes a village." This is a diverse festival created by the people, for the people, where artists are hungry with passion, and “everybody eats,” and gets a shot at the stage, not just those who are bigger names, and no one leaves hungry. In 2018, through a series of festival pop ups over the course of the summer, we held a food drive, a community potlucks, and our feast finale in parks across the city with amazing local talent and even a fashion show. This year we hope to continue this mission seasonally to continue the conversation year round, because hunger is year round. Along with our summer festival Feast, we plan to host a Harvest, a dinner that highlights chefs and restaurants to raise funds for a partnering organization supporting food justice, and feed the less fortunate a fancy feast, and Seeds, a community day highlighting local community gardens, markets and organizations that people can get informed and fresh foods from.

Almere (Inactivo) – Tasty mushroomburgers for flexitarian people

2019-05-22T00:00:00Z

It is our mission to provide the people with food based on local waste streams produced by smart technology. This statement has been developed on four problems on which we want to contribute on the solutions - Our living space had been built or paved for 70 procent which reduces the water drainage, health & wellbeing levels of the people (WUR,2019); - A flexitarian diet saves 1366 liters of drinkwater and 2 kilograms of animal feed per day when not eating any meat (Nudge, 2015); - The energy use is partly renewable (6,6%) and mostly fossil (93,4); - At the Netherlands cancer is the main reason of death, one of the causes is an unhealthy diet which contains to much red meat and charcuterie (Voedingscentrum, 2019) Therefore the local government of Almere introduced a program in 2017 which focusses on greening, feeding, energyzing and healthying. One of the program results is our company UPZWAM. Our mission is to provide food to people based on waste streams and produced in our own technical growth systems. To realise this mission we execute three key activities: -Cultivate edible mushrooms on local waste streams (coffee grounds, wood); -Produce derivative food products like vegaburgers, snacks and fitness supplements; - Design, development en production of modular technical solutions for small mushroom cultivators; To realise this activities we use serval resources. To collect the coffee grounds we collaborate with a local coffee company (Van Duijnen) and we are working on collaboration with a health supplier (Kwintes) tot create social jobs. All knowledge for the cultivation proces is obtained by ourselves. The result: an automated growthroom which is connected to the internet for continuous improvement. By these activities we want to reduce the impact on the local environment and supply in the need for delicious food and cultivation technology.

Adelaide – Connect @ Enfield

2019-05-21T00:00:00Z

'Connect @ Enfield' is a new project which aims to contribute to a "strong, connected and resilient community" in the suburb of Enfield. The aim is to develop a suite of programs that are relevant to the needs of the community, address social isolation, and build strong links between the local community, various ethnic and indigenous groups in the area. At the moment, CareWorks is announcing its arrival in the community with a series of programs that are fun and engaging (Food stalls, Sausage sizzles, car wash, mini-fair, etc.)

Kingston – Happy Tails Butterfly Sanctuary

2019-05-21T00:00:00Z

Happy Tails Farm Sanctuary is as a farm animal rescue offering lifelong Sanctuary and rehabilitation to abused, neglected and abandoned farm animals, and also operates as an education center. Happy Tails is a volunteer run registered charity in Harrowsmith. Happy Tails offers several different programs for our community youth, and this year will be instituting an inaugural summer camp program, based on Dr. Jane Goodall’s roots and shoots program. This camp filled to capacity in less than 48 hours, and is offered free to Kingston area children and includes all meals! All of our children’s programming has always been free or buy donation, because money should never be a barrier to learning and fun! As an education piece to this camp, as well as for all of the other children’s programming and community visitors, we will be building a butterfly sanctuary. This butterfly sanctuary does not simply mean we plant flowers and butterflies come. This will be an educational garden, and will highlight the full lifecycle of the species. We have fully planned out the garden, and the plants we’ve incorporated into the plan support the entire lifecycle of a species. This garden will also attract bees, and these butterflies and bees will make their way throughout the property. This garden will have a teepee design, so children can go right inside and explore. We have chosen plants to host the eastern black swallowtail and the painted lady butterflies. This will be an interactive garden that you can walk through and experience. The teepee will be covered in pole beans that children can literally break off and eat! The garden will be surrounded by three benches where people can sit and watch their children, or just sit, relax and reflect.

Awesome Without Borders (Inactivo) – Flipping Out: A Gymnastics Documentary

2019-05-20T00:00:00Z

I suffered some horrific abuse at the hands of my gymnastics coach Doug Boger in the 70s/80s: being hit/kicked/poked with toothpicks/burned with a cigarette - the list goes on and on. I didn't talk about it with anyone until my mid-30s, at which point my best friend and teammate found other former gymnasts who had also suffered. We tried to get our coach removed from the sport, and through that process, we learned of many loopholes in the athlete protection policies of USA Gymnastics. This documentary details the abuse by our coach as well as the TEN YEAR BATTLE that we fought (and continue to fight) with USA Gymnastics trying to close the loopholes that we had discovered. You can imagine our devastation when the Larry Nassar case broke - and the exact policies that we tried to change could have prevented the toxic environment that allowed Larry Nassar to molest 100s of gymnasts at the Karolyis "Ranch" in Texas. I have an ambitious goal to raise $500k thru several avenues: crowdfunding (coming in January), grant-writing (1 grant/week until it's funded), and through personal investment (of time and $). I know this is a big number, and I'm starting right here with you (!) I intend to complete the documentary by January 1st, 2020. P.S. The website is up - but it is not active yet. I just applied for LLC status and an EIN, and I can't hook up a bank to receive money yet - so PLEASE don't attempt to back the project/"make a purchase" - this will be solved in 10- 15 business days. Thank you for understanding.

Tallahassee, FL (Inactivo) – Mighty Meals

2019-05-20T00:00:00Z

The Junior League of Tallahassee is dedicated to supporting basic needs for local children and families through strategic partnerships, sustainable community programs and volunteer resources. Our basic needs focus is three-pronged – food, clothing, and shelter. In February, the members of the Junior League of Tallahassee recently voted in an exciting new signature community project – Mighty Meals. Mighty Meals will target child hunger and food insecurity issues in our community. Leon County ranks third in the state for food insecurity and hunger. One in five people are food insecure and hungry, making our focus all the more important. The meal gap, though narrowing slightly, continues to be in the millions - approximately six million more meals are needed annually in Leon County to satisfy this gap. In researching our next project related to these issues, we found that no current organizations target longer school breaks, such as Spring Break. Programs such as Second Harvest’s Backpack program, which the JLT supports, only provides shelf-stable food for a weekend. The mission of Mighty Meals is to help alleviate food insecurity and provide access to nutritious meals for elementary-aged children and their families during spring break. The Mighty Meals box would contain a recipe book with ideas for how to prepare the included food. Participants in the project would receive a free “Mighty Meals” box containing nutritious food for a family of four for one week, which equates to 84 meals per family. Fresh produce and a protein component would be a priority for each day. The approximate cost for one box will be $50. The goal of Mighty Meals would be to assist 200 families, which equates to 15,120 meals. The boxes would be distributed at no cost to participants at a location to be determined in accordance with food safety regulations. The distribution would occur the Saturday prior to Leon County Schools’ Spring Break in 2020 on March 14th.

Ann Arbor, MI – The Guild Needs A New Community PA

2019-05-20T00:00:00Z

The Music & Arts Guild's PA has bitten the dust. Originally purchased used in 2016, our $300 investment has supported so many gigs that it is exhausted beyond repair. It has supported a multitude of community events such as Totally Awesome Fest, the Palmer Park Art Fair, gigs at Dreamland Theater and backyard fundraisers for social causes. The Guild's PA is available for any community member to rent for a small fee and is free for Guild members to check out of the equipment library. We purchased a set of $300 Yamaha speakers in 2018 and we need a small amplifier to power them in order to continue our community mission of bringing amplified sound to the masses.

Ann Arbor, MI – Bow School Garden

2019-05-20T00:00:00Z

FoodCorps is a nonprofit that partners with schools in underserved communities to teach children about fruits and vegetables so they can make healthy choices. Our vision is to create a future in which all our nation’s children––regardless of class, race, or geography –– know what healthy food is, where it comes from, and eat it every day. Bow Elementary-Middle is a public, K-8 school in Detroit where a FoodCorps service member teaches weekly hands-on nutrition classes, conducting fun and engaging healthy food taste tests, and more. Ninety-five percent of Bow’s students participate in the national free and reduced lunch program, and the student body is nearly all children of color. National statistics show that 1 in 2 children of color are on track for diabetes, and there are financial, geographical, and historical barriers to accessing fresh fruits and vegetables for Bow’s families. An integral piece of FoodCorps’ work includes connecting students right to the source - the garden - and involving them in the process of growing their own nutritious fruits and vegetables. Research shows that in schools where FoodCorps’ hands-on learning practices happen to a high degree, students eat triple the fruits and vegetables compared with peers in low-implementation schools. The school garden will be an invaluable teaching and learning tool at Bow, where core subjects such as science, math, and writing can be integrated into hands-on healthy eating and garden education. The Bow School Garden will provide a space to bring together the school community in a collaborative project centered on food and health. Students will experience the wonder of seeing a tiny seed grow into a delicious vegetable, the joy of plunging their hands into warm soil, the therapeutic effects of gardening, and the teamwork and community building that makes it all happen.

Pittsburgh, PA – Let's Go Fishing

2019-05-20T00:00:00Z

My ministry cleaned and aeratated an inner-city lake a in a public Park in Pittsburgh. Seven men from different parts of the community came together in July 2017 and worked to establish a safe and secure fishing environment for urban youth and families. Urban Youth do fish , but in Pittsburgh the fishing stopped in the 1950's. We are reviving sport fishing as we believe it will save our community from the violence in the street and the rapid expansion of the mental health system. The Juvenile Justice system in Pittsburg spends five hundred and sixty dollars a day to house one youthful offender. A lot of fish can be purchased for that amount of money. We believe the forty year blight has hurt families in their interpersonal relationships. I believe that will be strengthened as young families at risk begin to rebuild relationships outside of the electronic stimuli of today. We desire to teach fishing to pittsburgh families and we have been certified by the State Fish commission to do so. last year June 2018, we conducted the first family fishing event at Lake Carnegie in Highland Park since the 1930's. We chose to make this an annual event. Finally we are all volunteers and most of us are Grandfathers in the community we serve.

Washington, DC – One Night One BUILD

2019-05-20T00:00:00Z

The Business Plan Competition at OneNight OneBUILD is a multi-part event that represents the culmination of a year of hard work by our ninth-grade students and celebrates the transformative power of entrepreneurship. Starting in early May, more than 20 teams of BUILD high school students will pitch their innovative business ideas to volunteer judges in hopes of earning a final slot at OneNight OneBUILD on May 22nd, at WeWork Navy Yard, 80 M Street, SE, Washington DC, from 6:30-8:30 PM. Only three teams will make it all the way. These finalists will compete in front of a panel of celebrity judges and 200 guests. BUILD is dedicated to creating a more diverse future workforce by ensuring students in under-resourced communities have access to the mentorship, professional development opportunities, and funding they need to graduate high school, go to college, and launch successful careers. Starting in 9th grade, BUILD students work with their peers, teachers and business coaches to develop business ideas, pitch for seed funding, and launch real businesses. BUILD’s unique “Shark Tank”-style program offers students a four year entrepreneurship experience designed to develop 21st Century Skills and motivate low income youth to succeed in school.

San Francisco, CA – Stoop Stories

2019-05-18T00:00:00Z

Stoop Stories is a movable event that takes original plays and performances by local writers off the stage and onto the stoops of San Francisco. By removing the physical and financial barriers of a traditional theatre, Stoop Stories aims to make theatre and exercise accessible to everyone. Each story is broken into five 10-minute scenes, told chronologically over a three hour period on stoops within a ten-block radius. The stories are free to watch, but interested stoop crawlers can purchase a map revealing scene locations ahead of time. For every map purchased, Stoop Stories will donate a portion of the funds to a local non-profit working towards reducing homelessness in San Francisco.

Miami, FL – Pete's Putrid Peas

2019-05-17T00:00:00Z

I’m currently fundraising for my new film, Pete’s Putrid Peas! It’s a wild and visually insane short that brings you into the world a notorious Vlogger who falls further and further out of reality while eating nothing but peas for a three week Instagram challenge. Over the last year, I haven’t felt good about my time on instagram, my social media screen-time was up to 5 hours per day and I felt like crap. I wished my shots looked liked others’ and I was trying to keep up an image on Instagram that I couldn’t. Truthfully it felt like I was slipping into a different reality, a fake reality. I decide to creatively channel this into writing a narrative/experimental film and in the process, I now feel a lot healthier about my time on social media and my screen-time is way down. Now, the next step is to make this film to spread to the 210 million people who suffer from social media addiction and exhibit depressive symptoms due to screen-time.

Miami, FL – As I See Myself

2019-05-17T00:00:00Z

WE ARE ON A MISSION TO USE ART (in all its forms) as a tool of engagement to raise awareness and to be a voice for children, youth and women victims of abuse, exploitation, human and/or sex trafficking. We work hand in hand with other organizations to prevent, alert and inform our communities of the risks, statistics and factors involving these problems. “As I See Myself” is a program we created where children look at themselves in a mirror and paint a self-portrait on a canvas, which externalizes deep feelings, thoughts and liberates emotions. Children are given a space to have a voice, where they can dream and draw their future, and realize that they are unique and loved. Through art we can express many feelings such as: sadness, happiness, anger, frustration, anxiety, etc. That is why As I see myself project can help identify these kinds of factors, including whether a child is being abused at school or at home. Your generous donation will provide free art classes to kids on the foster care system, migrant children and youth, children in placement homes or kids in under-served communities.

Lake Mac – Warners Bay Netball Club Mural

2019-05-16T00:00:00Z

We would like to brighten up our clubhouse by painting a mural that represents our local community. We are hoping to hold a "club day" where all players, their families and interested community members can come to the clubhouse and take part. Each team at our club is named after a sea creature (eg Piranah's, Turtles, Jaws, mermaids etc) we plan on having stensils made to represent each team (mascot/logo) that the players can place/paint on the mural in hopes to increase players sense of community ownership, belonging and pride and to further encourage positive community involvement. The players will also have the opportunity to bring their own T-Shirt to have their teams mascot painted on it. On the "club day" we will also invite the players to take part in skill-building activities, games and play some friendly games against each other to get to know their fellow club members as opposed to only knowing/sticking with their own team or age group. Our clubs motto is "A club with spirit", by hopefully enhancing the sense of club/community spirit within all of our players we hope they will continue to be involved in and contribute to their wider community.

Orlando, FL – Wonders in Motion

2019-05-16T00:00:00Z

2nd Sight Dance is producing 5 show run at the 2019 Orlando International Fringe Festival. Our show is an emersive experience that takes audience members on a journey of wonder through the art of dance and illusion.

Orlando, FL – An Otherwise Invisible World (Scott White)

2019-05-15T00:00:00Z

Cass Clay – Seperated Families Community

2019-05-15T00:00:00Z

A new program called the Separated Families Community seeks to bring together families that have only one parent due to dissolution of the relationship, deportation, or incarceration. It's an idea from Motherland Health, an organization that provides free mental health counseling. "Motherland Health is not just a place to receive counseling," says Kasakwe, "but a community center that is used to help each individual achieve their own path to overall wellness." Kasakwe hopes to hold monthly and even biweekly events to create, she says, "a community that strengthens each other and encourages each other." To help the program get started, Motherland Health has received a $1,000 gift from the Awesome Foundation of Cass/Clay. The money will help the inaugural event by funding refreshments and activities.

Newburgh, NY – Keep It Moving- 5K Run/Walk and Community Fun Day

2019-05-14T00:00:00Z

On Saturday June 22, 2019 at the Newburgh Recreation Center , Keep It Moving (K-I-M) with support from Blacc Vanilla, Shred and We Are Newburgh are hosting Keep It Moving 5K Rn/Walk and Community Fun Day. This exciting day will kick off with a 5k Run/Walk, a kids fun run, community fair with join along activities such as Zumba, yoga and kickball. Food trucks and music will provide an electric atmosphere to keep the day flowing. The City of Newburgh Recreation Center will allow K-I-M to utilize the building for rest rooms and relief from the heat of the day.There is a registration fee for the 5K with the proceeds benefiting Keep It Moving. The skate park will be alive with skaters celebrating Go Skate Day in honor of Zane. Mobile Life has agreed to donate stand by EMS care to make this day fun and safe for everyone. An awesome aspect of this event is that its genesis was quite organic. The young skaters in the Newburgh Community, created the event Go Skate for Zane. June 21 is National Go Skate Day and they chose to honor my son Zane Mandel Michalak this year. Zane was an avid skateboarder and knew many of the young men involved in the skate park, He was an adventurous, sweet man and he really loved Newburgh. He grew up in Newburgh and attended Newburgh Schools, played pop warner football and planned on raising his family here. Zane died at 22 after graduating from Siena College with a Social Work degree and had just started working for a non-profit in the City of Newburgh. Keep It Moving is dedicated in his playful, spirited memory and life, and this event event embodies Zane's energy.

Awesome Without Borders (Inactivo) – 7000 Languages

2019-05-13T00:00:00Z

7000 Languages is a non-profit that creates free language-learning software in partnership with Indigenous communities around the world. Research has shown that kids who learn their heritage language have higher self-esteem, do better in school, and are more likely to graduate. But in many communities, the last remaining speakers are too old to teach in schools. Take, for example, Sarah Silas. She’s the last speaker of Benhti Kenaga’ (an Alaska Native language) and she’s 93 years old. Sarah has priceless knowledge, but she can’t easily share it with the hundreds of kids who want to know about their culture. That’s where we come in. We’re helping Sarah and her community create a free online course. When it’s finished this spring, kids all over the world will be able to learn Benhti Kenaga’ as if Sarah were in the room with them. Each course would normally cost $200,000 to create, but we charge nothing. Instead, we adapt software donated by the language-learning industry and raise our operating funds from donors who are passionate about language. This means that the funds that would have been spent on software remain in the community, where they can make an even greater impact. We’ve done the same thing in 15 communities across the US, including the Ojibwe, Cree, and Dakota nations. Next year, we’re set to double our impact, publishing courses for 16 more communities in 2019.

South Bend, IN – Musical Charities

2019-05-13T00:00:00Z

Musical Charities will be a speed dating event for citizens that want to get involved with helping Michiana through volunteering/donating to non profits and community projects that make South Bend stronger. The focus will be on every individual having a direct impact on their community by meeting 10 non profits per event, and putting the power of community improvement into the hands of individuals. South Bend and the greater area can't thrive if individuals feel disconnected from valuable social change, and this project shows that it's not solely a business or government role to make our communities better, it's also up to us as residents to help our communities thrive. Each Community Builder (Unity Gardens, La Casa De Amistad, The Music Village, Y.S.B, etc.) will have 3 minutes to pitch; 1) Who they are 2)H ow they help the community 3) How you can support them. If the resident feels compelled to hear more or connect they can exchange contact information and follow up after the event to donate or volunteer. There is no minimum or limit on engagement, and the goal is to spread as much networking and information as possible. I've already gotten commitment from a multitude of community builders and have a great relationship with more. It would take an email or phone call to make this happen and I want it to be big. The bigger it is, the more good we can do as a community!

South Bend, IN – B-Credit Worthy

2019-05-13T00:00:00Z

Our mission is to educate, empower and inspire fellow entrepreneurs through financial and credit literacy education to properly manage their personal finances and make informed decisions related budgeting and credit maintenance. Poor personal credit makes it difficult for entrepreneurs to borrow for their business, which can be the difference between growing and struggling. The B-Credit Worthy Project will help guide aspiring entrepreneurs through the intricacies of improving their personal credit to become creditworthy of business funding so they can sustain, grow and expand their business. Indirect, response to an unmet need predominately in underserved communities, we seek to target this demographic, provide education that will translate to a sense of financial stability.

Vegan (Inactivo) – Keep It Fresh Fest

2019-05-13T00:00:00Z

June is National Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Month....and school is out! The Black Veg Society of Maryland (BVSMD) is pleased to announce its partnership with Changing Lives MD, The African Griot Book Fair and Safety city @ Druid Park in Keep It Fresh Fest presented by MECU Neighborhood Event Grants. Featuring: DJ Tee Brown and Son (Live Entertainment) Culture Queen (read along, book signing and performance) So Freakin' Vegan (cooking demo and performance) Public Enemy's own, Professor Griff Maria Broom (The Village Bully) Crystal Forman (cooking demo) Baba C and Janis Curtis (African Griot Host) John Carrington (Magician) Margaret Ann Locklear (The Greenbook reading) Abu the Flutemaker Wombworks (youth performers) Keep It Fresh is a campaign for youth. The Keep It Fresh Fest is a free festival that will highlight plant-based culinary arts, organic gardening, music and environmental actions. You will need money to shop. Youth retail and prepackaged goods vendor registration is free. The youth must be manning their booth. ***Please be mindful of the fact that this is a health and wellness event with the focus of minimizing the consumption of artificially sweet products, candies and junk foods.*** #KeepItFresh EARLY REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN! Donations are welcomed and very much needed to make this event a success. Register and donate here: buytickets.at/bvsmd Keep It Fresh Fest will feature: 1. Workshops and speakers on live, vegan whole foods, organic gardening, and food as medicine 2. African Griot Children's Books 3. B-boys and B-girls 4. Yogis 5. Environmental awareness If you have a cruelty-free organization that's interested in sponsoring or participating, please register. No animal products or by-products will be offered or sold at this event. Email all questions to BlackVegofMD@gmail.com. Sponsors: MECU Neighborhood Event Grants, A Well-Fed World, American Legion Location: Lakeside Pavilion Area Grove Rd. Druid Hill Park

South Bend, IN – Greater Impact PRINTS

2019-05-13T00:00:00Z

Greater Impact is a ministry of Transformation Ministries in the northwest region of South Bend (transformation58.com). Greater Impact has a goal of helping local, urban teenagers have a positive employment experience. Through creating jobs, we are helping teenagers learn positive life skills, how to manage money, how to live and work with integrity, how to work hard and be great employees (or employers!) in the future. Currently Greater Impact has a lawn care business, caring for over 100 grassy areas in South Bend, and employs eight male students. They are very proud to be making our city a better looking place! We would like to expand the opportunities of employment to include students who have other skill sets that include organizational, creative and artistic elements. We are in the beginning stages of developing a screen printing business! We will start with t-shirt orders and expand product variety as we are able. Being a local business, we would be able to accept smaller orders that are sometimes hard to find reasonably priced and deliver them ourselves. This allows us to build relationships with customers as well as see our work in the community! But we also look forward to connecting with local schools, churches, etc. to obtain larger orders as well. How cool will it be for our teenage employees to be able to say, "I did that!" Within this structure, we would employ a variety of students to handle taking orders and customer service, developing and creating designs for clients, prep screens and do the actual screen printing, as well as package & ship orders or deliver locally. That means we'll be working on professional phone and conversation skills, computer and office type skills, order taking and processing. We'll be encouraging ideas and design while teaching Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop. We'll have hands on experience with production, quality control and meeting deadlines. We could make a "greater impact" on South Bend one shirt at a time!

Liverpool (Inactivo) – Contrast Mural Festival. Alphabet Doorways

2019-05-11T00:00:00Z

Alphabet: I propose to engage with local, national and international artists to produce a series of letter based murals onto dreary doorways and small walls across the city centre of Liverpool. Individual artistic letters would be painted onto the spaces.. the public can collect photos of each piece and ...create their own slogans, sentences, poems & share online! This would be part of the Contrast Mural Festival in June 2019, where we wlll be working with local, national and international artists to produce larger scale murals across the city, which i have gathered funding for. However , i want to do a lot more! And have a series of spaces to do this project on! Details of the 2018 festival are on the website above! (And on www.zapgraffiti.co.uk for our general works.)

Philadelphia, PA – A Climber’s Guide to Eastern State Penitentiary

2019-05-10T00:00:00Z

I am a multidisciplinary artist and climber currently living and working in Philadelphia. In an inspiring act of institutional support, the cultural institution Eastern State Penitentiary has accepted my site-specific proposal to climb the walls of this historic prison, rate and name each climb, and produce a book titled A Climber’s Guide to Eastern State Penitentiary; or East State’s Architecture and How to Escape It. I have begun working on the project, due to open in May of 2019. Until then I will be training, fabricating, designing and writing with a small group of dedicated local climbers. I have received modest funding from the prison, and am looking to supplement this with support from other cultural institutions. The enthusiasm, generosity, and support that we have already received from the local community has been inspiring. To my knowledge, there has never been a visible art project involving climbing, and I hope to represent the nuanced art of climbing safely and wholeheartedly. Eastern State Penitentiary is a 501c3 not-for-profit institution and will provide documentation to receive a tax refund for any contributions to my project. I will also acknowledge supporting institutions at public events and in print prominently in the published guidebook. In addition to supporting the arts in a particularly challenging political climate, your contribution helps make this project visible to a diverse community within and beyond Philadelphia, inspiring future climbers and artists alike.

Philadelphia, PA – Leadership and Wellness Workshops

2019-05-10T00:00:00Z

Successful Women Achieving Goals, Inc. is seeking a grant to expand our adult readiness program with the objective of helping girls, ages seven to eighteen increase their life skills and prepare them for all that life has to offer. The objective of SWAG is to encourage youth to fulfill their dreams and give them the tools to do so. The SWAG initiative is based on area research regarding effective motivations for young girls and ways in which to help them succeed.

Philadelphia, PA – Youth Gentrification Exhibit

2019-05-10T00:00:00Z

I will provide 12 two-hour classes to 10 high-school students from Esperanza Academy in an after-school setting, centering their artistic work on the themes of gentrification, joy and community. I am currently working to produce and perform in a play called MinorityLand (October 2019), a powerful exploration of a community undergoing gentrification in North Philadelphia. I want students to connect to this theme through art-making and community engagement. During the classes, I will work to build relationships between students and MinorityLand’s production team, giving youth the opportunity to experience theater from behind the scenes. With my support, students will do research around gentrification. They will read MinorityLand and discuss the themes in the play. In response, they will create poetry, photography and use other arts mediums to find joy in, celebrate, and connect to their surrounding community. Students will then collectively curate a show of their work to be displayed in the lobby space outside their school’s theater, Teatro Esperanza, where MinorityLand will be performed. My goals for this project are to: Give youth a platform to talk about their neighborhoods; Educate youth on who makes decisions locally; Support youth in researching gentrification experiences around race and social class; Engage youth in a creative journey to produce artwork around local gentrification; Help youth have dynamic collaborative discussions and supportive experiences with their peers; Help youth learn to advocate for their artistic visions and share their perspectives publicly; Provide a platform for youth to tell their stories and listen to others’; Pay youth for their time and expertise; Give youth the opportunity to sell their artwork. I have worked with community youth in the past while producing other plays in the area, and I am committed to amplifying youth voices and providing them with a platform to express themselves.

Columbus, OH (Inactivo) – The Bitter Angel

2019-05-09T00:00:00Z

The Bitter Angel is a social media character who comes to Earth to re-unify people. The story starts like this: God had a meeting with all the angels and said one of them needed to go back to earth and the choice would be made by playing Enie, Meanie, Minne, Moe. The Bitter Angel spoke up and said that was racist. Boom she was chosen. She is not happy about her job on Earth and wants people to hurry up and get it together so she can go back to her cloud. Through humor and some snarky-ness she will bring light to issues that are causing the sense of division, fear, or unease and remind people that we are really all in this together. She will have check ins with Mother Nature, Poseidon, and other characters to shed light on caring for the planet. This is aimed at older teens and young adults who pay so much attention to social media. The long term goal as this becomes popular is that people will invite The Bitter Angel to their cities- and it will start clean up days and a talk about who we are as humans. Also, as popularity grows and she complains about missing her cloud, she sees that many people do not have beds and she calls for sponsors to donate to shelters and beyond. I expect this to have an impact on the individual person, on communities as a whole, and the world. I want to help people see that beyond our borders of the US, those are humans too and deserve respect no matter the religion, skin color, or any other differences seen with the eyes. Love wins, EVERY TIME! (Links coming soon!!)

Boston, MA – Community T-shirt printing

2019-05-08T00:00:00Z

I have been traveling around Maine with my Bicycle Screen Printing Shop to conduct live on-site t-shirt printing. This is a mobile unit that I designed myself, which I can ride or drive to any community protest, rally, or other events inside or outside. In light of our political climate, the upcoming 2020 election make 2019 a very important year to motivate people to think about the issues that affect them. I will teach people how to print right then and there, and I will have my heating unit to dry the shirts so once they have printed, people can wear their shirts right away. When I am printing outdoors I have to rely on plugging in my Flash dryer. This makes me not as spontaneous as I want to be, which is why I’m applying to purchase an awesome solar-powered portable generator! T-shirts are a universal and economical way to visually share personal opinions and ideas with an immediate audience. Wearing a t-shirt can be a an act of resistance, and even more so when you create the message yourself. I believe in the power of art to give voice to people, whether they consider themselves artists or not. Everyone understands a simple message on a t-shirt, from a favorite sports team or band to a more potent political message or call to action. Expressing yourself on a T-shirt is a positive way to strike up a conversation and relate to another person, stranger or otherwise, giving people the power to spread their message. I hope to educate all who participate in the power of art and screen printing, but especially the power of their voice to affect political change. They will gain new skills and knowledge, and the resulting projects will elevate each of their voices within our communities, during the event, and in the future. I will also spotlight each design and event on my website and on social media to share the project with a wider audience and hopefully motivate even more people to use their voices.

Newmarket – Redefining Leadership, Reshaping Communities

2019-05-07T00:00:00Z

I have been chosen to create leadership development opportunities for young women in Newmarket as a part of ‘Women, Let’s Take Our Place’ program by the Girls’ Action Foundation. As a young leader with more than 7 years of experience in civic and youth leadership, I am working hard to give back to my community through empowering young women and girls. Our town has seen significant growth in the past few years, and that can be reflected in the growing vibrant and diverse demographics in our community. Yet young people, especially young women such as myself, are struggling to connect with our community in the same sense that we do with urban centres such as Toronto, where we find numerous opportunities for leadership and self-improvement. This project hopes to change that. My project, Redefining Leadership, Reshaping Communities will be a day-long gathering focused on providing young women with leadership development and civic engagement opportunities. In the spirit of redefining leadership, participants will have a chance to learn about Canada’s political structures from women in leadership and improve their personal leadership style through skills training workshops.

Fleurieu – Deep Winter Agrarain Gathering

2019-05-07T00:00:00Z

The Deep Winter Agrarian Gathering is an annual farmer led forum for agriculturalists producing non-commodity food and fibre. With a focus on circular or regenerative farming practices and community development this annual meeting of the minds is an opportunity to think big about small scale food production and connect with peers in the field. In 2019 Deep Winter delves into the themes of scale and viability. We all want the live the regenerative farming dream but how the hell do you actually make a go of a small scale farming business? South Australian regenerative graziers, market gardeners, egg producers, grain growers and mushroom farmers will share their learnings about how they got to where they are AND where they still need to get to to make the dream a reality. This year is the first year the event will be held in South Australia - the conference will be in Willunga at the Willunga Show Hall and there will be a tour which will visit Fleurieu and Adelaide Hills Farms. http://www.deepwinter.org/

Awesome Without Borders (Inactivo) – Awesome Summit 2019

2019-05-06T00:00:00Z

The Chicago Chapter of the Awesome Foundation is hosting the sixth Awesome Summit this upcoming May 3-5. This also marks the 10-year anniversary of the Awesome Foundation! Our sixth AweSummit is a time for Awesome Foundation members across the world to come together, exchange ideas and experiences, and to get ready for another decade making great ideas happen. Since the Awesome Foundation was founded in Boston in 2009, we've held five summits -- Boston (2012), New York City (2013), Ottawa (2014), Seattle (2016), and Washington DC (2017). Each has been a valuable chance to strengthen our movement and build connections across the globe. The Chicago chapter is thrilled to host the sixth summit in 2019 and we appreciate your support.

Oakland, CA (Inactivo) – Nyamdu-Dro Mentorship Program

2019-05-02T00:00:00Z

As two first generation Tibetan-American immigrants, and the first in our families to attend college in the United States, access to higher education seemed like a dream. From the college admissions process to figuring out what we wanted to do with our lives, the challenges were endless. Nyamdu-Dro Mentorship Program was born out of necessity; to bridge the gap between the aspirations of Tibetan youth and the tangible successes of Tibetan working professionals. In doing so, we hope to create a space to develop professional relationships and a platform to provide mentorship and guidance. In Tibetan, “nyamdu-dro” translates to “go together,” a literal representation of our belief in the power of community, collaboration, and compassion. For many Tibetan youth in the Bay Area, their experiences of living in Tibetan refugee resettlement camps in India and Nepal, immigrating and acclimating to the US, being the first in the families to attend high school, let alone college, have already created tremendous barriers to achieving success. Nyamdu-Dro Mentorship Program aims to support, empower, and inspire Tibetan youth in the community by pairing one to three high school/college students to one mentor who is currently working in or toward a similar field of interest. Our mentors represent various fields such as: medicine, engineering, business, law, etc. while each possessing unique skills, experiences, and stories to share with their mentees. Depending on the mentee’s needs, mentors may assist with the college admissions process, preparing for standardized tests, providing linkages to local internships/volunteer opportunities, as well as professional development and job readiness. After an initial Information Session tentatively scheduled to take place in June, we hope to branch out and host workshops focused on specific topics such as assistance with college applications, professional development, etc. Motivated by the love of our families who have made our dreams their own, the unconditional support of the Tibetan community, and the teachings of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, we hope to cultivate the next generation of Tibetan leaders driven by a commitment to serving humanity.

Raleigh, NC (Inactivo) – Wash and Learn Durham

2019-05-01T00:00:00Z

Research demonstrates that children in poor neighborhoods live in book deserts, communities that have limited or no access to children’s books. Despite being urged “to read to your child!” parents in high poverty areas have few options in heeding this advice. And yet a wealth of research shows that parent/child interactions are not only critical to a child’s vocabulary development, but also a key predictor of academic flourishing. Recent literature provides evidence that Laundromats are a “third space” – after home and school – where families convene. Not only have they become “community centers,” they provide a regular opportunity for family time to engage in activities together. Guided by this research and by our commitment to create ubiquitous book-rich environments throughout Durham, our project aims to provide the resources and opportunity for parents and caregivers to explore language rich activities with their children in the simple moments of daily life. Laundromats will become informal learning spaces where children and families can access high-quality early learning and literacy materials as they wait for their clothes to wash and dry. We have been inspired by the work of national leaders who, like us, continue to explore opportunities for collaborative community-based, parent-focused solutions to the pervasive resource inequities that plague our children and families. These include Too Small to Fail and Libraries Without Borders who together have piloted similar programs. We are working in neighborhoods in Durham where we have a long-lived and highly regarded presence through partnerships with respective elementary schools and community centers. We hope to open more doors to literacy resources by transforming local laundromats into libraries and digital classrooms in a unique partnership with multi-generation, family-owned, North Carolina-based laundromat chain, The Wash House.

Minas Gerais (Inactivo) – BLINDL-E: um leitor braille de texto

2019-05-01T00:00:00Z

CONVERSOR INCLUSIVO Um dispositivo ‘conversor’ de textos digitais para Braile, dando aos cegos, acesso a todo o universo informacional representado pelo Google e buscadores afins. Este projeto tecnológico e social inclusivo foi apresentado por Rosiane Resende, em Maio 2019 nas fronteiras Awesome. Ela é a professora de Biologia dos alunos desenvolvedores do aparelho, trabalhando, juntos, iniciação científica com o incentivo de elaboração de projetos com um lado social. Ganhadores de alguns prêmios em feiras de ciências escolares, ganharam credencial para concorrer em uma em Londres, ao final de Julho. E pedem uma mãozinha Awesome para viabilizar a ida de ao menos um deles à competição. Para ajudar na campanha: https://www.catarse.me/blindle_no_liysf QUE SEJA AWESOME!

State College, PA – Lindy Hop Workshop Weekend

2019-05-01T00:00:00Z

I want to throw an awesome workshop weekend for Lindy Hop, a vintage American vernacular jazz dance, in Centre County. I want to hire a live band and two teachers to provide instruction and feedback for a passionate local Lindy Hop community. I learned to dance as a teenager at PSU’s lessons on campus. When I returned to town, locals were no longer allowed in the White Building. To fill the void, I rented an apartment with a wooden floor and hosted weekly dances and the occasional private lesson. Our community grew quickly, and local dancers seemed to come out of the woodwork-- people who used to dance at the university drove out from Phillipsburg, Boalsburg, Pleasant Gap, and even Pittsburgh. While the first few weeks had about three guests, we now have 25-35. I put together a live band to play once a month. Dancers donate for the band, but I also pay about $150 dollars up front to make sure their work is paid fairly, which we cover by both teaching dance lessons and throwing a variety show. Lindy Hop has a complicated racial and social history: white dancers appropriated it and then made it inaccessible to the communities that created it. For this reason, we try hard to 1. Make the dance socially and financially accessible and 2. To teach its cultural history. Between teaching and paying the band we currently break even, but our dream is to throw a workshop weekend-- the swing dance equivalent of a salsa or tango conference. We want to hire two professionals and a live band to create the full experience here in Centre County. Although Penn State has provided a base for this community in the past, the generational wisdom and stability that comes with the local community will be a huge asset moving forward. All we need is enough money to take the plunge for our first workshop!

Austin, TX – First Annual Short Play Festival

2019-04-30T00:00:00Z

New Manifest Theatre's first annual Short Play Festival will highlight the company's mission of storytelling from a diversity of specific voices, styles, and perspectives in contemporary theatre. The festival will present 5-10 short plays between 1 to 20 minutes long directed by a variety of directors with a diverse cast. The plays will be chosen from a diverse variety of playwrights with help from the New Play Exchange database and local Austin submissions. After the show, we will hold an optional talk back session including actors, directors, and playwrights to build an open dialogue about the plays and the process of creating new works. This event will be donation based and pay-what-you-can admission to remove the barrier of access to this new artistic work

Disability – Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights

2019-04-30T00:00:00Z

It has been observed by Diep Ark Ministries International that Most of Uganda’s deaf children grow up with limited to no support with communication or language. They miss conversations and education about sexual relationships, abuse, pregnancy and HIV, because peers, teachers, and health workers cannot communicate with them. This leaves them vulnerable to HIV – the second leading cause of adolescent death in the region. Deaf young people face many barriers to information, and have many rights denied. This can have a devastating effect on their lives, especially when this is around SRH information – early pregnancy, STI's, forced marriage and sexual violence and exploitation are just a few of the areas where deaf young people are hugely at risk, far more than their hearing peers, and consequently are in need of support and guidance. One of the most significant barriers is around communication, sign language interpreters are not provided at health centres/ hospitals, meaning deaf young people cannot access the information or communicate with health care providers. Many deaf young people have very low, or no literacy skills, some have no sign language, and so accessing SRH information is virtually impossible for them. Our idea is that with the right information and support, deaf young people themselves are the best placed to make decisions about their health, and to reach other deaf youth in their communities. We will empower deaf young people in the Busoga sub region by providing them with comprehensive sexual education, combined with training in sign language and communication that will allow them to communicate effectively with their families, teachers and health service providers, and to be informed advocates for their rights. To ensure that young people can access deaf-friendly education and services, we will train service providers in communicating with deaf service providers. What our grantee is saying: “While one may concede that sexuality is a basic human need, awareness and knowledge about sexuality are shaped through a range of contextually specific socio-cultural and religious ideas and practices. People with disabilities are systematically denied access to knowledge about sexuality, sexual behaviour and services leading to their sexual marginalisation. Diep Ark Ministries International is committed to make special interventions in reducing violations and promoting inclusion of persons with disabilities within Sexual Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR) policy and programming, and the limited disability awareness of service providers.”

Miami, FL – Sofia's Hope Childhood Cancer Families Meal Cards

2019-04-29T00:00:00Z

Sofia's Hope offers meal cards to childhood cancer families in financial need. We work through Child Life and/or the Patient Advocate to identify families who are food insecure and offer meal cards while they are in-hospital and grocery gift cards to help them through when they are back home. Last year, we provided a total of 73 families meal and/or grocery cards using the following break outs: Miami Cancer Institute/Baptist (MCI) Cafeteria Meal Cards: 20 Panera Bread (UM/Holtz) Meal Cards: 10 Publix (MCI) Grocery Cards: 6 Subway (Nicklaus Children's) Meal Cards: 30 Winn-Dixie (MCI and UM/Holtz) Grocery Cards: 7

Alaska (Inactivo) – Chess for Vets and Girl Scouts of America: Alaska

2019-04-29T00:00:00Z

We established a non-profit a year ago to spread chess in the Alaska school system. We have been successfully getting it into the elementary schools. This summer, we would like to leverage a further step before school starts again. The National Veteran’s Old Age Games will be held this year in Anchorage between June 5th and the 10th, and we have been asked to supervise chess competition among visiting Veterans. If it goes well this year, it will become a medaling event for Vets nationally. There is also a national nonprofit program called the US Chess Foundation that provides free chess boards to Veterans and to Title One schools. However in order for them to do so, they require a sustainable pre-existing program. So, if we can get a few boards into the hands of Veterans and establish chess clubs, we will get more boards free from the National Foundation. In exchange from the veterans, we would want the veterans to help us with the school programs. Our goal this summer is to get the adults that can help us with chess programs since we have a good opportunity to train the adults. Our vice-president is a nationally ranked chess player working on his masters in education at APU. And the nonprofit Chess4Life Foundation is willing to partner with us in coaching adults with a grant through Boeing in Anchorage. We would also like to attend the Palmer statewide Girl Scout Encampment in May/June and use the Vets boards to teach girls chess for the chess merit badges. It is a good way to branch out across the state as they return to their hometowns. Because we are working with the Alaska School Activities Association to coordinate chess between schools with computer and internet play, it will be nice to get as many girls involved from across the state as possible. There is a free ChessKids.com that allows children to learn in entertaining lessons; play a computer; and to play other children who are also members. We want to use this as a platform for kids to star

Ottawa – Sound Around Town

2019-04-29T00:00:00Z

April’s Awesome Ottawa award goes to Zara Ansar and Jason Cobill to support rolling “bike jams” in Ottawa this summer. “Music and bikes are two of our favourite things,” say Zara and Jason. “Our idea,” continues Zara, “is to mesh these two wonderful things together and have rolling ‘bike jams’ where we link up portable speakers to one phone that plays music. The rides will vary based on genre,” she continues, “including decade rides, a Grease-themed ride, a Spice Girls ride, and so on. For some bike jams,” Zara notes, “riders will be encouraged to dress up in different styles based on the theme of the ride.” Zara and Jason plan to hold the bike jams every week or two, depending on interest. They will start during the Sunday Bikedays road closures. “The main goal,” says Zara, “is to get everyone out on a bike together. It will be a great way to get to know people in the community, meet new people, and just smile when you see your fellow cyclists riding together.” To learn more, and to participate, visit http://xovelo.com/sound-around-town. Zara is a videographer by day and a creative ninja by night. Jason is an Ottawa-based artist and coder.

Awesome Without Borders (Inactivo) – 1st Annual Hudson Mad Hatters' Parade

2019-04-29T00:00:00Z

On May 11, 2019 a community-built wearable-art parade transforms the streets of Hudson, NY. Anyone can join our retinue of aspiring artists, agile absurdists, and ambulatory agitators to create an open-source work of mobile performance art. Hats and headdresses, body-extensions and puppets, and wearable assemblages in any form are all welcome. Drawing inspiration from global Carnival masquerades and Hudson’s evolving history as a city of makers, the Mad Hatters’ Parade brings together Hudson’s diverse communities in a collective act of creativity and shared spectacle of the nonsensical. Parade organizers Sophia Michahelles and Alex Kahn of Processional Arts Workshop (PAW), are leading free costume and puppetry workshops with the city’s under-served youth, teaming up with local after-school programs and Perfect 10, a girls empowerment organization, to allow young artists to showcase their creations side-by-side with Hudson’s growing population of established artists, makers, and entrepreneurs. In addition, a free, drop-in Mad Hat Slam will take place on May 5 at Basilica Hudson, a local avant-garde art space, providing materials and instruction in creating wearable artworks. The Parade steps off from the Hudson Area Library wending its way to a final Grand Sashay down the aisles of Basilica’s annual Farm and Flea artisans’ market.

Aviano (Inactivo) – Animal Rescue Packs

2019-04-29T00:00:00Z

We’re providing animal rescue packs to the shelters and citizens of Aviano who help feed stray animals.

Oahu, HI – Hawaii Invasive Species Awareness Calendar

2019-04-26T00:00:00Z

We call the incursion of invasive species the "silent invasion" since people fail to realize the impacts until it's too late. Invasive species are the second leading cause to the loss of biodiversity, only second to habitat destruction and the Hawaiian Islands are experiencing the highest amount of species loss in the nation. Hawaii comprises nearly 3/4's of Federally listed endangered species but only comprises 0.2% of the nation's landmass. A major issue is the majority of people are not concerned with invasive species and cannot tell a native species from an invasive one. Public outreach and communication is a key component to protecting Hawaii from new and existing invasive species. Current forms of outreach are having a presence at community events, hosting volunteer trips, and having a press release about more pressing issues in the media.

Sydney – Penrith Rainbow Families Playgroup

2019-04-26T00:00:00Z

I founded and run Western Sydney’s first LGBTQI+ Playgroup! I’ve always felt that the Western Suburbs lacked support and services for the LGBTQI+ community so I contacted the local council to try and make positive changes but was unsuccessful. I discovered the organisation Rainbow Families and joined their local monthly catch up group straight away. I felt that Penrith could also benefit from a weekly playgroup, at a permanent location that would offer support and information to families. I have attended different playgroups over the years and I was always worried of judgment of myself and of how I started my family, so I never returned. I wanted to connect with other families similar to mine and to be able to discuss issues we face and to share experiences and ideas. I found an awesome venue with a great indoor area, kitchen, playground, baby change room and in a location that would suit families living in the Blue Mountains and in the Penrith area. I sourced toys for the group from a local closing Playgroup. Our playgroup is welcoming and friendly. Its heaps of fun and really stress-free for parents as we have a laid-back approach at activities. There are toys, books, puzzles, dress-ups, instruments, craft and plenty of outdoor toys and ride-ons for the kids to choose from. We have an awesome playground which is a hit with all of the kids! We have a speaker to play music on and the kids can request their favourite songs! Parents usually sit on the outdoor bench and chat while we watch the kids have fun in our safe, enclosed space. I always bring along Rainbow Families resources for parents if they need information of services or support. I have developed amazing friendships in such a short amount of time.

Gloucester, MA – SAGA Nights

2019-04-26T00:00:00Z

SAGA (Sexuality and Gender Acceptance) formerly GSA (Gay Straight Alliance of Gloucester High School envision the creation of a safe space where local and regional LGBTQ+ can connect and support each other. The GHS SAGA Group will invite local GSAs (Rockport, Ipswich, Hamilton-Wenham, Manchester and North Shore Tech) to monthly SAGA Nights. The first one, it is hoped, will be held at the Cape Ann Cinema and will show the movie Love, Simon. Future SAGA Nights have yet to be fully planned but will focus on a relevant topic and perhaps invite local experts and secure resources to assist with implementation (healthy relationships, suicide prevention, for example). This model is based loosely on the NAGLY model, but the location of the NAGLY meetings (Salem) pose a difficulty due to transportation issues. We would like to create a support space here to decrease social isolation and increase a sense of community/connection.

Oahu, HI – Correctional Arts Re-Entry (CARE) Program

2019-04-26T00:00:00Z

The Correctional Arts ReEntry (CARE) Project is an inmate art social enterprise program designed by WorkNet, a non-profit that provides reentry services for inmates transitioning to the community. The CARE project markets and sells the artwork of incarcerated artists so they can earn money for their reentry to the community. In January 2016, we launched the CARE Project at the Women's prison in Kailua (WCCC). The program is still active today and has become very popular with the WCCC women because they can earn money and doing their art is very therapeutic. When their art sells, proceeds are split between the inmate artist and WorkNet to help us continue the program. We also developed a partnership with the Na'mea Gallery at Ward Center that sells on consignment original cards designed by one of our community artists. What we found with the CARE project is that inmate art is a vehicle to break down biases, preconceived ideas, and stereotypes about people in prison. People who buy the artwork see an artist instead of an inmate locked up in prison. We enhance this experience by having each artist write a short bio about themselves and their artwork so that their stories of resilience and redemption can be heard. The ultimate goal is to create an understanding and awareness that those in prison are worthy of our compassion and kindness and should not be discarded by society. Doing so is a waste of human potential and talent as these artists fully demonstrate. The latest stats on incarceration are astounding. 1 out of every 3 citizens in the US is in prison. The startling fact that the growing number of females behind bars has increased by over 800% in the last three decades leaves a unique vulnerability in families across the country. Our hope is that by growing this art program we can help shift societal attitudes towards offenders by telling their' stories and showcasing their artistic talent.