Abby's Light Memorial Foundation
Making Children Smile
  • Welcome
  • About
    • About Abby
    • The Foundation
  • Programs
    • Gifts for Hospitalized Children
    • Abby’s For Teachers
    • Abby’s Adopted Families
    • Random Acts of Kindness Day
    • Abby’s AOK
    • The Giving Tree
  • Donate
  • Contact
  • Blog

C’mon…Show a Little Love!

Donate to Abby's Light Memorial Fund Donate Now!
« Previous 1 2

ALMF teams up with the Central Bucks School District and CB Cares for Random Acts of Kindness Day.

Published on: November 6, 2015 | Author: Mike Schumer

CB RAKD flyerMore than 20,000 students will be exposed to the awareness of random acts of kindness on Abby’s birthday. Students will be encouraged to perform RAK not just on that day but throughout their lifetime. What you see to the left is a 13×19 inch poster that will be displayed in all schools. Students will be encouraged to put in pen what they have done for RAKD.

CB Cares Educational Foundation is a community coalition of individuals, businesses, and agencies, whose goal is to promote positive values, attitudes, and behaviors, particularly in our community’s youth. The Abby’s Light Memorial Foundation is proud to align with such a hard working organization.

Between the students, the school district staff and CB Cares, kindness awareness is getting a big boost in the Central Bucks community and as these things go, it should have a ripple effect to many other areas as well.

Categories: The Founders Desk | Tags: No tags |

Random Acts of Kindness will be spreading throughout the world!

Published on: November 3, 2015 | Author: Mike Schumer

rak logoPart of Abby’s legacy as well as many children that pass, is kindness. Why is this? Are all these kids that left us kind? The answer, in most cases, is yes. I speak directly for many bereaved parents and indirectly for millions. Most children, especially around Abby’s age are kind hearted souls. Abby was a genuinely kind hearted girl. She constantly brought her teachers flowers. She would give up a possession for a friend just to make them happy. Would this last? I can’t answer that but I like to think it would be yes.  Abby is our forever ten year old daughter. There are many Abby’s that have passed. As parents, we want to see kindness. We want a more peaceful life. We want this to honor our children. Tomorrow, my county, Bucks County, will proclaim Abby’s birthday for the second year, Random Acts of Kindness Day. The goal of the Abby’s Light Memorial Foundation is to do this all year. We have been doing RAK for quite awhile. Hundreds, if not thousands of people have performed RAK just because they knew Abby lived. Abby’s birthday is approaching on November 19th and RAK is picking up steam. Abby’s school district, Central Bucks, will be taking part. A big thanks to one of our Directors, Marion Mass, for facilitating this. Kindness is spreading. What will you do?

Dear Central Bucks District Wellness Representatives, 

Part of good health is contributing in an altruistic way in the world around you.  Central Bucks Students have the opportunity to feel empowered on Bucks County’s Official Random Act of Kindness Day, (RAKD) held annually on November 19.  RAKD is a day in honor of Abby Schumer, a former CB student who tragically lost her life to a brain tumor in 2012 at the age of 10.  Abby believed in doing small kind things for teachers, friends, and others in her life.   

Abby’s Home schools of Groveland and Tohickon are making RAKD a special day by encouraging students to perform a RAK sometime throughout the Day.  At Tohickon, students will receive a sticker in the morning and will be told to perform a RAK and wear their sticker proudly, once they have done so. (kind of like “I voted” badges) At Groveland the staff is going to talk about RAKD as a group and each classroom teacher will discuss the day and encourage participation with their class.  Groveland will promote RAK all week on morning announcements.   Other schools might consider placing posters (Mike Schumer, President of Abby’s Light Foundation, is happy to provide each CB school with promotional posters and other printed material)  in the school’s hallways, and introducing the idea on morning announcements, or having the high school key clubs promote awareness of this day. What might your school do to start a wave of kindness???? 

What a special way to kick off Thanksgiving week, and a simple beautiful way to promote wellness among our staff and students.  

Corrine Sikora, Supervisor of Student Services, Central Bucks School District.

 

 

Categories: The Founders Desk | Tags: No tags |

Through the eyes of a forever 10 year old girl.

Published on: August 28, 2015 | Author: Mike Schumer
Abby's butterfly art

A charity/foundation performs its functions through programs. Some charities have many programs and some have only one. At the Abby’s Light Memorial Foundation, we are just starting to identify programs. Every program that comes to life will have one thing in common; it will have attributes as seen through the eyes of a forever 10 year old girl. Our first program, Abby’s AOK gives gift cards to children at her favorite store at 10 years old, Justice Clothes Stores. We do this because Abby would not only be happy buying things for herself at Justice, she would also take joy in buying things for others as well. Since Abby cannot do this, we will do it for her.

The foundation is not designed to be a large charity with heavy expenses and salaries. We’ll leave that to other charities. We are here to do what Abby would like to do at her age. Currently we are working with local hospitals to provide gifts to children who have a long duration stay, meaning three days or longer. We are working with her school to include more children who are underprivileged and receive gifts for the holiday season. This is something Abby loved to participate in. She loved to shop for the children who she knew were not as fortunate as she was. Abby loved art. Every week she would hug her art teacher and tell her she want’s to be a teacher herself. She won awards for her artwork. Therefore we are working with that art teacher on an annual art award for a student that simply loved art just like Abby. They will receive a plaque and hopefully a monetary gift so they can buy some art supplies over the summer. The opportunities that exist are endless. They do however need to be identified, thought out and implemented only if funds permit. As we move forward, we will see what we are capable of. We pledge to work hard at raising awareness and funds to put these programs in place. We will make children smile and make Abby proud.

Consider donating to Abby’s foundation. Wouldn’t it be nice to simply make a child smile?

Categories: The Founders Desk | Tags: No tags |

Marketing Marketing Marketing….

Published on: August 12, 2015 | Author: Mike Schumer

Starting a nonprofit charity is very much like starting a for profit business. A business needs sales as soon as possible. A nonprofit charity needs donations. How do you get sales? How do you get donations? Marketing that’s how. Brand recognition. The foundation has begun handing out brochure displays at local stores. They tell the story. We hope people become interested. Start recognizing the logo. Make donations.

As President, I took it upon myself to develop the brochure. I tried many types of paper stock. The one that was most striking of course was the most costly. An organization, especially a nonprofit, needs to make decisions for expenditures such as supplies. You want as much of the donations to go to the programs. To help children. You can’t spend it all on marketing materials. So what do you do?

Well today I decided to look for a less extravagant paper stock. I need to find the balance between cost and quality of materials. As I was looking at brochure stock I noticed Staples had the stock I loved at over half off. I couldn’t believe it. Today I went to four different Staple stores and gobbled up 15 boxes of stock. What would have cost the foundation $630.00 now cost $285.00. This is 2,250 brochures. Still a high cost considering funding has just begun. It is however an investment. There will be many more displays in stores. People are working on plans as we speak. The word is getting out.

So, with this in mind, I ask all potential donors to consider this charity that will bring smiles to children as Abby would. $10.00, $20.00 is all it takes from many people to get things going. President Bush senior spoke of a “thousand points of light.” I knew exactly what he meant back in 1988. Thousands upon thousands of charities doing their thing to make the world a better place. These charities don’t have to be large or attempt to save the world. They can help people on a small scale and together create a world movement of helping others who are in need or experiencing a low point. This point of light, The Abby’s Light Memorial Foundation focuses on children. One by one. You will see this happen through pictures and writings by recipients. We are doing this now with Abby’s AOK’s. We’re going farther. Be a part of this. Please donate whatever you can. You will see a child smile and you can say I helped with that.

Thank You,

Mike Schumer – President, Abby’s Light Memorial Foundation.

 

Categories: The Founders Desk | Tags: No tags |

Random Acts of Kindness Day Publicity

Published on: August 10, 2015 | Author: Mike Schumer

There have been various local articles about Abby. This one was regarding the county declaring her birthday Random Acts of Kindness Day. Click here for the story. Abby’s birthday is always a day of kindness where many benefit. This foundation is developed to make sure that continues throughout the year.

Categories: The Founders Desk | Tags: No tags |

The Foundation Evolves

Published on: August 7, 2015 | Author: webauthorings
Abby's Light Memorial Foundation Timeline

March 24th 2014. The second anniversary of Abby’s passing. A day of introspection and trying to find peace. I make a decision. It’s time to start developing a different type of relationship with my daughter. She’s not physically here with me but I know she is here. March 25th, I create a Facebook page called Abby’s Light. Within months the page grows. I find an outlet to express my love for Abby. The page is a test for myself. Think of Abby as she lived. All the positives no negatives. It becomes a living breathing page. It is Abby’s Light. It evolves not just as a page but a legacy.

Kindness is what Abby represents. We fight back the loss with positive efforts. Her birthday becomes a day for acts of kindness. Literally through the help of friends, acts of kindness small and large are happening in many parts of the world. The following year, our county in Pennsylvania, Bucks County becomes Random Acts of Kindness Day on her birthday. The day is featured in our local news paper and the popularity of the Abby’s Light page grows by 50 percent. November 19th will be considered Random Acts of Kindness day in Bucks County every year.

Slide background

 

March of 2015. Abby’s Light spins off into a program called Abby’s AOK (Acts of Kindness). With Abby’s giving spirit in mind we give gift cards to random people and children. The children receive gift cards from Justice Clothes Stores. The adults receive Starbucks cards. At this point we are not a nonprofit, tax exempt organization. We do however, through the generosity of friends, family and strangers receive over a thousand dollars for the program. It is a huge success! Feedback from recipients is heartwarming. Abby’s spirit is alive.

My mind is constantly churning what more can be done. Should we form a charity? The startup would be daunting. Wait. I have a degree in business. I’m a fast learner. Why can I not do this when others can? I jump in. I do what is needed to form a nonprofit corporation and become tax exempt for potential donors as well. I made the decision, I learned, I formed a board and here we are!

The Abby’s Light Memorial Foundation became official on June 8th 2015. We are just getting started and approaching this in a methodical fashion. The foundation will succeed. I know that in my heart of hearts. This is for Abby! Children will smile and Abby will be that inspiration.

Stay tuned and watch this evolve. Abby’s Light will NEVER be extinguished!

Categories: The Founders Desk | Tags: No tags |

How do we do this?

Published on: August 6, 2015 | Author: webauthorings
Abby
How do you operate a foundation through the eyes of a forever 10 year old girl?
Slide background

The foundation has decided to do what Abby did best; make children smile. We accomplish this in many ways and as time progresses, there will be more. Here are just a few examples of our efforts:

  • Provide gifts to hospitalized kids.
  • Provide assistance to families in need. Focusing on making a child’s life better.
  • Providing gifts to underprivileged children during the holiday season as well as other times of the year.
  • Providing assistance to school teachers in underprivileged school districts to enhance their ability to inspire children.
  • Performing random acts of kindness. Bucks County has proclaimed November 19th, Abby’s birthday, as Random Acts of Kindness Day throughout the area. We perform acts of kindness throughout the year by giving out gift cards valued at $10.00 to Justice Clothes stores (where Abby liked to shop) and Starbucks. These simple acts affect lives positively in many people as identified through feedback of recipients. We call them AOKs. The foundation believes a small act of kindness can grow into a movement and it has. Through this effort, thousands of dollars have been donated to help children around the world in Abby’s honor.

The Abby’s Light Memorial Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non profit corporation. All donations are tax deductible. Tax EIN #47-4178382

 

Categories: The Founders Desk | Tags: No tags |
« Previous 1 2

Search Abby’s Light

Latest

  • For the Love of Community
  • Helping make the Doylestown Hospital Pediatric Unit a Happier Place
  • Moving Forward!!!!
  • Three for three.
  • There are currently no fundraisers. There will be another Bag Bingo in the fall of 2016. Check back for different events before that.

Link1 | Link2 | Link3

Copyright © 2014. All Rights Reserved.

Designed by WebAuthorings.