Inspire Children Foundation News
May 2023 -
"Your foundation so graciously funded Along the Way (AlongthewayPA.org) last February. The mother your gift funded just earned her college degree! Every dollar we received last last year made such a big impact because it allowed us to continue to provide free child care to families while also reinventing our revenue model into something that can grow and scale. We now contract with employers to be able to support more families with safe and reliable child care for shifting working single parents."
With appreciation, Kristina Valdez, President & CEO, Along the Way
September 2022 -
The Inspire Children Foundation made a grant to Silent Victime of Crime, a nonprofit organization that helps children of incarcerated parents learn to deal with life challenges in positve, proactive ways.
February 2022 -
Along the Way (AlongthewayPA.org) received a donation from the Inspire Children Foundation for their efforts to empower the career success of single mothers and foster the wellbeing of their children by providing free childcare and important community resources.
August 2021 -
Inspire Children Foundation made a contribution to support the work of the International Rescue Committee (rescue.org) in Afghanistan providing humanitarian aid to children and families in crisis there, and in Haiti providing care for homeless, traumatized children following that country’s natural disasters.
August 2021 -
We also donated to No Kid Hungry (nokidhungry.org) whose mission is to end childhood hunger in the U.S.
May 2020 -
ICF donated support to Feeding America. whose network is the nation’s largest domestic hunger-relief organization.
May 2020 -
ICF donated support to the Share Food Program, which delivers millions of pounds of food to more than 700,000 neighbors in need in the greater Philadelphia area every month–the largest distribution of any hunger relief organization in our region.
May 2020 -
ICF donated support to HIAS, which rescues people whose lives are in danger for being who they are, protects the most vulnerable refugees, helping them build new lives and reuniting them with their families in safety and freedom.
May 2020 - ICF donated support to Project Harmony which exists to provide effective, immediate and sensitive support to child abuse victims and their non-offending family members.
May 2020 - ICF donated support to Covenant House, which has helped transform and save the lives of more than a million homeless, runaway and trafficked young people.
June 2019 -
A grant was made to Marcy Frances to provide her special instruments, Gourds and Sekeres from Africa, for the young children she serves to bring healing rhythm and music
as part of the HeartBeat program at ArtWell.
December 2018 -
A grant was made to the Sugar Hill Children’s Museum of Art and Storytelling, in association with the Harlem Broadways Housing Community, to inspire the lives of young children who are challenged by poverty, homelessness and immigration.
December 2018 -
The International Rescue Committee was selected as a recipient of a donation by the Inspire Children Foundation for their mission to provide life-saving care for desperate children and families in Yemen where famine, cholera outbreaks and mass starvation threaten millions of lives.
April 2017 -
The Inspire Children Foundation is pleased to support BuildaBridge, which is an arts education and intervention nonprofit organization that engages creative people and the transofrmative power of art-making to bring hope and healing to children and families living in the contexts of crisis and poverty.
September 2016 -
The Inspire Children Foundation is pleased to announce our sponsorship of The
Mindful Experience for Children at five selected
Philadelphia preschools that serve low-income families. This unique program,
tailored for children 3- 6 years of age, teaches kids how to calm down, get along,
focus, be more optimistic and regulate emotions. Beneficial for all kids, mindfulness
practices have also been shown to protect against the damaging effects of childhood
trauma. Toxic stress can damage a child's brain making it hard to focus and learn.
Mindfulness skills help a traumatized child to calm down, feel safe, better cope
and become more stress resilient. Our grant will provide mindfulness sessions
for 140 young children and related classroom books like "Sitting Like a
Frog" and "Peaceful Piggy Meditation."
July 2015 -
Inspire Children Foundation Board President Christine Beardmore has published
The Inspiration Garden: Simple Ways to Grow a Good Life, a how-to guide and workbook
filled with thought provoking questions and purposeful suggestions designed to
help you flourish in any area of life. Book proceeds support the Inspire
Children Foundation. Learn
more.
March 2015 - Beds for Kids was given a grant by the Inspire Children Foundation to provide free cribs and beds for children in need of a place to sleep.
March 2015 - Inspire Children Foundation is pleased to announce our affiliation with Peter Moses and his new “Wellness, Wonder & Wisdom” program. This engaging, empowering and interactive school concert is geared to kindergarten through 3rd grade children. Peter plants the seeds of wellness with this joyful performance through music, humor, call and response and lots of fun. He has generously agreed to donate a portion of the proceeds to the Inspire Children Foundation. Thank you, Peter! For more information about his wonderful musical assembly programs, visit petermoses.com/specialevents.html or contact him at (215) 233-5795.
October 2014 - A gift in support of the creation of
one of the nation's first Urban
Nature Pre-Schools was made by the Inspire
Children Foundation."
June 2014 - The Inspire Children Foundation made a
donation to Camp
Kesem, which provides life-changing summer
camp experiences for children affected by a parent's cancer.
May 2014 - 
Proceeds from a recent "Qigong Healing
Workshop for Women" (see photo on right) were donated to the Inspire Children Foundation. Our
thanks to the host and attendees fror their generous contribution!
August 2013 - Tree House Books was given a donation by the Inspire Children Foundation to support their Words on Wheels Program, which delivers free children’s books during the summer, and their Life with Books after-school literacy program.
May 2013 - The Inspire Children Foundation attended, by special invitation, the National Summit on Adverse Childhood Experiences in Philadelphia hosted by the Institute for Safe Families.
March 2013 - The Inspire Children Foundation granted
wishes for four foster children through the One Simple Wish nonprofit program.
Visit One Simple Wish to learn how you too can make small miracles happen for
foster children and vulnerable families.
December 2012 - The Inspire Children Foundation
were guests at the Nurse-Family Partnership Holiday Luncheon.
December 2012 - The Red Cross House was the recipient
of a contribution by the Inspire Children Foundation for their Children's Holiday
Party. Our donation provided craft-making materials for kids in attendance
and wrapping materials for the gifts given to families recovering from
disaster this year.
November 2012 - Our “Happy Thanksgiving” Inspire Children Foundation Newsletter was sent out to donors, updating and thanking them for their support this year.
November 2012 - A donation was made by the Inspire
Children Foundation to the Giving
Tree Families,
an organization that inspires charitable giving in children. Our contribution
supplied materials for kids to create “Peace & Smiles Boxes”, which
were artfully decorated by young volunteers as gifts for pediatric
patients and other children in need of a smile.
September 2012
-
The Philadelphia
Red Cross House, which provides recovery services and housing for survivors
of disaster, was given a grant from the Inspire Children Foundation to implement
therapeutic activities that alleviate traumatic stress in children. We also delivered
play therapy toys, “Peace & Smiles Boxes” from the Giving Tree Families
and informational
guidelines for parents to help their children overcome trauma.
August 2012
-
Inspire Children Foundation issued a grant to The Nurse-Family Partnership, a program that transforms the lives of low-income first-time mothers and their children by pairing each family with a nurse “partner.”
March 2012
-
Inspire Children Foundation welcomed back the Life is Good Playmaker team and
recent Philadelphia Playmaker graduates for a reunion and refresher session.
Teachers who received scholarships from ICF expressed appreciation and enthusiasm
for the Playmaker skills that they now joyfully and effectively use with their
students.
August 2011
-
We succeeded in our mission to bring the Life
is Good Playmaker training/retreat to Philadelphia for the first time. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive from the 50 child care professionals who were there. Full scholarships were provided for selected teachers to attend this innovative nonprofit program where they learned how to help heal and strengthen young children faced with the life-threatening challenges and trauma.
Above: ICF Board President Christine Beardmore welcomes the Playmaker trainers on behalf of ICF and Philadelphia
July 2011
-
As a result of catastrophic famine in Somalia, malnutrition threatens the lives
of 3 million children. Due to the urgent need for assistance, Inspire Children Foundation made a financial
grant to Action against Hunger, one of a few aid organizations allowed to operate
in the area. Our contribution was gratefully matched by a generous donor, thus
doubling the amount of our gift to Action against Hunger.
May 2011
-
Inspire Children Foundation hosted a reception for Steve Gross, founder of Life
is Good Kids Foundation, and Sharon Easterling, Executive Director of the Delaware
Valley Association for the Education of Young Children (DVAEYC), in appreciation
for their dedication to the wellbeing of young children. Steve was in Philadelphia
to present the keynote address at the annual DVAEYC Conference. There, he inspired
an audience of 2500 childcare professionals to find their joy so they could spread
the joy to children in need. Hundreds of teachers at the convention signed up
for the opportunity to attend the first Philadelphia Life is Good Playmaker training
to be held August 5 & 6,
2011. Selected teachers will receive scholarships to the Playmaker training where
they will learn how to use the power of joyful play to help kids overcome the
adverse effects of trauma. For more information visit LifeisGood/playmakers.
Inspire Children Foundation is a proud sponsor of the Philadelphia Playmaker
training. Your donation will
help us provide teacher scholarships to this important Playmaker training.
November
2010 -
Inspire Children Foundation has joined Crowdrise.com, an innovative new web platform
for charitable giving. Visitors to the site can "shop" for charities, learn about
interesting projects and fundraisers, vote, donate, volunteer and even win prizes.
Check out the Crowdrise Inspire
Children Foundation page and find out more about our online Helping Kids Holiday Fundraiser.
July
2010 -
Inspire Children Foundation has been chosen as the recipient of the Nickels
for Non-Profits program at the Whole
Foods Market in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania. During the months
of August, September and October of 2010, Whole Foods Market will donate
a nickel for every reusable bag shoppers bring in. At check out, the
cashier will provide a 'wooden' nickel to shoppers to deposit in the
container of their chosen charity.
January 2010 - Inspire Children Foundation has joined
Facebook. Become
a fan and join us in helping improve the circumstances
of children affected by poverty, trauma and loss.
December
2009 - Inspire Children Foundation has been chosen as the recipient
of the Nickels
for Non-Profits program at the Whole
Foods Market in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania. During the months of April,
May and June of 2010, Whole Foods Market will donate a nickel for every
reusable bag shoppers bring in. At check out, the cashier will provide
a 'wooden' nickel to shoppers to deposit in the container of their chosen
charity.
Inspire Children Foundation Newsletter
Inspire Children Foundation will be periodically issuing newsletters to inform our constituents about our progress and other innovations to help disadvantaged, at risk children overcome poverty, trauma and loss. Sign up to receive our newsletter.
Inspire Children Foundation in the News
December 17, 2008, Boomer-Living.com, Christine Beardmore, Making a Difference for Children in Need (view .pdf file of article - 2.76MB)
Did You Know?
Every year, 10 million children under age 5 die from preventable and treatable diseases. Learn more.