Zach Bolster was living the dream in New York when he received a trajectory-changing phone call - his mother, Gloria, was diagnosed with Stage IV pancreatic cancer. He and his now-wife, Patricia, immediately moved home to Charlotte to care for her. During the hundreds of appointments, treatments -- in waiting rooms, lobbies, offices, they saw and heard the stress other patients were under because of transportation - family members unable to miss work to drive them to chemo, or rides falling through and the stress of their bank accounts dwindling to zilch as they fought just to live.
“Transportation?” Zach thought. There has to be an easy solution to ease this burden, and thus, ChemoCars started.
“Dance is the timeless interpretation of life.” ― Shah Asad Rizvi
These days we all crave a little freedom from the confines of our daily routines. We have this need to get away from predictability and seek out the unexpected. We just need to look up from whatever it is we’re doing and fix our gaze elsewhere. Like the side of a building, perhaps.
Every February we witness national campaigns and promotions celebrating African-Americans during Black History month. From Spotify and their curated playlists to your favorite magazines and retail brands paying homage, there are many ways to witness and spread #blackjoy.
Though many of these national campaigns hit hard for a month, there are others that extend throughout the year—and more specifically, there are local Charlotte organizations that strengthen and progress the black community every single day.
Our bodies are not whole - it’s nothing we like to face head on. In fact, we run in all directions, frantically trying to keep ourselves as whole as possible, and for some of us, it’s easier to do that because of money. We choose healthcare providers and remedies, try special equipment or prescriptions, schedule routine check ups - problem-solving. But for others there’s not a chance at renting or purchasing a machine to improve mobility or sleep apnea and dentist appointments are impossible when you’re thinking about how to pay rent and buy food. Healthcare costs become secondary when simply living is financially crushing.
You feel the cadence of her words throughout your body, like a heartbeat. Her voice commands your ear. But it’s the words she speaks that touch your soul, provoke thought and with any luck, spark action.
In an society consumed with handheld devices and keyboards and wireless connections, the art of spoken word builds real, human connection. Poetry has been around, and will be around forever and is an artform that makes people feel something. It makes them feel connected. Spoken word is an extension of that.
Hasan, a spoken word artist in Charlotte, has been using her gift of speech to inspire since her first open mic appearance in 2002.
Where There is “Trial,” There Does Not Have to be “Error”
How More Efficient Clinical Trials Can Make for More Affordable Healthcare
Contributed by: CliniSpan Health
It is imperative for our society to work together in order to make healthcare more accessible for every citizen from any background. For all of us to achieve equal access to healthcare, the outrageous costs must go down!
No one should have to choose between eating dinner or going to the doctor. That's the philosophy driving these Charlotte-area nonprofits, all of which provide free or low-cost healthcare services to low-income families.
Their services cover a broad spectrum of physical and emotional healthcare needs, but at the core they are all committed to empowering people to take care of their health without worrying about going into debt or not being able to feed their children.
How did you spend your free time when you were in high school? Raising awareness and spreading the word about human trafficking and dedicating time to helping a nonprofit to further their mission of saving those in harm’s way?
No? Well, you are no Meredith Shank.
At just 17, Meredith has taken on the role of Social Media Advisor and Graphics Designer for Compassion to Act- a local nonprofit with a goal of liberating and restoring victims of human trafficking and exploitation through awareness, liberation, restoration and sustainability.
Wanting to put her social media and graphic design skills to work in the real world, Meredith began searching for opportunities that would allow her to use her talents for GOOD.
And if you’ve ever found yourself stuck in a hospital bed, you know all too well how quickly costs add up.
It seems like so much as asking your nurse for a Snickers bar these days will set you back a thousand bucks. And sadly, that’s not much of an exaggeration.
Healthcare costs have quadrupled over the last 50 years, and 62% of bankruptcies in the U.S. are filed as a result of an unexpected medical expense. Even with insurance, it is more expensive to get medical care today than at any point in our history. This, as you can imagine, is a problem.
So what can you do? How can you help? How do we, together, fix this mess?
If you're a mom, back to school time probably means shopping for lunch boxes, scouring the school supply aisles for glue sticks, and helping your kids find the perfect outfit for the first day of school. But for a select group of moms in our area, going back to school means much more than that.
These moms are the ANSWER Scholarship recipients, and they are determined to complete their college degree not when the timing is perfect, not when their kids get older and life calms down, but right now, in the busiest, most demanding season of their lives.
This August, SHARE Charlotte’s Spotlight Series: #AccessGrantedCLT, presented by CliniSpan Health, will focus in on our local nonprofit partners who in some way make healthcare accessible to those who may otherwise not be able to receive the help they need. These nonprofit organizations grant accessibility to healthcare in a variety of ways such as by providing financial assistance, medical supplies and equipment, transportation, and free or low cost health clinics.
What do those numbers say to you? During SummerSHARE, the spike of online orders being shipped to Charlotte nonprofits from one of Give Shop®’s retailers, Walgreens, prompted them to ask our friends at The Exceptional Foundation “What is going on in Charlotte?” Funny you should ask, Walgreens… a whole lot of GOOD was going on!
Those are exciting numbers- but what about the WHO, WHAT, WHERE and WHY of it all?
We have so much great news to share from our nonprofit partners about their amazing work. But, we'd love to hear from you. Let us know if you have stories you'd like to tell and we'll make you a guest blogger!!
