The four tenets of the South Shore Women’s Business network are contacts, coaching, collaboration and COMMUNITY. At in person events, our members generously donate raffle items as well as purchase raffle tickets to benefit our charitable contributions. In addition, we’ve added an option to make a charitable contribution during the registration process for both in-person and virtual events.
During the 4th Quarter 2022, the SSWBN is proud to partner with Bags of Hope New England. When children are removed
from their biological homes, it is often in a stressful situation. The social worker grabs a trash bag and fills it with the child’s most beloved items and some clothes. Many times this trash bag travels from home to home with a child. Bags of Hope is an annual orphan care project which provides duffle bags to children in foster care, embroidered with their name and filled with age-appropriate comfort items (i.e. Pillow Pets, journals, fleece blankets, etc…) It is the goal of Bags of Hope to replace these trash bags with duffle bags.
For four decades, Father Bill’s & MainSpring (FBMS), a registered 501(c)3 charitable organization, has been a leading innovator of ending homelessness and the SSWBN is excited to be supporting them as our 3rd quarter 2022 charity. FBMS’ mission is to end and prevent homelessness in Southern Massachusetts with programs that provide emergency and permanent housing and help people obtain skills, jobs, housing, and services. They help people who are struggling with homelessness, or are at risk of homelessness, achieve self-sufficiency. The philosophy is Housing First. Getting someone into a safe, secure place is often the key to success in other areas of life. We have a 99% success rate with those in supportive housing, a situation in which individuals or families have a case manager in their first year of FBMS sponsored housing. The Development team at Father Bill’s & MainSpring engages with the general public and corporate sponsors to help the agency meet its fundraising needs, recruit and retain volunteers, and effectively communicate the agency’s goals, challenges, and its many success stories.
For 2nd quarter 2022, we were excited to support WeDoCare.org in their critical mission to bring 
grief and loss support to local widows, widowers and their children. As an outgrowth of the founder, Julie Brennan’s, own loss, the mission continued to bring support to these often unseen and unsupported members of the community. Through fundraisers like the Annual Gala, Father’s Day Remembrance Walk, Golf Tournament and Online Auction, WeDoCare.org is able to support their grief and support counseling programs, activities and programming for children, expand services to the newly widowed, sending more care packages to those who need them, and spreading the hope and community that means so much to these families.
We are excited to be supporting DogsforBetterLives.org for first quarter 2022. Dogs for Better Lives’ mission is to professionally train dogs to help people and enhance lives while maintaining a lifelong commitment to all dogs rescued or bred and the people served. Dogs for Better Lives is a national 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, founded in 1977 by the late Roy G. Kabat. A Deaf woman in Minnesota had owned a dog that trained itself to let her know when sounds were occurring in her home. As she lost more of her hearing, her dog alerted her to more and more sounds. After her beloved dog died, the woman realized how much she had come to depend on the dog and began a search for someone to train a new dog for her. The American Humane Association initiated experimental work trying to train dogs to help people who were Deaf, and they contacted Roy for advice. After spending two weeks in Denver, Roy returned to Oregon and began Dogs for the Deaf.
In 2017, Dogs for the Deaf was renamed Dogs for Better Lives and celebrated the organization’s 40th anniversary, recognizing the more than 1,300 dog placements that have occurred during that span of operation. In May 2021, DBL acquired two properties in Falmouth, Massachusetts, which will eventually become the organization’s Northeast Campus, to include Assistance Dog training, puppy raiser program, and doggie daycare services.
During 4th Quarter of 2021, the SSWBN is teamed up with Wellspring Multiservice Center. In November, Wellspring prioritizes a Thanksgiving meal program. Wellspring teams up with Paul Wahlberg and a Wahlberg family organization called Alma Cares, INC. Alma Cares concentrates on food insecurity and feeding the community. Paul donates 125 meal kits to Wellspring, who then distributes them accordingly to families in need. Wellspring generally helps more than 125 families during thanksgiving thanks to additional food donations. These Thanksgiving meals are distributed on “Turkey Tuesday” which is the Tuesday before Thanksgiving.
Food insecurity continues to be a problem for many in Hull and with high demand, Aunt Dot’s kitchen appreciates donations of non-perishable food items and toiletries. A list of the most needed products is on the website https://wellspringmultiservice.org/ . After Thanksgiving, Wellspring focuses on the holiday gift program. Clients can register children under 18 to receive gifts. In mid-December, winter coats, hats, and gloves and mittens are allocated to families for each child. The parents then get a shopping ticket, that they take to the fire station to pick out additional Christmas gifts and toys. Wellspring also creates and distributes Christmas meal boxes to those clients who need them. Go to Wellspring Multiservice Center’s website to learn more.
For 3rd quarter 2021, SSWBN was proud to support DOVE – Domestic Violence Ended. You can learn more about supporting this wonderful organization on their website. 
Over the years, the Network has supported dozens of important causes and charities on the South Shore creating a lasting impact in our members’ communities. We welcome our members’ recommendations for charities to support. Please contact info@sswbn.org with your suggestion – we thank you for the opportunity to continue to positively impact the community.
