Christina & Tyler Roy Foundation

It all starts with a whimsical pillowcase destined to bring a smile to a child undergoing treatment for a life-changing illness or injury. But that’s not all it is. With it comes a card guiding families to resources available for everyone in the family to help cope with the trauma often associated with the child’s diagnosis. Ryan’s Cases for Smiles is our selection for today! It was founded in 2007, inspired by the experience of Ryan’s family after he was diagnosed with Oste...osarcoma at the age of twelve. They strive to help kids feel better to heal better. Ryan’s Cases for Smiles provides support to navigate what is often a traumatic experience. They have partnered with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder experts at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children. Together they created resources and tools on copingspace.org designed to reduce stress and develop coping strategies to handle the strain while also helping prevent long-term emotional trauma. One of their approaches is through Coping Boxes for siblings. On the surface items inside may seem like regular toys, but in fact they are each associated with a therapeutic practice. To date, over 2,000,000 pillowcases have been delivered by Ryan’s Cases for Smiles. They help over 75,000 children a year, all with the help of thousands of volunteers. Tyler’s Mom, Nancy is one of those volunteers, sewing fun fabrics to bring out more smiles. We are thrilled to be supporting such an amazing cause and look forward to seeing their work boost the spirits of those navigating childhood illness and injury. #givingweek #ryanscasesforsmiles #ctrfoundation

For Giving Week day 4, we are excited to highlight Home of the Sparrow (Home of the Sparrow - Pennsylvania). Located in Chester County, this organization was founded in 1994 by a group of passionate neighbors with the shared belief that no woman or child should experience homelessness. We couldn't agree more. To date, Home of the Sparrow has helped over 3,000 women and children secure safe, stable housing and learn to live independently. In the past year alone, they've saved... 82 families from eviction. This January, many more families are at risk of eviction because that is when the moratorium on evictions will lift. Our donation is going to help some families that will be impacted. Through your support and recommendation, we are donating to their Eviction Prevention Program which supports single women and mothers with children. Home of the Sparrow works with landlords and utility companies to help get these women and families back on track. They then start working on a plan to secure government assistance, learn about budgeting and finances, provide "go-bags" filled with items such as toiletries, paper products and cleaning supplies, and deliver trauma informed case management. Home of the Sparrow is a beacon of light in Chester County for many women that need a little extra help during a difficult time. We know how much extra help during a difficult time means and are happy we can contribute to Home of the Sparrow's mission. Please check out their website (https://www.homeofthesparrow.org/) - they have a lot of great volunteer opportunities for folks in the Chester County area. #givingweek #homeofthesparrow #ctrfoundation

Today's nomination is @thebreathingroomfoundation. It was established in 1997 by Bernard and Diane Fitzgerald in response to the overwhelming support they received during Diane’s 6 year cancer battle. Nearly everyone in the US has been impacted by cancer, whether you yourself have been diagnosed or you know and are supporting someone diagnosed. Either way the battle can seem an impossible task at times. The Breathing Room Foundation strives to lift some of the burden and prov...ide individualized care and support to those with a cancer diagnosis. This may come in the form of assistance with medical expenses, rides to and from treatment, grocery items, or holiday meals and gifts. By providing some breathing room, it is anticipated that focus can be maintained on healing and regaining strength. Service is provided to all of Philadelphia and parts of Montgomery, Bucks and Delaware counties. We are honored to work with this organization and support them during such unprecedented times. Our donation will help to provide COVID Care packages to families in their program. These packages include groceries, diapers, masks, cleaning supplies, paper products, toiletries, blankets and more. Please visit their website ( https://breathingroomfoundation.org/) to learn more about their work and consider getting involved! #givingweek #breathingroomfoundation #ctrfoundation

The organization we'd like to highlight today is the The Superhero Project- Non Profit Foundation. This amazing organization works to support families with babies in the NICU. Kelly Gallagher founded The Super Hero Project in 2015, a year after her twins were born at 32 weeks. To date it has gifted $150,000 and brought Angel Eye technology into 9 area hospitals. Angel Eye technology are cameras that provide 24/7 visibility in each baby isolate. They help foster the connection... between baby and family, as well as provide updates even when they are not able to be at the bedside. They allow families and hospital staff to work together, lessening the stress that often accompanies a NICU journey. We're excited to announce that our donation will pay for 3 cameras in the next collaboration to their 10th hospital, Princeton Hospital. Please check out their website ( https://superheroprojectinc.org/) to learn more about the incredible work that they do! Sometimes the biggest capes belong to the littlest Superheroes. #givingweek #thesuperheroproject #ctrfoundation

For Giving Week Day 1, we have selected Gemma Services (Gemma Services - Formerly Silver Springs & Village 1877). Gemma Services is a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving vulnerable children and families through evidence-based and individualized services. Gemma was formed in Fall 2019 by the merger of two long-standing, Philadelphia-area nonprofits: the Village and Silver Springs-Martin Luther School, both of which were founded in the 1800s as orphanages. With the mis...sion of changing lives by transforming hope into action for children, youth, and families experiencing emotional and behavioral difficulties, Gemma provides education programs, mental health services in residential and community settings, foster care and adoption services, and prevention programs for at-risk families. Many of the children and youth who Gemma serves have experienced significant hardships that might include traumas or abuse, losses, domestic violence, family poverty, school failures, as examples. Gemma’s programs provide opportunities to heal, learn important skills, and reach for brighter futures. During the pandemic, Gemma has shifted to provide many of its services online via tele-health and online platforms. Gemma’s residential programs and prevention programs have continued to provide in-person, essential services throughout the pandemic with COVID precautions in place. The pandemic has resulted in significant unexpected expenses for Gemma and donations from caring supporters are very helpful at this time to assist Gemma continue to provide its vital safety net and educational services for children and families with great needs. Through its programs, which are detailed on at www.gemmaservices.org, Gemma serves thousands of youth and families each year from throughout the Greater Philadelphia region and surrounding counties. #GivingWeek #gemmaservices #ctrfoundation