The Chaplain of Oakland

Our Director and super active Dream Team member, Diane Button is having a BIG BIRTHDAY!!  And, we ALL want to help her CELEBRATE! For her 65^th birthday, in lieu of gifts, she is asking friends and family to help support the underserved and marginalized populations who may not have access to the same medical services that most of us are privileged to enjoy! 

 

Thanks to all of you, Dream of a Better World already supports individual clients directly by purchasing medical supplies, food, comfort supplies, final
wishes, and memorial expenses.  Diane's birthday wish is for us to support the non-profit production efforts of a film featuring Chaplain Betty Clark and Dr. Jessica Zitter about the disparities in our healthcare system.

 

The film is called “The Chaplain of Oakland” and the trailer below will give you a glimpse into the work they are doing. These trailblazing women are working tirelessly to change the way poor and underserved people die in America. This tugs at Diane’s heart strings and we all hope you will join her in supporting this worthy cause. 

You can watch the trailer here: The Chaplain of Oakland - trailer

 

                     DONATE - The Chaplain of Oakland

 

 

If you want to know more about Diane’s doula group, you can visit their end-of-life doula website here:  

 

                           End of Life Doula Alliance

 

 

Casa Hogar Nueva Vida!

Hola Amigos!

We are just back from a month with our friends at Casa Hogar Nueva Vida, which means House and Home of New Life."  It has been a truly eventful trip in which we have gotten to know them much better.  We have also developed a few additional relationships with local volunteers there that have great skill and desire to join us in and help bring this orphanage back to life. 

There are 12 happy, healthy children ranging from 5 to 17 years old and they too are willing to repair, clean, paint and pitch in where ever needed.  The woman in charge, Ami, is just 30 years old and she grew up in this orphanage.  She knows what it takes to keep these kids in school and feeling loved and cared for.  But she was in desperate need of guidance and help with the building itself.  

 

 

 

The building needs maintenance and repair nearly everywhere.  When we arrived, 5 of the 6 bathrooms were NOT working! Can you imagine?

The electrical was barely working and the floors, the ceilings, the roof and the kids beds and furniture were in desperate need of attention. 

Thanks to your generous donations, by the time we left, all of the bathrooms had working sinks, toilets and drains.  And, about half of the electrical was back and working.  Here are some photos of the work, the volunteers and the kids!

Thank you ALL!

Holiday 2023 Giving Project

 1. LAKE COUNTY RESOURCE CENTER

“We believe everyone deserves a stable and healthy family life.

We strengthen a family’s ability to become safe and self-sufficient.”

 

Last year, after we wrapped up our holiday fundraisers, we got an urgent call from our dear friend Pat Ench. She is irresistible and her heart is huge. She was in tears as she shared with us that there was a shelter in Lake County that was filled with abused women and children with no one supporting them over the holidays.

So, the week before Christmas, we gathered more resources, purchased clothing and a toy for each of the children, some warm clothes for the parent, and some household supplies for the shelter and we drove with Pat to the shelter and delivered them in time for Christmas. We even had funds to include a pizza party on Christmas Eve, which was the highlight of their season.

 

This year there are all new people at the shelter…  new moms, new kids, new stories. A wonderful local women’s group is supplying gifts for all the kids this year, except for one new family who has been assigned to us. We hope to also get the mom’s a small gift to open and provide them all with that same pizza party on Christmas Eve.

The shelter also has some basic needs this year to keep their environment clean and fresh, so we are adding these needs to our dream wish list:

 

DREAM WISH LIST

• 21 new mattress pads

• 30 Pillows

• Sheets and Blankets for 15 twin beds and 6 full beds

• Holiday gifts for one new family, a mom with 3 children, who just moved in this week

• Holiday gifts for 10 moms in the shelter

• A holiday pizza party for all the families to come together on Christmas Eve

 

2. A Local Family living in a garage – This young family lives in the Clear Lake area and they have fallen on very difficult times. They have two young children, both under 6 years old. Their life was doing well until the father of this sweet family accidentally fell asleep at the wheel late one night on his way home from work and injured his back. He has just begun to walk and function again but he was unable to work for many months. They are hungry, behind on bills, and are barely scraping by, with all 4 of them living in a small garage until they get back on their feet.

 

For the holidays we would like to provide this family with:

 

• Gifts for the Children

• Household needs and supplies for the Mom and Dad

• A holiday meal ordered from a local store

• Maybe a gift card for WalMart for food shopping through January 

 

 

3. CASA HOGAR – This orphanage in Puerto Escondido, Mexico is run by Ami, a 30-year-old woman, who was raised in this very same orphanage as a little girl. She has given her heart to these 12 children, now aged 12-17, who were taken off the streets and given an opportunity to live in a healthy and loving home. Mark will be spending time there in February, and has been deeply touched by the giggles, the laughter, and the “family” lifestyle they have all built together. Everyone works together to make the home run smoothly. Everyone gets an education. Everyone is loved and everyone belongs.

 

Today Casa Hogar is in desperate need of repairs, both inside and out. Just like in Lake County, this holiday season we hope to replace all the bedding, including decades old twin mattresses, at Casa Hogar. We hope to also be sending funds so Ami can purchase a Christmas gift for each of the 12 children and maybe even something for herself. 

 

She sure deserves it!

Please donate any amount you can! It will go a long way!  As always, 100% of every dollar you donate will go directly to provide for these projects!

Thank you so much to all of YOU!

 

We are so grateful you are partnering with us to make the world a little bit better!

 

Wishing you all love, joy, and peace in 2024,

All of us at Dream of a Better World

 

Donation MATCHING Program Because It's Time to Find a CURE!

DID YOU KNOW?

IT'S TIME TO FIND A CURE!

That's why we are JOINING the fight with Maria Shriver and  

the Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement!

For the month of October, Dream of a Better world will DOUBLE your giving! (for the first $5,000)

On November 9^th, Diane will join Maria Shriver and her team for a fundraising event in Cabo San Lucas. They will talk about the current research and statistics on Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, discuss brain health, and talk about self-care and finding meaning in life through the ages.  They will raise funds for the research to continue, so that we can begin to put an end to the debilitating disease, one that impacts those who receive this life-changing diagnosis as well as those who love and care for them.

We need more research.

We need more answers.

We need funds to continue to understand and learn.

 

Please join us and DONATE today!

 

All funds will be matched up to $5,000.00.

Every dollar raised will be donated to the Woman’s Alzheimer’s Movement!

 

Did you know:

• An estimated 6 million Americans today live with Alzheimer’s, a disease that robs memories before taking lives.
• Alzheimer’s begins to develop in the brain 20-30 years before diagnosis.
• 2/3 of those diagnosed are women—and no one knows why.
• 2/3 of Alzheimer’s caregivers are also women, many of who will have to take time off or resign from their jobs.
• A woman in her 60s is twice as likely to develop Alzheimer’s over the course of her lifetime than breast cancer.
• After 60, a woman has a 1 in 5 chance of developing Alzheimer’s.
• By 2060, approximately 13.8 million brains in the U.S. will be living with Alzheimer’s, and millions more family members and friends will suffer alongside those diagnosed.

 

Too few people know these facts until Alzheimer’s strikes. 

The time to know them is now.

Know the Facts:

• Alzheimer’s disease is NOT a natural part of aging.
• Alzheimer’s disease is still 100% fatal. There is no treatment or cure. Of the top 10 causes of death in America, it is the only disease without any effective drug or course of action.
• If Alzheimer’s runs in your family that does not necessarily mean you will get it.
• Conversely, if it does not run in your family, you are still at risk.
• Healthy habits can prevent or slow the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease. This includes diet, exercise and lifestyle changes. Read more about ways to reduce your risk for Alzheimer’s under “Prevention.”

 

 

End-of-Life Doulas Raise Funds to Pay for Maui Funerals

Photo: Redcross.org

As we watched images of Maui engulfed in flames, our hearts broke. It is painful to watch a once verdant landscape transform nearly instantaneously to scorched earth. And now, we turn to the aftermath: grief, loss, and heartbreak. As end-of-life doulas, we know the emotional and financial toll can be too much to bear. As of today, there will be 115 funerals on Maui, with more likely to come as debris is cleared. Our wish is to offer financial support to those who otherwise might not have the funds to provide a meaningful funeral or memorial for their loved ones.

 

APnews.com

As Californians, we know all too well the devastation wrought by wildfires. Not only does the experience require exhaustive efforts to contain, but the tremendous shock and laden grief that permeate such an event are nothing shy of traumatizing.

To our Maui family: we know that your lives are forever changed by the magnitude of this sudden, immeasurable loss: the vast numbers of homes turned to ash, vegetation burned, historic places decimated, human and animal lives lost. The security you felt, the future you envisioned…you are forever changed by this event.

redcross.org

 

While we may not call Maui home, we understand that our collective destinies are intertwined. This beautiful earth we all share and steward belongs to us all. And when devastation looms large in one part of this world, we all feel its effects. Equally, we feel compelled to act, and embrace the inherent invitation to respond with goodwill and compassion. As the adage goes, “we’re all just walking each other home”.

 

npr.org

As end-of-life doulas, we understand that it is often not feasible for families to absorb unanticipated funeral costs alongside the immeasurable magnitude of loss they are holding. Let’s find a way to lighten the load.

We are working with local doulas and a non-profit funeral home in the area to provide free funeral and burial services to those Lahaina families who have lost someone in the fire.

As always, 100% of your DONATION received through our partnership with Dream of a Better World, a 501(c)3 non-profit will go directly to the causes we support in Maui. Administrative and accounting responsibilities are provided pro bono.
 

Know that your love and compassion matters greatly, and we thank you for your contribution.

If you'd like to know more about our doula services, please visit our website at:

www.endoflifedoulaalliance.com



Photo Credits:

https://www.redcross.org/about-us/news-and-events/news/2023/stories-from-the-hawaii-wildfires.html

https://apnews.com/article/hawaii-wildfire-maui-lahaina-f5a7047d407f836f89e90dd7f10faa94

https://www.npr.org/2023/08/12/1193614596/death-toll-on-maui-climbs-to-80-as-questions-over-islands-emergency-response-gro

 

Casa Hogar Nueva Vida - A Terrific Opportunity!

Hola Dream of a Better World friends and supporters!  We have found a wonderful new group of kids who can really use our support!  These amazing kids were taken off the streets and are being cared for by Ami Reyes, an inspiring and compassionate 30-year-old woman who grew up in that very orphanage!

We were in Oaxaca, Mexico this Spring when we heard a story about a local ice cream cart vender who delivered ice cream to a small orphanage once a month as his way of trying to make a difference in his community. 

Well... we HAD to check that out!

The moment we entered their building it felt familiar.  There was the word "OHANA" written on the mail pillar of the entrance and there were bouncing, skipping, happy kids running circles around it.  We asked Ami about the Hawaii connection and it turned out that the orphanage was founded by her parents with the help, early on, by a church in Hawaii that we know very well.  As is often the case over time, there had been changes at the church and they were no longer financially involved.  However, we had heard many encouraging stories about the work of this orphanage and Ami's parents.  Her parents, and now Ami, had dedicated their lives to this orphanage and the many beautiful children that they have loved and raised over the years.

At the moment, Ami is a bit on her own.  Her father, Octavio, has died and her mom, Victoria, is also ill.  So, Ami is caring for her mother and 12 kids now, ages 2 - 17.  There are 5 rooms for girls and 1 large room for boys.  Ami told us that "education is first priority" and she has managed to arrange for tuition scholarships from a local private school.  However, there are many other costly items needed to attend school, and we can certainly make a big difference here!

It was also clear to us that the orphanage was in desperate need of repair inside and out, as well general household items like mattresses, furniture, bedding... pretty much everything. The roof had large holes in it and many interior doors were in need of replacement.

There were opportunities to make a real difference nearly everywhere we looked!  What an opportunity for Dream of a Better World!

We are trying to support this amazing young woman and the 12 kids at Casa Hogar Nueva Vida.

We hope that you will all join us! 

If you'd like to financially support this cause, you can CLICK HERE or use the DONATE BUTTON above!

PS. As always 100% of your donation will go directly to helping this cause.  We are volunteer based and raise what little overhead we have separately.  We are planning to travel back to Mexico in February of 2024 to follow up and see how we can continue to stay connected.      

PPS. Here's a list of school supply items in pesos from Ami:(PRICES ARE IN PESOS)