BLOGSKI

Are you spring cleaning?  Is there a growing pile of items you don’t need anymore?  Consider donating them to the PHCA Yard Sale.  The twice-yearly yard sale helps fund the Polish Hill Arts Festival.  The next yard sale will be on Saturday, June 1.  We’re looking for books, toys, games, kitchen and household items, tools, antiques and interesting old stuff, jewelry, small appliances (if they work), small furniture items, lamps, and more.

We are not able to accept  clothing and shoes, Christmas or holiday decorations, upholstered furniture, tv’s, broken or very dirty items.  Call us at 412.681.1950 if there’s stuff you aren’t sure about.

Donations will be accepted at the PHCA office anytime after Tuesday, May 28.

On Friday February 15 from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., the Central Blood Bank will have a “Give from the Heart” blood drive at the Giant Eagle Market District on Centre Avenue.  As a thank-you, all participants will receive a $10 Giant Eagle gift card.

To make your donor experience faster and more convenient, visit www.centralbloodbank.org and search with sponsor code K0170128, or call Megan Gray at 412-681-1500.

And please consider becoming a regular blood donor.  When you sign up, you’ll receive a blood donor card and a reminder every  8 weeks when it’s time to donate again.  Regular donors can sign up for the BLRewards program to earn points with every successful donation that can be redeemed for things like gift cards or coupons. Points can also be donated to support charities with which we share a common goal: saving lives.

Today, October 3, donations made to the PHCA through Pittsburgh Gives will be increased with a percentage of matching funds.  Here’s  a link to our organization page for this event.

The rules for donors are simple:

– Only credit card donations received through www.pittsburghgives.org during the 24 hours of October 3, 2012 will be matched for this event.  No donations via check, cash or stock will be accepted.
– Only MasterCard and Visa donations will be accepted and matched for this event.  Discover and AMEX donations will not be accepted or matched.
– Each gift is 100% tax deductible.  The credit card charge will display as a donation to ”The Pittsburgh Foundation” on the donor’s credit card statement.
– The minimum gift per organization is $25.  The maximum gift that an individual can give per organization that will be matched is $10,000.

Your gift to the PHCA will help us to continue to work towards making Polish Hill a better place, and to realizing the community plan goals, which were determined by feedback from residents.  There is so much to accomplish, and we look forward to the work ahead.  We hope that you will support us today.

On October 3, 2012, donations made through Pittsburgh Gives can be designated for your favorite local nonprofit — and your donation will be increased with a percentage of matching funds.  Many local organizations, including the PHCA (hint, hint), are eligible for matching funds.

The rules for donors are simple:

– Only credit card donations received through www.pittsburghgives.org during the 24 hours of October 3, 2012 will be matched for this event.  No donations via check, cash or stock will be accepted.
– Only MasterCard and Visa donations will be accepted and matched for this event.  Discover and AMEX donations will not be accepted or matched.
– Each gift is 100% tax deductible.  The credit card charge will display as a donation to ”The Pittsburgh Foundation” on the donor’s credit card statement.
– The minimum gift per organization is $25.  The maximum gift that an individual can give per organization that will be matched is $10,000.

Check here to see which organizations are eligible.  Here is more information about the Day of Giving.

Please consider donating on this day — to the us, or to another worthy cause.

Here’s what the PHCA office looked like just before the last yard sale, in early May — crowded with donations!  We are hoping to see something similar next week and are putting out the call.  The yard sale helps raise money for the arts festival and has also become a popular community event.

The fall yard sale will be held on Saturday, September 15 from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.  We’re currently seeking donations of household items, books, records, cd’s and dvd’s, toys, antique and retro items, furniture (in good condition), lamps, and more.  Items must be clean and not broken; tools and appliances much be in working condition.

We are not able to accept clothing, very large or upholstered furniture, or items that are very dusty or dirty.

Donations may be dropped off at the PHCA between 10 am and 6 pm on September 12, 13, and 14.  If you have items to donate but can’t make it over here during those days, get in touch and we’ll figure something out.  And if you have any questions, email us, or call 412.681.1950.

Darvina Emmerich contacted the PHCA to tell us about her foundation, Wrapped in Love.  The foundation was formed in memory of Darvina’s husband James Emmerich, a former Polish Hill resident.

Darvina says that she got the idea to start Wrapped in Love when James had cancer.  She says,  “he always felt so cold that he carried a blanket with him everywhere he went while going through chemotherapy treatment.  Jim fought a courageous battle and inspired many by his fortitude of spirit. He passed on February 14,1997. We miss him dearly, his strong spirit and love carries on through Wrapped in Love’s mission: To provide blankets to cancer patients and seriously ill patients around the world to bring comfort, peace and joy, and remind all of us that we are children at heart.”

To find out more about Wrapped in Love, or to volunteer to make a blanket, you can write to Wrapped in Love, P.O. Box  13486, Pittsburgh,, Pa. 15243; or call 412-983-7274.

We’re slowly collecting another fabulous bunch of Stuff for the next PHCA fundraising yard sale, on Saturday, May 5.  We’re looking for books, toys, household items, dishes, furniture (excluding upholstered items), jewelry, tools, and more.  We always hope to get a lot of unusual things — that makes for a more interesting sale!  Just about the only stuff we don’t accept are clothes and shoes and anything damaged or dirty.  The proceeds from the yard sale go towards the Polish Hill Arts Festival, now in it’s fifth year.

Saturday May 5 isn’t just the day of the yard sale — it’s also the May Day Parade, which starts on Gold Way at 12:00 and will proceed up Melwood, to Dobson, then down Brereton, to West Penn Park.  After the parade, there will be music in the park, then a picnic and a ball game.  We hope you will choose to be a part of both these events — join (or just watch) the parade, then stop by the PHCA and pick up something fun.

(Above:  a happy shopper at a PHCA yard sale last year.  Photo by Leslie Clague for the PHCA)

A lot of people are squeamish about getting poked by needles, but there are very good reasons to try to overcome this and donate blood:  each blood donation can save up to three lives. Volunteer blood donors are the only source for patients in need of blood and blood products.

Central Blood Bank will be doing a blood drive on Tuesday, March 13 from 8:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the foyer of the Carnegie Music Hall, at 440 Forbes Avenue in Oakland.  All participating donors will get either a pass for general admission to Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh or a $10 GetGo gas card.

You can schedule your appointment  online at www.centralbloodbank.org, using sponsor code ET030003.  For more information contact Dale at 412-209-7048 or email dellgass@itxm.org.

Allegheny County’s 2011 Department of Human Services Holiday Project, now underway, collects gifts for children and youth who receive services through the Department of Human Services Office of Children, Youth & Families. The gift drive will run through Monday, December 5.

For information about sponsoring specific children through a gift drive or making monetary donations, contact the DHS Event & Donations Team at 412-350-3428 or eventanddonationsteam@alleghenycounty.us.

DHS has also partnered with businesses across the county to set up conveniently located drop-off sites for individuals who want to donate a gift. The Holiday Project is always in need of new, unwrapped multicultural toys and books for children of all ages. For a list of drop-off site locations, gift ideas, collection days and times, or information on how to make a monetary donation, click here.

Bring your unwanted fall and winter clothes to this awesome clothing swap, and you might come away with new (to you) duds as well as the sense of having helped to support the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank.

Clothing donors are encouraged to submit clothing donations in reusable tote bags (or include reusable tote bags in their donation) that will be donated to the Pittsburgh Tote Bag Project.  Clothing donations will be accepted at Assemble from 4:00 – 8:00 PM, November 7-11.  See the Donation Details page for more information.

In partnership with the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, participants are encouraged to donate canned goods along with clothing donations. (Food donations do not count towards event tote bag discount.) Please see the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank website for more information about acceptable food donations.

The event takes place on Saturday November 12 and Sunday November 13 from 10:00 a.m. t0 5:00 p.m. each day, at Assemble, 5125 Penn Avenue.  For more information, check the Redd Up Thread Up website.