Christmas is just around the corner, but for many children in our area, that doesn't necessarily mean Santa is coming down the chimney. Big Bend Cares' Holiday Angels program gives you the opportunity to make the Christmas morning dreams come true for children living in families affected by HIV-AIDS.

Visit www.bigbendcares.org to learn how you can be an Angel, including being matched with a family to shop for, making a donation, or ordering online and having gifts sent directly to their office to be wrapped and delivered.

Children do not have to be infected with HIV or have AIDS to be affected by the disease. Each year, some children of parents living with HIV/AIDS do not experience the joy of receiving presents or new clothes that fit due to the financial burden that often goes with their family member’s struggle to survive.

We know the pandemic has impacted us all. But for families living below the Federal Poverty level – and ALL Holiday Angel families do – it has been even more difficult. For these parents, getting Christmas gifts for their children can be an impossible burden.
These children need your help!

Become a Holiday Angel and provide 1 gift and 1 clothing outfit for a child. It will mean the world to these children on Christmas! Sign up today to become a Holiday Angel by emailing Matt King at mking@bigbendcares.org or by calling (850) 656-2437 extension 224.

Public art is more than just something pretty on a wall. It brings a community together and sparks the kind of creativity and inspiration that can lead to more good things. That's part of the reason why the Florida People's Advocacy Center and Greater Frenchtown Revitalization Council are joining forces for two murals to be installed in the historic Frenchtown neighborhood of Tallahassee.

​My guests today are Karen Woodall, Executive Director of the Florida People's Advocacy Center and Miaisha Mitchell, founder of the Greater Frenchtown Revitalization Council. We're going to talk about the services available at the Center and their new fundraising effort that you can help be part of.

Make a contribution here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1535252817/rosa-parks-and-rbg-murals?ref=project_facebook&fbclid=IwAR0xpE2jOFG64jeihtvAU_-b145RogeW290AwQoHe5Qac5RECEFMUeOroOE

At the end of the day, most of us have a safe and comfortable place to rest our heads. Wrapped in our blankets and pillows, we are able to finally relax, let our minds rest, and recover. For some, it’s the best part of the day!
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But for hundreds of children in Tallahassee and throughout the Big Bend area, bedtime means finding a bundle of blankets on the floor, squeezing in between siblings on a single bed, or worse. John Cousins, President of the Tallahassee Chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace, isn’t okay with that.

Sleep in Heavenly Peace is a national effort based in Idaho, with two hundred chapters in the US. All chapters are 100% volunteer based and partner with local community service providers, churches, law enforcement, social workers, schools, and more to connect families in need with beds for kids. 

In this episode, you'll learn how easy it is to help.
Check 'em out: https://www.shpbeds.org/chapter/fl-tallahassee​

Imagine being pregnant, on the streets, and wanting to keep your baby but not having any idea how you can. It may seem like rolling with the system, accepting welfare checks and living a life of dependence, is your only viable choice.

With Debra Harris, the founder of Making Miracles Group Home, at your side, you have a helping hand to guide you to independence. In this episode, you'll learn about a house in Tallahassee where young pregnant and homeless women can find shelter, learn life skills, and break out of the cycle of poverty that they thought had them in chains.

And, hear about how you can make a difference by helping them move into a bigger house that can help more people.

​Visit www.makingmiraclesgrouphome.org and look for them on Facebook!

Since 1986, thousands of abused and neglected children in Tallahassee and the surrounding nine counties have found shelter, comfort and a sense of normalcy through a local charity – Tree House of Tallahassee, Inc. As the organization celebrates 25 years of quietly supporting children, both the benefits it provides to area children and its current needs for support from the community are highly pronounced, with approximately 10 new children entering a Tree House facility each month.
Though many children, ages two to 12 years-old, brought to Tree House are victims of domestic abuse, there are a wide range of reasons a child may be placed in one of two homes operated by the organization. Increasingly, children whose parents have lost their jobs and are financially unable to support them are being placed in the homes until a more stable permanent environment is available.

 The cycle of crime and violence when living in poverty is hard to break out of.

That's why the Tallahassee Peacemakers Initiative formed - to de-escalate crime in the neighborhood level with peer intervention, mentoring, and skills and leadership training.

​Today's episode features Christic Henry and Torrence Kilpatrick (TK) and their work making peace in Tallahassee.

Check 'em out! https://www.facebook.com/peacemakerstallahassee

Food, safety, and shelter are the very basics that we need for survival. Without them, growth cannot and does not happen.

When Kyndra Light and Kelly Otte saw how the cycles of generational poverty keep people at the lowest levels of potential for growth, it bothered them. So, they set about creating a solution.

With Kyndra's knowledge of the construction industry and Otte's background in human services, they are each working steadfastly to address home insecurity and affordability. 

Want to help? Check out the Housing Leadership Council of Tallahassee/Leon County website: ​http://tlhhousing.org/

This week Heather is joined by John Trombetta, Executive Director of the Alzheimer's Project. She learns that the Alzheimer's Project is different from the Alzheimer's Association, which focuses on research for treatment while the Alzheimer's Project provides in-home and grass-roots respite and engagement programs for people living with the disease. Whether you are a patient, a caregiver, or a volunteer, there is a way that you can help bridge the gap and provide needed relief for others. Visit them at https://www.alzheimersproject.org/.

It's a simple problem: people need to get places - they need to get to work, they need to get where they need to go, and they don't have any way to do it.

That's why I called Scot Benton, the creator of The Bicycle House. We met back in 2017 when I interviewed him about this crazy warehouse he has full of bikes.

He gives bikes away to people who need them, plain and simple. Learn more here:  http://www.bicyclehouse.org/  

You can also learn more about Bicycle House here: https://www.facebook.com/bicyclehouse.org/
Here: https://www.railstotrails.org/trailblog/2014/january/16/in-tallahassee-the-bicycle-house-that-scot-built/

And here is a story that I wrote: https://www.tallahassee.com/story/life/causes/2018/10/30/bicycle-house-wheels-keep-people-moving/1788692002/

Imagine having a heart condition and being told that you just need to think more positively. Or being diagnosed with diabetes and being shamed into thinking it is just in your head.

​In a time when mental health is on shaky ground for so many, it's a good thing that the people at the National Alliance on Mental Illness, or NAMI, are around.

In this episode, Heather talks with Nancy O'Farrell, the executive director of NAMI-Tallahassee, about the various ways the organization serves people with mental illness, their caregivers, and the community.

​Check them out at www.nami-tallahassee.com