FACT Bucks County has been working very hard in re-structuring our programs and to continue to grant funds to those in need. A major part of our organization is specific to granting funds for educational purposes and in promotional assistance to other HIV service organizations. We work with various local organizations to ensure that all aspects of our mission can be realized. At a recent FACT board meeting, we voted to award Grants totaling over $12,000.00 to be distributed to HiTops (www.hitops.org ), Planned Parenthood of Bucks County (www.planitpa.org ), and Family Services Assoc. of Bucks County (www.fsabc.org ). Each grantee submitted detailed grant requests. We are obligated by our bylaws to award such grants and we are honored to be working with these organizations.
Our individual contingency program, which assists local people living with HIV/AIDS, is still a large part for use of funds. The requests have greatly increased these last few months. The quarterly BINGOs that we have presented help keep these programs funded and we thank all of you who have sponsored, assisted, volunteered and attended our BINGO events. However, it is the Annual New Hope & Lambertville AIDS WALK (This year on September 23) that really gives us the needed funds to continue what we do. There is a problem this year…The sponsorship for the AIDS WALK is the majority of the funds and it is very low. We are not even at the half-way mark of what we have done in the past. We need your help in securing sponsors (Sponsorship packets are available at our web site or by calling Ken Black, AIDS WALK coordinator at 215-862-9511). If you have already sponsored us, we thank you. If your company, or organization, can come on board to sponsor for 2012, we need you NOW!
Yes, this is a plea for help!
Every bit helps, and I mean really helps; as an all-volunteer organization, all funds are used for assistance and to help fund HIV/AIDS programs. Each client request that FACT receives is reviewed by our contingency committee. We rarely turn people away, but we may have to if we cannot fulfill our goal to raise the needed funds. We are a last resort funding organization. Support from FACT is considered the point of last resort after all other public and private resources have been exhausted. These funds assist individuals in paying rent/mortgage, utilities, car payment/repair and so forth. Funds are awarded in the context of objective and professional case management to assure that all community resources are fully accessed and that appropriate budgeting is in place to meet needs once the episode of hardship is resolved. FACT does not accept applications directly from individuals; rather they are submitted by recognized health and human service providers. In all cases, the beneficiaries of funds are anonymous using only a specific client identification number assigned by the provider with no personal identifiers. Payments are made directly to vendors or to the vendor through the provider agency and not to clients.
Please help us as much as you can, every dollar counts. If you can’t make the AIDS WALK, we accept and appreciate donations (our web site allows for donations to be easily posted). Looking ahead to birthdays & holidays, if you make gift donations for your family & friends, please think of FACT as one of the organizations to give to and we will send notes to those individuals for whom the gift is intended. Funds stay local and we intend to do what we can for all those that need our services.
We are working on some additional fundraising events and we hope that you will join us when we announce them for 2013.
FACT news and information is now at our news feed on-line at INFACT News on our web site.
We would also like to welcome Ed Coogan, who has joined the FACT board of directors!
Please enjoy the rest of the summer and we hope to see you at the AIDS WALK in September and at our BINGO events. The next BINGO is re-scheduled for November 7 at the New Hope Eagle Fire House with the theme of “Sparkles and Spurs”.
We have added some exciting and interesting information to INFACT News; well worth the read so be sure to follow our news feed!
Recent articles added are…
- DID YOU KNOW? (information from the CDC)
- ACTION AIDS
- GLBT Social Group in Hunterdon County
- Borland Receives PUMPKIN Award
- HSG Stewardship Committee assists FACT
- HiTOPS Receives FACT Grant
- Free AIDS Test Available
- AIDS Conference returns to USA
- Gary Scibelli of New Hope Shoes raises funds for FACT in Provincetown, MA
- Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS Grant Awarded to FACT
- New Hope~Eagle Firehouse Renovations