Markey’s to provide equipment for Radiothon

Loads of gratitude to our friends at Markey’s Rental and Staging for donating the use of a couple of large screen televisions and cabling for our upcoming WIBC Radiothon. A long-time partner for Radiothon, Markey’s is our official audio/visual equipment sponsor. Every time the WIBC personalities announce new pledges, they’ll turn to the “Markey’s tote board” for updates. Their support makes communication easy and accurate during a very busy event.

Markey’s makes sponsoring look easy, don’t they? We’d love to include your business in this year’s Radiothon. To sponsor an hour or donate items for prize packages, give Kristen a call at 224-1019.

Why should I give?

Probably the first question you ask yourself when presented with a request from a charity like The Salvation Army, right? So, if you’re wondering why you should sponsor an hour or donate a prize package for our WIBC Radiothon this December 3-5, you should let Donna* tell you in her own words.  

My name is Donna. My life has been saved! This is a literal statement because the abuse from my husband had progressed to the point where he was going to kill me. And even worse than that he would have done so in front of my three children. He had never abused the children before, but the signs were all present and I knew it was just a matter of time before he started on them too.

People say, “Leave him! Go!” But where do you go? Read more

24th Annual Coats For Kids Rises Above Expectations for 2010

After a week of setting up in the Exposition Hall at the Indiana State Fairgrounds, the 24th annual WTHR/Bob Gregory’s Coats for Kids was in full swing Saturday morning. Crowds were lined up around the building when the doors opened at 8am. Despite concerns about the lacking number of donations early on and the struggling economy, this year’s distribution was blessed with a record total of 9,326 coats.

“What a perfect trick or treat on Halloween weekend. The treat was 9,000 coats given. No trick involved there at all. We also had a lot of citizens donate. I think we had $7,000 to spend in purchasing new coats” said the man who started this campaign 24 years ago, Bob Gregory.

Approximately 300 volunteers gave up their Saturday and worked in shifts to escort families during their shopping experience at Coats for Kids. Some also worked as runners to replenish  racks of coats when the selections ran low. If you’ve ever wondered who our volunteers are, this year’s force was made up of several church groups, WTHR staff, and other individuals without whom The Salvation Army could not pull off such an event. Volunteer Coordinator Elizabeth Wilhelm said, “It was a great day and everything went so well!”

Once again, Tuchman Cleaners played an important role as the official drop off point, cleaner of coats and delivering the coats to the fairgrounds during the week of the event. On hand to greet the children were the Colts cheerleaders, Butler mascot “Blue” and Salvation Army officers.

“Our warmth goes out to those kids and families that for this year  have a new, nice warm coat. Thanks for the treat!” Bob Gregory, retired weather forecaster for WTHR.

Lumina Foundation supports Coats for Kids

Their $500 donation will help us give kids in need coats, hats and gloves before the snowflakes fly! And there’s still time for you to help, too.

• If you’re a parent, please check your closets at home for gently used coats that your kids no longer need. And please encourage your friends and family to do the same. You can drop off coat donations at any Tuchman Cleaners.
• Make a secure donation on-line here.
• Volunteer to set-up for Coats for Kids by calling Elizabeth at 224-1010. It takes an organized team to distribute thousands of coats.

Hoosiers have never let their neighbors in need down. We’re counting on our community to come out in full force to make sure that no kid goes without a coat this winter. And thanks again to the Lumina Foundation for supporting Bob Gregory’s Coats for Kids campaign!

Kroger scoops up chance to support Apple Fest

With just a few weeks to go until Apple Fest, we were still missing a key ingredient – ice cream for our GFS Marketplace apple cobbler. Thanks to our friends at Kroger, we’ll be serving it up a la mode!

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.

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