• Some Things We're Excited About. (Update Part 1)

  Jun. 14, 2007 at 12:02pm

  Hi Guys.
  
  This update is long overdue and for that, I apologize. We'll call this Part 1, since there's a lot more to follow. You ready? Okay, here we go...
  
  Last month, thanks to your support, TWLOHA donated $28,500 to the treatment and recovery of young people struggling with depression, drug addiction, self-injury and suicide. The money was split between several organizations, all of which we're committed to supporting each month for the rest of 2007. 

  Those organizations are:
  
  NATIONAL HOPELINE NETWORK (1-800-SUICIDE) -
  [url=http://www.hopeline.com/]WWW.HOPELINE.COM[/url]
  The National Hopeline is a non-profit organization that fights suicide at the front lines.
  Their toll-free call line is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and links the caller to the nearest crisis hotline in their area. To date, they have received over 2 million calls from individuals struggling with thoughts of suicide.
  
  TEEN CHALLENGE -
  [url=http://www.teenchallengeusa.com/]WWW.TEENCHALLENGEUSA.COM[/url]
  Teen challenge is a rehab program with locations in 70 different countries.
  "Teen Challenge endeavors to help people become mentally sound, emotionally balanced, socially adjusted, physically well, and spiritually alive."
  Many Teen Challenge centers offer treatment for free, and that is made possible through donations.
  
  MERCY MINISTRIES -
  [url=http://www.mercyministries.org/]WWW.MERCYMINISTRIES.ORG[/url]
  Mercy is a non-profit organization for young women who face life-controlling issues. They provide residential programs free of charge designed to address the whole person: spiritual, physical and emotional. Mercy homes are located in the USA, Australia, and the UK. Construction is underway for Mercy's first home in Canada.
  
  S.A.F.E. (Self-Abuse Finally Ends) -
  [url=http://www.selfinjury.com/]WWW.SELFINJURY.COM[/url] / 1-800-DONT-CUT
  "S.A.F.E. Alternatives is a nationally recognized treatment approach, professional network and educational resource base, which is committed to helping you and others achieve an end to self-injurious behavior."
  
  KIDS HELP LINE (Australia) -
  [url=http://www.kidshelp.com.au]WWW.KIDSHELP.COM.AU[/url] / 1-800-55-1800
  Offers free, confidential, anonymous 24-hour phone and online counseling for young people (5-25) in Australia.
  
  INDIA:
  Back in January, three of us travelled to Kolkata, India, as part of a group there to experience the work being done in the fight against human slavery. We partnered with two different organizations, and as part of our commitment to the children we met and the work we experienced, 5% of the money we give away will go to those organizations:
  Apne Aap - [url=http://WWW.APNEAAP.ORG/]WWW.APNEAAP.ORG[/url]
  Sanlaap - [url=http://www.sanlaapindia.org/]WWW.SANLAAPINDIA.ORG[/url/
  
  Going forward, we will be donating 25% of all TWLOHA proceeds to treatment and recovery, through these organizations. We're also working to add a "LIVE HELP" element to the new website, which is something that we're hugely excited about. (Is "hugely" a word?) And we are working to partner with a couple local groups to offer affordable and free counseling in central Florida. And finally, a small % will be reserved for individual (treatment and recovery-related) needs/situations that we encounter.
  
  I LIKE AIRPORTS...
  Beyond the finances, we want to learn and share more about the great work that each of these organizations is doing. We're going to be doing a monthly spotlight, for which I'll be visiting one of these org's (every month). And we will capture these visits through writing, video and photos, and our hope is that we will all learn a ton in the process, about the people and places where needs are being met, and the way that lives are changing for the best.
  
  OKAY, WARPED TOUR!:
  We are thrilled to announce that TWLOHA will have a booth – okay, a tent - at every single stop on this summer's Warped Tour. It is difficult to communicate how excited we are about this. I am more and more convinced that hope is a wonderfully dangerous thing, and if that's true, then I believe that hope belongs among people in need of hope.
  
  Warped Tour is a unique opportunity for us to meet people, thousands of people, where they are. It is an opportunity for us to talk about difficult issues, to introduce facts and hope and help. Warped is also an opportunity for us to continue to embrace the community of music-makers and music-lovers. We think music is pretty great.
  
  WE'RE GOING WITH BAYSIDE:
  The guys from Bayside, who we met on the Anberlin tour, have invited us to rent two bunks on their bus for the entire tour. A bit about Bayside: They are truly incredible guys making undeniable music. Theirs is a powerful story, one of loss and pain and recovery. We are honored that they would want us on their bus, and even more, we are honored to call them our friends.
  
  WANT TO HELP?:
  We will need two volunteers in every city. If you're interested, please sign up for the [url=http://www.twloha.com/street_team.php]TWLOHA STREET TEAM[/url]. (If you've already done this, or already emailed about it, you don't have to do anything else.)
  
  Beyond volunteering, Warped Tour will cost us approx $15,000, so if you would like to donate to help us cover those costs, that would be completely awesome.
  [url=https://secure.ultracart.com/donation/login/previousDonorLoad.do?merchantId=TWLOH]DONATE HERE[/url].
  
  WARPED TOUR DATES:
  06/29    Pomona, CA    
  06/30    Ventura, CA    
  07/01    Mountain View, CA    
  07/03    Vancouver, BC
  07/05    Calgary, AB    
  07/07    Salt Lake City, UT    
  07/08    Denver, CO    
  07/11    Phoenix, AZ    
  07/12    Las Cruces, NM    
  07/13    San Antonio, TX    
  07/14    Dallas, TX    
  07/15    Houston, TX    
  07/18    Atlanta, GA    
  07/19    Jacksonville, FL    
  07/20    St. Petersburg, FL    
  07/21    Miami, FL    
  07/22    Orlando, FL    
  07/23    Charlotte, NC    
  07/24    Virginia Beach, VA
  07/25    Washington, DC    
  07/26    Scranton, PA    
  07/27    Detroit, MI    
  07/28    Chicago, IL    
  07/29    Minneapolis, MN    
  07/31    Milwaukee, WI    
  08/01    Cincinnati, OH    
  08/02    Cleveland, OH    
  08/03    Philadelphia, PA    
  08/04    New York, NY    
  08/05    Englishtown, NJ
  08/07    Indianapolis, IN    
  08/08    Pittsburgh, PA    
  08/09    Boston, MA    
  08/10    Buffalo, NY    
  08/11    Barrie, ON    
  08/12    Montreal, QC    
  08/14    St. Louis, MO    
  08/15    Kansas City, KS    
  08/17    Boise, ID    
  08/18    Seattle, WA    
  08/19    Portland, OR    
  08/22    Fresno, CA    
  08/23    Sacramento, CA    
  08/24    San Diego, CA    
  08/25    Los Angeles, CA    
  
  You know who's going to be at every stop along the way?
  Michael Schneider. He rules and you should know him soon.
  
  CORNERSTONE IL:
  We'll be there, and it looks like I'm going to get to introduce a bunch of bands, and we're working on some kind of speaking/Q&A thing on the 29th @ The Talking Stage, which is something new and should be fun.
  
  SURVEY SAYS:
  Thanks a million to all of you who have answered the survey. We've seen an amazing response today and we're already learning a lot. If you don't know what I'm talking about, we've created a survey - 34 questions - basically who you are, where you are, what's on your heart, what you struggle with, what you're excited about, things like that. It's 100% anonymous and we're doing it with the new website in mind, and beyond that, because we just want to know what we can do better.
  [url=http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=S51qvDEUoGLsI_2fW3qmR6Vg_3d_3d]Click here to answer 34 questions[/url]. You rule!
  
  Okay, my buddy Rickey and I are off to see the sunset, and to eat some dinner. Part 2 coming soon. Thanks for what you started.
  
  Much love to you.
  jamie

  Posted in General by Chris Youngblood

Comments (0)

Add your comment below