Thanks to all of our community parnters who supported us with booth, table and promotional sponsorships as well – the Emmis family of stations (93WIBC, 1070 The Fan, B105 and Hank FM), WTHR-13, Complete Office Supply, Adrian Orchards, Two Men and a Truck, Huntington Bank, ComedySportz, Cartridge Specialists INK, Graphicon, Unique Home Solutions, the American Legion, Avon, HVAF and Indy Custom Cornhole. Bandwagon put on a great show, too!

And thanks to our community for coming out and putting those lunch dollars to work for a good cause! If you’d like to learn more (or buy one of those great t-shirts) about our programs that support our neighbors struggling with homelessness and abuse, go to HomelessnessBites.org

Just yesterday, we reached out to Kroger, and like their slogan, we could count on them to come through for us. This isn’t a small act of kindness. We’re anticipating a great crowd this year, so we’re talking about 1,000 or so scoops of ice cream. So, a big thanks to Kroger for stepping up to help us raise funds for our Homelessness Bites campaign that supports our Women’s and Children’s Shelter here in Indianapolis.

And don’t forget to grab lunch with your dessert….Applebee’s will be serving up roast beef or freshly grilled chicken sandwiches and chips on the side for just $5! Stop by the Ricker’s pop trailer and grab a soft drink for just $1. Thanks to our generous partners, all the proceeds from this event will help us provide shelter, life skills classes and support for women and kids who are homeless due to financial hardships or abuse. What a great motivation to ‘Eat in the Street’ on Thursday, October 7!

We’ll have plenty of booths to stop by including Adrian Orchards, Two Men and a Truck, Indiana Pacers Fan Van and more. Live music will be provided by Band Wagon. And don’t forget that coat for Coats for Kids – we’ll give you a FREE apple cobbler as your sweet reward!

We still have booth space available for just $50 or join us as a participating sponsor at our table displays for just $75. Call Kristen at 224-1019 to join us! And to learn more about how you can help us Bite Back, go to HomelessnessBites.org.

All of the Fall/Winter volunteer opportunities are now posted online!

If you’re a brand new volunteer, all you have to do is click on “Get Involved” on our volunteer site – SAVolunteer.org, then on “Sign Up Online” and create a profile for yourself!

If you’re a current volunteer, just click on “Get Involved”, then on “Opportunities” and sign in using your username and password.

Yup, it’s as easy as that!

The evenings are cooling off and it’s only a matter of time before children will need coats to stay warm at the bus stops. (The girl on the left is just one of the thousands of little ones who benefitted from our annual Coats for Kids event last year.)

Apple Fest, Coats for Kids, Toy Shop, Colts Collections, Radiothon… we need your help for these and more!

Anyway, the Ricker family is a faithful supporter of The Salvation Army, most recently providing the soft drinks for our Eat Outside the Box event back in May. Ricker’s is a community-focused, family-owned business that’s stepping up and helping us spread the word about our programs that help homeless and abused women and kids make a fresh start.

Apple Fest is just one month away! So, mark your calendar now to join us on Monument Circle on Thursday, October 7 from 10am-3pm. Applebee’s is donating freshly-grilled sandwiches, GFS Marketplace is donating warm apple cobbler, Adrian Orchards is bringing fresh-picked apples and we’re thrilled to share that  and soft drinks will be provided by Ricker’s Stores.

If you’d like to join us as a presenting or a booth sponsor, just give Kristen a call at 224-1019. Sponsorships start at just $50 and we’re expecting over 1,000 people to attend this year’s Apple Fest. Look for our Apple Fest ad in the next Reach Magazine and listen for our promotions starting soon on the Emmis family of stations – WIBC 93, B105, Hank 97 and ESPN 1070.

So, mark your calendar now to join us for Apple Fest on Monument Circle on Thursday, October 7 from 10am-3pm. Applebee’s is donating freshly-grilled sandwiches and chips so all proceeds from lunch will benefit programs for homeless and abused women and children. And bring a few extra bucks for some apples, because they’re seriously good!

Got a business or organization you’re looking to promote – how ’bout a booth at Apple Fest? Just $50 to reach about 1,000 lunchgoers with your message. Call Kristen at 224-1019 to learn more.

Over the next few weeks, we’ll be working out the details and planning an event that will be worth spending your lunch hour with us. We’re asking you to mark your calendar now for Thursday, October 7 on Monument Circle. All the proceeds from this event will provide shelter, mentoring, tutoring and other programs for kids and their moms who come to our shelter in need of a safe place to stay and fresh start.

Stay tuned for updates…

It’s a perfect fit since we’re planning to “Eat in the Street for homeless kids” right in their front yard on Monument Circle! All four Emmis stations – WIBC 93.1fm, B105.7fm, Hank 97.1fm and ESPN 1070 The Fan will be teaming up with us to spread the word about this lunchtime event on Thursday, October 7.

Mark your calendar to join us for freshly grilled food and warm apple cobbler. There’s lots to see and do at this event, so stay tuned for the details. And go here to find out how you can get involved this summer even before the first lunch-goer is served.

Interested in participating in the event as a booth sponsor? Call Kristen at 224-1019.

We want to be sure to thank our event sponsors. Without the generosity of partners like ours, we wouldn’t have the ability to host an event for you to be a part of. So, thanks to our campaign sponsor – Two Men and a Truck, lunch sponsor – Applebee’s, apple cobbler sponsor – GFS Marketplace, apple sponsor – Adrian Orchards, media partners – WIBC 93/ESPN The Fan 1070/B105.7/HANK 97.1, campaign spokesperson, Mel McMahon, Big Brothers Big Sisters, The American Legion, Dunkin’ Donuts, Comedysportz, Squish Designs, Indy Moms Like Me, the Indiana Pacers and their Fan Van, the Indianapolis Colts Cheerleaders, and folks from each of our Salvation Army’s nearby locations. And thanks to Bandwagon for setting the mood with some great tunes that certainly called people from blocks away!

So, thanks for supporting Homelessness Bites and for donating coats to Bob Gregory’s Coats for Kids. Stay tuned to find out how much we raised for programs at our women’s and children’s shelter.

Now that you’ve heard about how much great exposure our partners got and what a great time we had at this year’s Apple Fest, maybe you’re wishing you’d spent those dollars and joined us. Well, it may be too late for our 6th annual Apple Fest, but next year’s event is just 364 days away! If you’d like to make certain that you’re a part of Apple Fest next October, give Kristen a call at 224-1019. She can get you up to speed on how you can build your sponsorship package for 2010 today!