First, we would like to congratulate “Birch Community Services” for recently winning the Oregon Ethics in Business Award in the Non-Profit Category.   This is to be applauded on so many levels  – this organization was born here in East County and has made our community an innovator on  how to raise families up and give them a fresh start.  Their mission is, “to provide a community where people can be responsible and accountable for meeting their basic needs, and to equip them with tools to overcome financial difficulty”.   Their model is simple.  Give families the tools, education and basic needs to get them on their feet and support them until they can move forward financially independent (and it is all done with love and grace).    This is a quote from one of the families they have served: “The financial education was very helpful, and not as scary as I thought it would be.  I don’t feel overwhelmed anymore because we have somewhere to start, and a plan to help us meet our goals. – Thank you!”  If you feel you want to support an ethical organization that is really making a difference in our community think no further than “Birch Community Services”.

Bob Avila, my husband, is one of the miracles of my life but he is on a mission to provide a miracle for a young friend of his, Nolan Jewell.  The Outlook recently wrote an article about this little boy and the four legged “miracle” that he needs to make his life “a little more normal”.    Nolan has Juvenile Diabetes and while modern medicine provides many “miracles” that have made life possible for Nolan – it seems that a well-trained “boy’s best friend” Labrador is way more adept at knowing when Nolan needs insulin – making countless testing and poking of Nolan’s little fingers 24 HOURS A DAY less repetitive.   Actually, allowing Nolan and his mom to get some sleep.   These highly trained dogs are truly a marvel but of course, very expensive, and an expense that any young family would find substantial so, thus my husband’s mission to help raise funds to support the purchase of this “smart” pooch for Nolan.   For more information please go to: https://www.youcaring.com/nolanjewell-840835