In recent days I made the announcement that Bridge and Beyond will cease to exist come December 31st of this year, 2021. There are many factors involved with this decision that I've blogged about in the past week. One primary reason is difficulty with mail service that has substantially changed; making it very difficult to ensure your donations are protected when I travel.
I've been posting totals of the amazing work so many of you have participated in over the last 13 years, as Bridge and Beyond's first blog post was Dec 2, 2008; and our first donation was received on Dec. 9, 2008 from our friend Bunny.
On December 5, 2008 Sunny Fairy designed our blog logo.
Both Sunny Fairy and Bunny were early supporters of Bridge and Beyond. While they are not currently active with us, I do so appreciate their help in the early formation of Bridge and Beyond.
My SIL, Jan (married to my older brother, Chuck), introduced me to Rae when I first expressed a desire to set up a charity to help the homeless here in central Ohio. Rae was and continues to be a church friend of Jan and Chuck's. She prepares hot meals on Sat. mornings to feel those living out in the elements. It is her group that we first supported by supplying her with warm hats and scarves in the first month of Bridge and Beyond, December of 2008.
We continued to attract more pairs of helping hands and accepted other donated items such as socks, slippers, cotton washcloths, afghans, and mittens; as well as personal care items throughout the years. We were able to supply not only Rae's group, but several homeless shelters here in Columbus, as well as several schools in a depressed area in need.
As I dug out wool socks this morning to warm my feet, I thought I'd share how many pairs of socks we've donated through the years.
SOCKS:
2009 70
2010 101
2011 333
2012 281
2013 281
2014 199
2015 201
2016 135
2017 29
2018 68
2019 113
2020 107
2021 193....as of Nov 1st
Total 1,830 pairs of socks to warm 1,830 pairs of feet.
Please continue to check in to see more stats and stories about the work that's been done here on Bridge and Beyond over the 13 years it's been able to help the Homeless here in central Ohio.
**The counts on our progress bars are current. All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated. The Power of One is awesome, and when we work together The Power of One becomes The Power of Many.