Charity of the Month: Lava Mae

Lava Mae: 

Delivering Dignity and Opportunity, One Mobile Shower at a Time

We love San Francisco. Serving as both our home and inspiration, we are not unaware of the unique challenges inherent in our beautiful city by the bay. With one of the highest costs of living in the United States, there are currently over 8,000 homeless people living in the city of San Francisco.

Enter Lava Mae, the bold and brilliant response project founded by Doniece Sandoval.  After an inspiring exchange with a young woman living on the street who repeatedly expressed how she ‘could never get clean’, Sandoval decided to do something about it. With a little bit of research she learned that there were only sixteen existing shower stalls available to the city’s 7,000+ homeless population. So Sandoval decided to take the mobile craze populated by food trucks and apply it towards a new, innovative and kind of wild idea. If we can put a restaurant on wheels, why not do the same with a shower?

Within weeks, Sandoval saw an article about the SFMTA retiring the old diesel city buses. The rest was grueling and groundbreaking history: San Francisco would have their first ever mobile, private and handicap-accessible shower units. Lava Mae’s two operating buses (with two more on the way) have garnered national attention. Several cities are eager to adopt this innovative model into their respective communities, which Sandoval openly encourages.

“Compassion is honoring another’s humanity.”

Lava Mae is experimenting with radical hospitality. They treat their guests (a term used particularly for its graciousness) with kindness and compassion. After every private shower each guest is given a take-away hygiene kit to extend the hospitable experience. Though they don’t believe their services to be a ‘cure-all’ for ending the homeless and housing epidemic in San Francisco, they are providing evidence that with hygiene comes dignity, and with dignity, opportunity. Everyone has the right to be clean, and while a shower doesn’t translate into ending homeless, it can provide invaluable opportunities to the communities who need them most.

For Goodness Sake is proud to highlight Lava Mae this December. Give the gift that gives back with purchases made through our Lava Mae designated collection.

To learn more Lava Mae, visit their site here.

Live Big, Love Hard, Give Back.

Charity of the Month: Breast Cancer Research Foundation

Charity of the Month: Breast Cancer Research Foundation

Breast cancer affects many of us. According to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer every 2 minutes in the United States and in this month’s issue of Time Magazine, Siobhan O’Connor reports that “this year more than 40,000 women in the U.S. will die of breast cancer.”

In light of this staggering statistic, and this disease resonates so deeply in every community, we are proud to partner with the Breast Cancer Research Foundation for the month of October to help raise awareness and funds towards finding the cure.

The Breast Cancer Research Foundation is the highest-rated breast cancer organization in the United States, and they are committed to bringing an end to cancer by advancing the world’s most promising research.  They have funded over 8.5 million hours of research to date since their inception in 1993.

Whether it’s you, a family member, a friend, or a colleague that has been affected by this horrible disease, we can make a difference together to find the cure.

Join For Goodness Sake during October, National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and shop with purpose with our select styles, which give 25% of the proceeds from each purchase to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

To learn more, visit BCRFcure.org, and to shop with purpose, visit forgoodsake.org.

Charity of the Month: Zen Hospice Project

Charity of the Month: Zen Hospice

For Goodness Sake is constantly striving to highlight organizations and companies that are doing good in our community.  We are excited to kick off the fall with our first featured Charity of the Month— Zen Hospice Project.

Since 1987, Zen Hospice Project has developed groundbreaking programs and services to bring mindfulness and compassionate care to the dying, their caregivers, and the bereaved. Through a range of services that include direct care at their Guest House, educational programs and inspirational support, they have served more than 31,000 people. Their primary geographic focus is the Bay Area but their impact and models have national and international relevance:

 

“Our mission is to help change the experience of dying. We create a space for living that offers the opportunity for individuals, their loved ones and caregivers to find comfort, connection and healing in this shared human experience. Through our pioneering model of care, we inspire each other to live fully.”  

Photo credit: zenhospice.org

For Goodness Sake is proud to support such an innovative organization that brings compassion, love, and support to those in need in our community.  Through partnerships with TED Talks and IDEO, Zen Hospice is on the frontier of changing the way people think and talk about terminal illness.

In honor of their upcoming event, Story + Spirit on October 7^th at the Terra Gallery in San Francisco, For Goodness Sake is donating 25% of every purchase of our travel wraps to Zen Hospice Project for the month of September.  These stunning wraps are hand made in Ecuador out of a soft, comfortable fabric that’s machine washable and available in gorgeous, subtle colors. A great travel accessory for wherever your spirit takes you.

To learn more, please visit zenhospice.org.

About The Maker: Tina Frey

About the Maker – Tina Frey

For Goodness Sake is excited to introduce some amazing products from Tina Frey.  Tina’s amazing resin table and barware designs stem from the organic nature of the sea as she hand molds each design in clay.  The distinct texture of the material along with the individual and hand sanded finish gives each piece a unique and distinct character. 

Tina Frey is also a native Bay Area resident, with her studio in the Dogpatch neighborhood of San Francisco.  We’re happy to include her in the For Goodness Sake family, and bring another unique artisan craft to our community of living big, loving hard, and giving back.  We are so excited to work with such a talented artist.

Shop these styles at forgoodsake.org.

Cheers,

For Goodness Sake

GOOD To Know: Our Charity Partner: Giants Community Fund

We at For Goodness Sake are proud to have the Giants Community Fund as a charity partner.  100% of the proceeds from each purchase of Giants-related products on the site go to the Giants Community Fund, which does amazing work with underserved youths on the West Coast.  Below are some impressive stats from their 2013 Communty Impact Report. 

Check out what your purchases are contributing to in our community below!

 (c) Giants Community Fund

For over twenty years, the Giants Community Fund has collaborated with the San Francisco Giants by using baseball as a forum to encourage underserved youth and their families to live healthy and productive lives.  Through its flagship program, Junior Giants, the Fund provides free baseball activities and life skills training to over 22,000 boys and girls, ages 5-18. The Fund partners with local youth centers (Boys and Girls Club, YMCA, PAL, etc.) to deliver the program and serve as a safe space for kids in more than 90 communities in three different states (California, Nevada & Oregon).

Since 2011, the Fund has conducted an annual independent, university-based study to understand the impact of the program on the young people it serves. The study has consistently found that Junior Giants is making a direct and positive impact in the kids’ lives.  With an emphasis on character development, health, education and bullying prevention, Junior Giants is considered a high-quality, high-impact youth development program.  These life lessons, learned in the context of baseball, are then transferred to school, home and among friends and family, and, ultimately, set participants up for future success.

Junior Giants participants are succeeding in all of the following categories:
CONFIDENCE
EATING MORE FRUITS AND VEGETABLES
ENCOURAGING OTHERS
ENTHUSIASM FOR BASEBALL
DRINKING WATER
INTEGRITY
LEADERSHIP
POSITIVE SOCIAL INTERACTIONS
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY
READING
RESPECT FOR OTHERS
TEAMWORK

Thanks to the support of fans, businesses and the community, the Junior Giants program grows and improves each year.  The demographics of the Junior Giants participants are as follows:
22,938 PARTICIPANTS
90 LEAGUES
215 CITIES
80% OF PARTICIPANTS COME FROM LOW TO MODERATE INCOME HOUSEHOLDS
7,415 GIRLS
2,893 COACHES
1,580 TEAM PARENTS

About The Maker: Donald Robertson x Kara Ross Handbags

For Goodness Sake is proud to carry a selection of Donald Robertson and Kara Ross limited edition handbags.  These unique bags are made with luxurious materials in Kara Ross’ style and hand painted by artist Donald Robertson. 

Robertson is best known for his colorful fashion sketches, transcending the line between fashion and art. Having developed his career as an artist working with cosmetic and fashion designers, including creative development for Estee Lauder companies, his playful constructions demonstrate a deep understanding of the ever-evolving fashion world.  His unique and internationally renowned style has made him a regular at New York fashion shows and galleries alike. 

Kara Ross is an award-winning designer known for using unique materials and exotic skins to create her beautifully crafted handbags, all of which are made locally in New York City. Her works also extend to exquisite jewelry pieces, several of which can be seen displayed in national museums across the country, as well as on First Lady Michelle Obama.

For Goodness Sake loves the fun and playful nature of Donald’s illustrations, and we are thrilled to be offering such unique and fun pieces that give back with each purchase to our charity partners.

Each bag is hand painted, numbered and signed by Donald Robertson.  Get your wearable art today at forgoodsake.org!

GOOD To Know: A BBC episode and How America Gives

In our weekly GOOD To Know blog series, we are highlighting two very unique sources.  First, from BBC, an episode focusing around the balance of power in grassroots and political organizations.  Next, see “How America Gives”, with this interactive map showing the ratio of giving to wealth across America. 

Hope you enjoy!  Until next week

Xo

For Goodness Sake

In a weekly BBC radio forum on the “Global Exchange of Ideas,” the Global Fund for Women's CEO, Musimbi Kanyoro, spoke about the delicate balance of power within grassroots and political organizations. The Global Fund for Women’s vision, that every woman and girl should be powerful, strong and safe with no exception in the world, demonstrates the importance of power and powerlessness in these growing communities. "When women are free from violence they are able to care for their communities, they are able to go into public and work and do the right thing. We must provide the narrative of women’s lives. We must provide the narrative of the power of information. The power of the message. Nations and states are not listening. States and countries have a lot to learn from women’s groups and organizations about better collaborations and power sharing through listening and not being impulsive and not using one’s bigness or ability of privilege to parade one’s power...” To listen to more of the episode, click here.

How does your community rank amongst the national giving standard? The Chronicle of Philanthropy’s recent study, "How America Gives” marked a surprisingly inverse correlation between affluence and charitable giving. Put simply, resident areas in the U.S. with high standards of living, low poverty and low crime rates gave demonstrably less to charity than the less affluent communities. Why are those with the most income and opportunity the least likely to give back?

The study’s recent findings have challenged the assumption that those with more will give more. Of course, there are possible exceptions. People in areas that give generously could be steering their donations outside of the country to places that are poorer, or to arts or medical-research causes that don’t affect the opportunity score. And the total amount that the wealthy donate is still often larger than the total amount given by those who live in poorer regions.

Still, Yvonne Booker, the executive director of the Assistance Center of Collin County, Texas (one of the lowest ranking giving regions in the U.S.) thinks people who live in wealthy communities may be missing opportunities to make significant improvements in their neighbors’ lives.

How can we improve our Opportunity and Giving Index?

Article from The Chronicle of Philanthropy.

About The Maker: Found My Animal

About the Maker – Found My Animal

Found My Animal was one of the first brands For Goodness Sake decided to carry when we launched.  They encompass our passion for high-quality design and causes.  The leashes from Found My Animal aim to raise awareness around pet adoption through the stories they tell.  Each leash has a brass tag with a number on it, signifying how many animals they have helped through their sales. 

For Goodness Sake partnered with Found my Animal to create unique tags with the For Goodness Sake logo to promote animal rescue and products that give back.  Made with Marine-grade materials, these leashes are made to last, and to handle even the most rambunctious of furry friends.

Our three styles—grey ombre, pink ombre, and bright orange correspond to each of our charity organizations - Glide, the San Francisco General Hospital, and the Giants Community Fund- to which 25% of each leash purchase is donated. 

Shop with purpose at forgoodsake.org.