That's right - Brady's Smile has officially joined Twitter!  If you are on Twitter and want to get an inside look at a charity on the rise, please click on the link below and then the 'Follow' button!

http://twitter.com/BradysSmile

As I sat here this morning thinking about what to write on my next blog entry, I kept coming back to a quick story that Annie told me the other day.  It's only one of many examples where Annie and I experience the kindness of strangers in the strangest of places.

The story begins last week when Annie was making one of many trips to the Christmas Tree Shops to pick up items for our comfort bags program.  For those of you who don't know about Christmas Tree Shops, it's a great place to get quality items at a reasonable price - something that is very important to us here at Brady's Smile.  Like many other trips, Annie filled the cart with Playdoh for the children in the ICU and their families and headed to the cash register. 

Upon arriving at the cash register, a very nice woman standing in line with her asked Annie if she worked for a daycare facility due to the cart overflowing with Playdoh.  Annie explained that she didn't but was buying the goodies for our Comfort Bags that get distributed to children in need.  What happened next?  This wonderful lady in line reached into her purse, took out a $10 bill, and handed it to the cashier, asking him to apply it to Annie's bill.  She explained to Annie that it "wasn't much" but she wanted to help out.

But here's the thing - it was much.  It was fantastic.  Her $10 bill will ultimately pay for a Comfort Bag for a child in the ICU and their family.  That $10 will provide a child with toys and that child's parents with distractions such as crossword puzzle books and a pad and pen to write down doctor's notes.  It will provide them with snacks to eat, chapstick for their dry lips, and an appreciation knowing that there are amazing people (like this mystery woman in line) out there who want to help make their life easier in the ICU.

I love hearing stories like these (and like I said above, there are many of them).  We are continually blown away about the kindness of strangers and see stories like these as proof that the story of Brady's Smile is a powerful one and one that people immediately gravitate towards.  And that is why I encourage people to spread the word.  We are constantly asked "What Can I Do?" and the easy answer is tell our story - talk about what we are doing - talk about who we are helping to anyone who will listen.  Call your local papers.  Call Oprah!  Blog about us.  Invite your friends to our Facebook page.  Invite your friends to our LinkedIn page.  Have a blanket party where you can help one our programs while exposing us to a whole new group of people.  Word of mouth is incredibly powerful and it's a simple way you can help without having to reach into your pockets.  Exposure is the key to our long term success and we thank all of you who continue to get the word out about our little charity with big ambitions.

In closing, we are in the process of putting together our next email newsletter but I figured I would give you the 2 second update right now.  We've been busy and see a busy summer ahead.  Annie recently launched 2 programs at Inova Hospital in Fairfax, VA and we have a meeting here in CT at another new hospital on Monday to understand their needs and see how we can help.  We've set a date for 'Color the Night 2009' (here's a hint - think costumes) and are in the process of planning a few smaller fundraisers between now in then in PA, CT and Long Island.  Stay tuned for more details and enjoy the nice weather this weekend!

Some random thoughts as I sit here tonight...

So we started our morning out by packing the car full of CD players, CDs and blankets for INOVA hospital in Fairfax, VA.  Afterall, this week marks the beginning of our 4th hospital partnership and expansion of our MICU and Brady Blankets programs.  But before packing, we unpacked each CD player, plugged it in, tested out the iPod capability, attached our Brady's Smile information card and then repacked it again.  Ahhh, yes, the "sexy" side to our little business - lots of behind the scenes work to make sure everything works correctly and that we pass along our story to everyone who is impacted by one of our programs.  We couldn't be more excited about this new partnership and ability to touch even more lives in the ICU and look forward to continuing to expand in the near future.

Speaking of expansion, we are in the process of doing a LOT of research about other hospitals to partner with.  We've identified at least 3 potential partners in CT, 2 in New Jersey and another 3 in Long Island.  We now need to go through the process of understanding their needs and seeing how we could help their children in the ICU and their families.  Every hospital is different and needs different things and we continue to have an open mind and explore new possibilities for new programs at each of these hospitals.

In terms of fundraisers, it looks like the 2nd edition of our "Color The Night" fundraiser will be held again in October.  The only difference between last year and this year is that it is going to take place on Halloween (October 31, 2009) and be bigger, better and raise even more money while having more fun.  We've already gathered some great prizes and know people will not be disappointed with the night we have planned.  We had originally planned to have 3 big fundraisers this year (Color the Night, Symphony of Smiles & one other) but have since rethought the idea and are going to replace our 1 remaining large fundraiser with several smaller fundraisers.  We are exploring different possibilities for this spring, summer and fall but are already planning on having a spaghetti dinner fundraiser in Clearfield this summer (date to be announced shortly) and are hoping to talk to a few minor league baseball teams in areas near our partner hospitals to have some smaller fundraisers aimed at getting out Brady's Smile supporters together for a great cause and a great baseball game.  Also, stay tuned for our garage sale fundraiser initiative we are planning this summer - we have a great idea on how you can raise money for your favorite charity without costing you a dime. 

And that's just the beginning - we have so much planned here at Brady's Smile and just wish we had more time to execute these ideas.  We continue to grow each and every day and can't thank our supporters enough.  Your generosity cannot be understated and we hope you are as excited about the future of Brady's Smile as we are.  Stay tuned for more details about new hospital partnerships, new programs and upcoming fundraisers.

I'll end this post with a picture - we received our first ever "oversized check" this week and couldn't be happier.  How cool is this?  I don't know - I know it's random but I love this picture.  Anyhow,  take care and good night.