Bowling for Bears

Vital Stats

Jenny

Cherry Hill, NJ

  • people helped8000
  • People Doing It 20

The Problem

Bowling for Bears exists to make the holidays more joyful for children in need. I started it in 2005 to insure that those affected by Hurricane Katrina would still receive a gift for the holidays and know that someone was thinking of them. I saw reports about the effects of the hurricane and I wanted to do something to help. The first year, Bowling for Bears provided a teddy bear for every child hospitalized at the Children's Hospital of New Orleans. In 2007, I began to focus on local children in need in my immediate community, Philadelphia and Camden, New Jersey. There are several major children's hospitals in our area and, after talking with people at one of the major hospitals, I was convinced that I could make an impact on these children by having Bowling for Bears deliver teddy bears to these hospitals during the holidays.

Plan of Action

Bowling for Bears started as an informal bowling event that sent teddy bears to one hospital. In six years, it has grown to have a broad impact throughout my community. Bowling for Bears has distributed to over 8,000 children who come from a wide range of backgrounds and who face a variety of difficulties in their lives -- from medical problems to financial challenges. The impact of Bowling for Bears is now directly felt in three states -- Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. Steps taken so far have included: - Establishing a relationship with Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. for the supply of the teddy bears - Incorporating Bowling for Bears into a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization - Launching a web site - Instituting online donations - Establishing relationships with corporate sponsors (over 40 last year) - Establishing relationships with food vendors to supply food for the event - Adding a silent auction to the event - Having additional events beyond the major bowling event -- last year we had an additional bowling event and had fundraising days/events at local venues - Bringing Bowling for Bears to the high school and making it a meaningful part of the school's culture by starting a Do Something Club that engages the school in Bowling for Bears as one of its projects Future planned steps include: - Expanding the Board to bring additional ideas and opportunities - Reaching out to additional corporate sponsors - Adding new recipients (organizations/locations) of teddy bears - Locating others who may be interested in holding Bowling for Bears events in their communities
Go
Disasters
Physical and Mental Health
Homelessness and Poverty

Related Stuff