Posted by TeamCharlie on July 10, 2008 under Wags for Hope | 
Yesterday I had the wonderful opportunity to make a nursing home visit with Charlie and my family. This was different from our usual fare, since the nursing home, Regina Nursing Center, was three hours away in Norristown, PA. This is where my Aunt Mary is living now – she will be 98 years old in September. Ashamedly we haven’t seen her in over 20 years, for reasons I won’t go into here. She is the “last one standing” of my parents’ siblings and spouses. When we arrived, she was at lunch so some of the other residents got to meet Charlie. When we finally tracked her down I asked her, “Are you my Aunt Mary?” Her quick wit came back at me and said, “That depends… Who are you??” The nursing home was very nice and had no noticeable odors which I was thankful for my aunt’s sake. Her mind is all there – she is still as sweet, laid back and funny as I remember her. She is just a tad slower and a bit hard of hearing. Because of arthritis in her knees, she is confined to a wheelchair. Read more of this article »
Posted by TeamCharlie on under Kids are Heroes |
In February of 2008, I just happened to catch an interview on TV. It was Charlie Rose interviewing Sir Richard Branson. I’m not the type of person who gets star struck in the least. In fact, I believe that the only thing celebrities are better at than I am is becoming famous which is an attribute I do not covet. However, I was fascinated by the interview. I had no real opinion of Branson other than the fact that I knew he owned a large number of companies and was a successful businessman. The focus of the interview was not so much his successes but what he plans to do from here on. (The actual interview is online and can be seen in its entirety here. I believe this is an hour well spent for those who have the time.) He talks about his efforts in trying to help solve the global warming issue, and about cofounding “The Elders” with Peter Gabriel. The Elders are a group of highly respected elder statesmen led by Nelson Mandela who go from place to place on this planet to try and resolve conflicts. Branson also introduced me to the concept of “social entrepreneurship” which is very intriguing to me. The idea is that instead of throwing money at a problem it may be better in some instances to try and solve issues with entrepreneurial skills. This is the main focus behind one of Branson’s latest ventures, “Virgin Unite“. The bottom line is that I was inspired by this interview. We started Wags for Hope a couple of years ago and it is thriving nicely. But we can do more. I asked myself, “what entrepreneurial skills do I have that I can use to help others?” One answer was website design and development. At that same time I had just heard about some fantastic kids doing wonderful things in their communities. Also at that time my daughter MaryMargaret had asked me to build her a website… Read more of this article »
Posted by TeamCharlie on under Wags for Hope |
By now you are probably puzzled at the title of this post. People who volunteer should be selfless, just like Mother Theresa, right? Well maybe some of them are, but I am not one of them. It has always been my feeling that most people would like something in return for their efforts. If this post were to be sent off into space without anyone ver reading it, why would I write more? Similarly, if I didn’t get anything back from volunteering, why would I do it? I’m just not that nice of a person. I volunteer because I get SO MUCH back from it. More on this in a bit.
In March of 2006 my dog Charlie started a group called Wags for Hope (based in Frederick, MD), an all volunteer group of animal teams that visit people in our communities. We visit nursing homes, assisted living facilities, hospice patients and the disabled. We started with a handful of neighbors and have since blossomed into over 100 volunteer teams. The response we get from our “clients” is what keeps us all coming back. One gentleman I have been visiting for the past two years would always proclaim in his Dutch accent: “You made my day!!” just as we were leaving. It was sheer joy to visit him. Knowing that your dog has given so much pleasure to people strengthens the bond you share immeasurably. This was a side effect I was not expecting, but found to be wonderful. We always stress in our group that if a volunteer is not happy in a situation for whatever reason, they switch to another venue. Wags for Hope is touching the lives of both volunteers and the recipients of our visits – it’s a win-win situation for everybody.
Posted by TeamCharlie on under Just for Fun |
As I mentioned in the About area, I am relatively new to this social networking and blogging concept. Although I have been in technology and software development for over twenty years, I am usually the last to “catch on” to things that are useful. Even my nine year old daughter has a blog. Anyway, I have been thinking about starting one and just seeing how it goes. I hope to gain some more exposure for the “stuff I care about”, such as will be explained in later posts. Living in the Frederick, MD area (and absolutely LOVING it), I plan to focus primarily on things that affect the Frederick community.
