Support Side by Side for my COVID-19 Birthday!

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A nonprofit fundraiser supporting

Side by Side

Quarantine is disconcerting for all. Imagine if brain injury kept you from knowing how to manage it.

$300

raised by 5 people

$500 goal

Amidst all the uncertainty of COVID-19, Side by Side closed the Clubhouse to members for the safety of the broader community on March 16. Our dedicated staff remains via social distancing and teleworking. It has never been more important to provide services to our community of adults with brain injuries. 

This pandemic is disconcerting for everyone, but imagine how hard it could be if a brain injury impacted your ability to plan or understand what was going on.

 We call each member twice weekly to check:

  • If they're healthy (with a survey that breaks down COVID-19 symptoms)
  • If they have enough food to eat, basic supplies
  • How they can plan to stay healthy and well-stocked for the foreseeable future 

Then we help them access our professionally-facilitated teleconference support and education groups. We deliver supplies to their homes to make sure their body and minds are nourished.

It is particularly important to continue a line of communication between Side by Side and members who live alone or in a personal care home. Those living with family again need constant care and their caregivers are really missing the respite offered by our day program. Facilitating peer-to-peer support among families is critical as quarantine grows longer.

 While staff is needed now more than ever, the closure of the Clubhouse means operations income has stopped, and the Clubhouse urgently needs funding to continue its important work. Not only do we need to keep everyone connected and safe, but we must re-imagine what working side-by-side  inside the clubhouse means in a protracted period of social distancing.

 Please join me in supporting Clubhouse staff by donating a special gift in this unprecedented time. While we are thankfully not risking our lives on the front lines of healthcare, we are  on the second line doing our part to keep some very vulnerable people off those front lines so our colleagues can recover and our family and friends can stay healthy. My friend Sara says since she's financially secure, she's giving her stimulus check to nonprofits. I think that's a noble idea. My friend Mimi is doing the same. She's even paying the woman who cleans her house to stay home. 

Last November, my generous friends and their friends raised $550 which I eagerly matched. And many of them responded to my heart's plea this March and honored our 20 year anniversary with a $20/month for 20 months gift. If you missed out on any of those opportunities, now's your chance. For my birthday, I'm matching your donations once again. It's the best birthday gift I could ever receive- along with this pandemic to burn itself out and leave us with a cleaner more compassionate world. Thanks for your support and love for me and my life's work. I love all y'all.

This fundraiser supports

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Side by Side

Organized By Cindi Johnson

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