Nicole & Mallory accept your dares...

As many of you know, Cathy is participating in the Susan G. Komen Race For The Cure and is now fundraising for her position in this summer's walk. Mallory and I want to help Cathy see her goal met, so we'd like to offer the only thing we can right now... our wild and crazy selves!

Here's what we want you to do:

-Suggest below in comments a dare idea for us. What crazy/wild/funny thing do you want to see us do once Cathy hits $1500.00? (Please keep it appropriate.)

-We will hand pick five dare ideas, then you vote for the final one!

-Share the link to Cathy's fundraiser page and/or this blog and encourage people to donate for this amazing cause in honor of Cathy's mother, Sofia!

At $1500.00, you'll see us do whatever the majority chose!

BRING IT ON!

Stop the Hate! - UPDATE! WINNERS ANNOUNCED!

The winners of the t-shirt contest are: 

Rachelle Gagne
Rea Valley
Colleen Doering
Greg
Jordan Haller
Amy
Patricia
Paula McClendon
Jackie Stevens
Tina L.

To claim your prize, please email cathy@cathyscreationsjewelry.com with your address and what size shirt you would like! Congratulations to the winners and thank you to everyone for your participation and support!

After Matthew Bent’s son was body slammed to the floor from the shoulder of a classmate three times last week, the frustrated father decided that enough was enough. During the last year, Matthew’s son was repeatedly returning home from school with tales of torment from a group of boys who allegedly did things that ranged from stealing his personal property to calling him names, all while facing little to no consequences. Police officers went so far as to blame Matthew’s son, saying there was little they could do about the “rough housing” because he had walked “straight into the lion’s den” by willingly entering the area where the bullies were gathered. Matthew decided to post his story on Facebook, posing with his son in a photo that showcases the duo holding up a sign explaining the situation and calling attention to the lack of effective measures in place to protect Matthew’s son. Little did Matthew know that this one picture would make him an overnight Internet sensation and the new face of anti-bullying campaigns online.

  

Bullying is an epidemic of unlimited proportions. It is estimated that 1 in 4 teachers does not perceive an incident as bullying when it is; as a result, over 3.2 million students are bullied each year. Over half of all students have reported witnessing a bullying event while at school, and 1 in 10 students will drop out of school due to bullying. An alarming 90% of 4^th to 8^th graders report being victims of bullies. And, in the wake of the most violent times our nation faces, we surrender to this shocking statistic: 75% of school shooting incidents were triggered by bullying and harassment.

Matthew Bent’s son’s most recent incident was classified as “horseplay” by authorities, but Matthew disagrees. So how is bullying defined?

Bullying is:

-Verbal harassment:

Saying or writing mean things

Name-calling

Inappropriate comments, sometimes of a sexual nature

Taunting

Threats

-Social/Relational:

Excluding someone from a group or activity with the intent of isolating them

Pressuring others to behave negatively toward another person

Spreading rumors about someone

Public embarrassment

-Physical

Hitting/kicking/punching

Spitting on or at someone

Tripping/pushing

Blocking someone’s exit to continue harassment

The taking and/or breaking of someone’s items

Rude or mean gestures

One or all of the above guidelines should be considered bullying if the behavior is aggressive and characterized by an imbalance of power (physical strength, access to embarrassing information, popularity, etc.) and repetition (if the behaviors happen frequently or appear that they potentially will.) Bullying has been shown to have negative life-long effects on both the victim and the aggressor.

Supporting zero tolerance for bullying in your local school can start small. Meet with teachers and administrators and ask what their policies are. Read over the student handbook and educate yourself on the rules and punishments of your school, in case you need to demand enforcement. Most importantly, reach out to your child. Explain what bullying is, and that it’s unacceptable. Help problem solve with them the steps they will take if they or another student are being bullied. And don’t forget to check in with them frequently to make sure they are not facing issues with their peers; even children who are very open and communicative may be confused, hurt, or scared to open up. Of equal importance, if your child is bullying others, reach out for help. Work with the school, counselors, and other officials to remedy the problem, and do not give up. We owe it to ourselves and to our children to work together and set good examples to stop the issue of bullying once and for all.

Cathy’s Creations is proud to say that we have joined the battle to raise awareness about the negative effects of bullying and have teamed up with Stop the Hate, Spread the Hope to create a Stop the Hate pendant. All profits from this pendant are donated to help this wonderful 501(c)(3) approved non-profit anti-bullying awareness organization with education, outreach, support, and efforts.

In an attempt to help spread the anti-bullying message, we will be giving away ten of these wonderful t-shirts! To enter to win, comment on this blog. We will select winners randomly.

Thank you Matthew Bent (and son!), Stop the Hate, Spread the Hope, and all anti-bullying warriors for your amazing approach to this societal issue. Keep up the good work!

Mitchell's Journey - Lego Donation Drive

On March 2, 2013, a ten year old boy named Mitchell Jones passed away in his home surrounded by his family. Struggling and suffering for years with a progressive muscular degenerative disease known as Duchene Muscular Dystrophy, Mitchell fought valiantly to continue to live the life of the average child. DMD is fatal, typically in the early to mid twenties, as the disease begins to affect more and more muscles, eventually resulting in damage to the heart’s basic functions. Mitchell’s case was more unique; he faced heart problems before the rest of his body had surrendered.

At such a delicate age, Mitchell was unable to experience many of the things that his family had expected he would be present for. To him, Santa was real and girls were gross. Innocent until the end of his time on earth, Mitchell inspired his family to capture and cherish the best and worst moments of their lives, to appreciate time because it stops for no one, and to share love and joy with the world.

Since the time of his diagnosis in 2005 until his passing, Mitchell’s family worked hard to provide him with as many experiences and joys of childhood as possible. Recently, as Mitchell became weaker, his family could sense the end of his life was approaching and did their best to create many wonderful final memories and smiles together. From a Nerf gun fight with Mitchell as he lay behind a man-made barricade and arranged different tactical maneuvers for his assigned team, to a trip in the last week of his life to the store to spend his chore money on toys, Mitchell lived each day physically limited by the weaknesses of his disease but thriving in spirit from the love and tenderness of a family that refused to surrender for as long as Mitchell was able to fight.

Mitchell is remembered for many things, but among them for his love of all things Lego. At the end of his life as his muscles became weaker, he was unable to build with them as he had in the past. Lego were one of the landmarks of childhood that had lasted until the final days for Mitchell, and his passion for using his imagination and creating even as he fought for basic life functions should inspire us all- we should never give up the driving force within us, never willingly surrender our passions despite knowing that every story has a final chapter. Mitchell’s ability to face head-on the things that adults even struggle to accept, and to continue to remain child-like in his love and pleasure of the world, is a humbling reminder that attitude is everything. 

In honor of Mitchell’s inspirational innocence and his love of Lego, we wish to arrange a donation drive for Lego products that will be delivered to the Children’s Hospital of Boston. We hope that other children who are struggling to enjoy their childhood despite all odds can find joy and comfort in a carefree moment of learning, creating, and imagining, and that their happiness will honor the beauty of Mitchell’s life and the love he shared with his family.

If you wish to contribute, please send a Lego set of any size or description to:

Cathy’s Creations
P.O. Box 28 
Watertown, MA 02471

Due to the nature of donating to a children’s hospital, all products intended for the hospital must be unopened and new in packaging or the donations cannot be accepted.

However, we are also accepting donations of Lego to sell by the cup at a fundraiser drive for PPMD!

Anyone who wishes to support Parent Project MD through the purchase of a Mitchell’s Journey Pendant is invited to view our listing on our website. All proceeds are donated directly.

Please also consider visiting Mitchell's Journey's Fundraiser on Facebook for other ways to donate and participate. Your contributions are greatly appreciated!

Calling All Quitters!

We often seek out ways to help people who are in need after an illness has set in or a disease has taken over. Now, we would like to take an opportunity to invite you to help us prevent sickness. We are seeking to give away three smoking cessation patch packages to individuals who are dedicated to taking their future into their own hands and breathing easier from now on!

Smoking-related diseases currently kill 1 in 10 adults worldwide, and if the current trends continue, by 2030, smoking will kill 1 in 6 people. But smoking does not only affect those who choose this habit; the smoke from a cigarette is dangerous and contains over 4,800 chemicals, 69 of which are known carcinogens.

If you smoke around others, including your children, partners, or pets, they are exposed to these deadly toxins, which continue to exist on fabrics such as upholstery in cars and furniture, mattresses, clothing, and other materials. Even after the smoke has cleared, the danger exists… Additionally, children who grow up seeing their parents smoking are more likely to pick up the habit themselves.

If you are interested in quitting smoking, please email us at cathy@cathyscreationsjewelry.com and share your story of why you are dedicated to quitting and why you deserve the patch!

Easter Basket Nomination Giveaway

 
Easter is coming and we know it's been a long and expensive winter for many families. We would like to accept nominations to help up to ten children have a happy Easter morning by donating baskets of goodies to those in need.

If you know of a child whose parents could use a little help with Easter this year, please nominate them and send the following information to us at cathy@cathyscreationsjewelry.com:

-Child's name and age
-Child's gender
-The address we should send the basket to
-Any other information we should know, such as allergies or favorite colors/characters

Not all nominations will be accepted; we ask that you only suggest those who are truly in need. Please understand that our resources are limited and we will do what we can. Thank you!

Day 27...

Our 26 Acts of Kindness for Sandy Hook project has been an emotional roller coaster that has more than proved itself to be worth the time, energy, funds and effort. In giving to others, we have seen complete strangers and close friends be inspired to pay it forward or share what they can offer, and in honoring the victims, we have felt a sense of closure knowing they will not be forgotten.

Hopefully this project has inspired people all around the world to do what they can, when they can, to make a positive change. Whether what you have to offer is financial, material, or as simple as a smile, you have the power to make a difference.

On day 27, as we reflect not only on the lives lost that day but on the powerful implications of the choices we make every day, we have chosen to make one final and anonymous donation to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. We have included no letter of explanation, and we have chosen not to dedicate it to this project or to any of the lives lost that day. Rather, we make this donation with the hope that those who are in crisis or who feel that someone they love is facing difficulties will make the choice to connect themselves with the appropriate resources to prevent a loss of life. This donation is for the future, and not the past.

If you or someone you know needs help, do not hesitate to act.

For 24-hour crisis support, please call 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

Jack Pinto

Our twenty-sixth random act of kindness for the victims of the Sandy Hook tragedy honors the memory of Jack Pinto, age 6, who was known for his extreme love for the New York Giants. Jack was an athletic child who loved playing sports and admired Victor Cruz.

The Giants participate in several community activities, including Read Across America, sponsored by the NEA. In honor of Jack's love of the Giants, we have donated to contribute to this program so that other children can appreciate the joy of learning along with their their favorite sports team.

(Find out more about what we're doing and why)