For me, summer digs up memories of barefoot ballet leaps over sprinklers in a sopping wet backyard, moms’ bottomless, waterproof pool bags with one billion pockets, late night cookouts where it seemed parents almost forgot bedtime ---- almost! Fireflies and boat rides at dusk on the lake. I think of watermelons being sliced, potato salad getting dished out, and hamburgers grilling. Never once did I have to question whether I was getting a meal.
Unfortunately, this is not what summer feels like to thousands of children in Charlotte. Some kids are waiting - waiting for parents to come home from long days at work, waiting to see their aunt or guardian, waiting for someone to get to the bus stop to haul groceries back home, waiting to be taken anywhere.
We are so proud to call Cottingham Chalk an official sponsor of SummerSHARE this year, and appreciate their generosity, not only in supporting our community wide giving campaign, but in every way that they have given back to Charlotte for the past 35 years.
Cottingham Chalk is a Charlotte real estate company that people have trusted since 1983 and, this summer, they celebrate their 35th year of business with a brand refresh. Cottingham Chalk has always believed in the importance of collaboration and building relationships and their recent brand refresh did not change that. While their look, signs, logo and name have been refreshed, updated and modernized, their core values have not. Cottingham Chalk’s focus has always been, and continues to be, on being an authentic, committed, and a relationship driven company.
Mecklenburg County is proud to support SummerSHARE as on official sponsor for the second year in a row. The County has a history partnering with local nonprofits to deliver critical services, so we know that when people get together and coordinate giving at a larger scale, lasting GOOD can be done for the community.
Just last year, more than 10,000 individual donors and 117 local businesses and community organizations came together to give more than $7 million in value to 235 local nonprofits through the SummerSHARE campaign. We were so grateful to be a part of that campaign and share the opportunity to give with county employees and customers.
SummerSHARE encourages the purchase of tangible items off of Give Shop that nonprofits need the most and gives us the opportunity to give back in a big way.
Bank of America may be a multinational company, but with its headquarters located right here in Charlotte, they have time and time again shown our community an incredible interest in elevating and supporting local GOOD.
This year, Bank of America returns as the presenting sponsor for SummerSHARE and we are thankful for their generosity and commitment to SHARE Charlotte’s efforts to unite our city through this annual community wide giving campaign.
Summer is the biggest time of need for many Charlotte nonprofits, and unlike some giving campaigns that encourage the more traditional donation of money or volunteer time, SummerSHARE is focused on the gift of tangible items that local nonprofits need most.
The WHY
Summer is the biggest time of need for many Charlotte nonprofits. Both financial giving and the donation of tangible goods is extremely low in the summer months, making summer a time of limited resources for many who rely on the generosity of others. SummerSHARE encourages Charlotte to give back when giving is traditionally not top of mind by donating the tangible items that nonprofits need to keep their organization’s day to day operations in full swing and summer programs up and running.
The WHAT SummerSHARE is a community-wide giving campaign that encourages the purchase of tangible items that nonprofits need the most this summer. Don’t miss the chance to be a part of our 4th annual SummerSHARE, presented by Bank of America, as hundreds of nonprofits come together to promote their needs and encourage CLT to shop for GOOD.
SHARE Charlotte’s SummerSHARE Heats Up During a High Time of Need
Local organization encourages the donation of tangible goods to 200+ nonprofits
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 16, 2018
(CHARLOTTE, N.C.) – SHARE Charlotte’s 4th annual SummerSHARE, Presented by Bank of America, kicks off today and will run through July 22. This week-long promotion encourages Charlotteans to “Shop for Good” by purchasing the tangible items nonprofits need to run their businesses and programs. Charlotte residents can shop SHARE’s proprietary Give Shop® and buy Wish List items for hundreds of organizations that serve Mecklenburg County.
On July 4th, America will celebrate it’s 242nd Independence Day, commemorating our country’s adoption of the Declaration of Independence in 1776.
While many will be celebrating the holiday by donning stars and stripes or watching fireworks in the night sky, it is important that we as a nation remember what we are celebrating- freedom. We are the land of the free, because of the brave.
Founded in 2002, our nonprofit partner Operation Homefront is a national 501(c)(3) whose mission is to “Build strong, stable and secure military families so they can thrive-not simply struggle to get by- in the communities they have worked so hard to protect.”
Many people want to make a change in their communities, they just don’t know how. SHARE Charlotte has hundreds of valuable community resources all in one centralized location. I look forward to sharing several of those resources monthly, in order to encourage you to put your good intent to action.
A nation-wide statistic shows that 90% of children are victimized by someone they know and trust. According to the Council for Children’s Rights, nearly 40% of children reported abused or neglected were under the age of six and nearly 63% of investigated reports include more than one child victim. In June, SHARE Charlotte is featuring organizations that keep members of our community #SafeFromHarm. Thompson Child and Family Focus and Pat’s Place are two hard working nonprofits that focus on child abuse prevention.
Where is it that you feel safest? While many people have the luxury of answering “at home”, others are constantly worried about what awaits them- for some, home is not where the heart is.
Thousands of children in North Carolina enter foster care each year because they are no longer safe in their homes and are in need of a foster family to care for them and, during this transitional and fragile time in a child’s life, Carolina Family Connections (CFC) is there.
CFC recruits, licenses, trains, and supervises family foster homes to provide out-of-home placements for children who have been abused and/or neglected. Their social work staff are dedicated to both the children and foster families and advocate for all possible resources necessary to meet their needs.
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!!
