5 Bucks is Change

Flintstones Bowling

The Bowling for Flintstones Vitamins raised money and donations of chewable vitamins to send on a dentistry service trip to Moldova

Animal Planet

Conservators’ Center is a nonprofit organization that preserves threatened species through rescuing wildlife in need, responsible captive breeding, and providing educational programs and support worldwide.

Night Life

5 Bucks is Change” encourages friends to gather together to help raise funds for non-profit organizations – and have fun along the way!

March 21st, 2013

Walk a mile in her shoes – one penny at a time

One of the goals of 5 Bucks is Change is to raise awareness for charities that can take a small donation and really make it go a long way. In the case of the African Well Fund, the long way is a mile measured by pennies; 84,480 pennies to be exact. Why a mile of pennies? Because many families in Africa have to walk miles every day to fetch water. That daily walk means that children are not in school, parents can’t work regularly and there’s a high probability that the water is not sanitary, increasing water borne illness risks.

This week the African Well Fund is challenging everyone to think about how easy it is for us to get fresh, sanitary water and participate in “Walk a Mile in Her Shoes – Pennies for the People.” It takes 84,480 pennies laid end to end to make a mile. So start collecting – one penny at a time – and try to save a mile’s worth of pennies in recognition of the distance others have to walk for their water.

Pennies can add up. 84,480 equal a mile.

In her blog post, African Well Fund staffer Elizabeth March lays out some great ideas how easy it is to start a collection at home, in the office or at church. She also provides resource links for teachers of all grade levels with background information.

The African Well Fund is dedicated to raising funds for building and maintaining wells in Africa. It was formed in October 2002 by a group of U2 fans inspired by the media coverage of Bono’s May 2002 trip to Africa. All donations to the African Well Fund go directly to Africare. Africare is the largest and oldest international non-governmental organization focused exclusively on Africa.

This week I encourage you to start small with just one penny and watch how it can lead to big things.

March 15th, 2013

Snidely Whiplash Rules – Mustache Competition for Charity

The 1st Annual Bear & Mustache Competition

Who doesn’t love a villain with a great ‘stache? Remember the great mustache of Snidely Whiplash? This Saturday there may not be any villains but there will be plenty of mustaches, beards and facial hair at the First Annual Durham Beard and Mustache Competition. Join the fun at Bull McCabe’s Saturday, March 16th from 2:00 to 8:00 pm. Bring your best mustache for the contests for the Best Amish, Best Ginger, Best Ladystache, Most Likely to Tie a Woman to the Railroad Tracks and more. Does it sound like this event is just for the guys or hairy gals?

No, it’s also about womanly arms! Host LUEWWD (the League of Upper Extremity Wrestling Women of Durham) will present a Arm Wrestling Competition for the ladies. Add beer, bands and prize giveaways from local breweries and restaurants and you have an event!

All the fun is to benefit Liberty Arts and The Scrap Exchange - As men are rated for their beauty, women will demonstrate strength in a raucous arm-wrestling tourney. Bring a wad of bills to “vote” during the arm wrestling events, as all proceeds go toward arts programs for underprivileged women and girls. Admission is $5 or $15 if you want to compete.

March 10th, 2013

Run on Dix – Race for AIDS Alliance

Did you have a New Year’s Resolution to commit to better health in 2013? Or maybe a resolution to commit to doing good in the community? The Run on Dix, Race for the Ribbon 5k provides you with an opportunity to do both! Join the Alliance of AIDS Services-Carolina for their first-ever 5k on the beautiful campus of Dorthea Dix on Saturday, March 16, 2013. This will be a USATF certified 5k and timed by Adventure Geek Productions with state of the art chip timing!

Registration is $25.00.
Event Day Schedule:
7:00 a.m. – 8:30 a.m. Registration
8:45 a.m. – Opening Ceremonies
9:00 a.m. – Start Race
11:30 a.m. – Award Ceremonies

About Alliance of AIDS Services:
Their mission is to serve people living with HIV/AIDS, their loved ones, caregivers and communities at large, through compassionate and non-judgmental care, prevention, education and advocacy.

The Alliance dates back to 1989, when the AIDS Service Agency of Orange County, Triangle AIDS Interfaith Network (TRAIN) and AIDS Service Agency of North Carolina consolidated efforts in servicing and supporting people living with HIV/AIDS.

The Alliance is the only agency in North Carolina that provides a full continuum of care to individuals living with HIV/AIDS: primary care; pastoral care and counseling; substance abuse treatment; mental health counselors; nutritional counseling with a registered dietition; medical and non-medical case management; shared-living (Hustead House) and a family care home (Orange House).

They remember those lost, those living and those we must protect.

Contact Information and Volunteer Opportunities:

Alliance of AIDS Services-Carolina
324 S. Harrington Street
Raleigh, NC 27603

(919) 834-2437
Race website (use Google Chrome to register)

Race Directors:

Randy Light – Deputy Director of Development. Contact at email
Chermaine Arthur – Director of Development. Contact at email.

*The race will take place rain or shine. Race directors may edit the course for safety and/or for highway regulations or may cancel this in the event of severe weather. No refunds will be given if you or the race directors are forced to cancel plans for the event.

March 6th, 2013

5 Bucks for Lunch for the Food Bank of CENC

Here’s a program that 5 Bucks is Change can really get behind! The Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina has a monthly program that serves two purposes, it raises money and increases empathy for those who need the Food Bank services. Give a Meal for a Meal invites donors to set aside the cost of one lunch once a month and donate it to the Food Bank of CENC. You can pack a lunch, skip the meal or just donate what you might have spent. Here’s the amazing thing about stretching your donation. For every dollar you donate, the Food Bank can generate $10 worth of food value or enough to provide 5 meals.

Think about it: a $5 donation to the Food Bank of CENC will provide lunch to 25 struggling seniors… $10 will bring breakfast to 10 school children for one week… $15 will provide dinner to a family of four for nearly 3 weeks! By skipping just one meal, you can furnish many meals to those suffering from hunger.

To make it easy to donate every month, the Food Bank of CENC has a Sustaining Gift program that you can set up on a credit card to automatically withdraw your pledge. Donating 5 Bucks a month for a year means you would have provided for 300 lunches for senior citizens. It will be a 5 Bucks donation that will go a long way and I promise you’ll never miss it.

February 17th, 2013

Cats and Dogs Living Together! A Cat Adoption Story, Part I

This week I have been looking for love….of the four footed variety. My home has no cat and that’s unusual. I do love dogs but as all my friends agree, I do not live a dog lifestyle. Cats, with their independent ”you’re here to serve me” ways and need for “alone time” work perfectly into my life. So this week I began my hunt for the perfect cat. Perfect for me anyway.

Laura Leslie of WUNC-FM enjoying “Bark & Wine.”

As it was Valentine’s week, every shelter in the area had a great deal on cat adoption fees. I occasionally volunteer at Safe Haven for Cats so am familiar with their available cats.

I had the pleasure of attending the SPCA of Wake County “Bark & Wine” event on Valentine’s Day. It was a sold-out fundraiser for the shelter and my first visit there. Not only was the event fun, it was great to see so many people there who had adopted or planned to adopt in the near future. The shelter was clean, smelled great and was very cheerful. The cats were available to visit in group rooms where they could interact with each other as well as visitors. I visited every cat in the shelter including a behemoth 30 pound cat who has an adoption pending (and on a diet). Sadly no purrfect match but I did fall in love with the SPCA of Wake County, their team and their lovely animals. Look for future posts of some of their fundraising programs.

The search continued on Saturday with a visit to Wake County Animal Control. The shelter did not have some of the amenities of the SPCA, their volunteers were no less dedicated and helpful. In addition they had a strictly enforced sanitation policy for handling the animals that was sure to maintain a high level of cleanliness and keep the animals healthy. Unfortunately no luck finding the right cat for me so the search continues. Off to Durham next.