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Hats Off to Vitamin Bridge Volunteers
By: Tom Day
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Like many of life’s chapters, The Vitamin Bridge journey has its share of good days and bad, moments of panic and periods of bliss. All told, The Vitamin Bridge experience is a great adventure highlighted by social impact, memorable experiences, and friendship encounters, old and new.
The odyssey began in September 2019 with the donation of 100 bottles of prenatal vitamins to the Prestonwood Pregnancy Center. Fast forward to today, The Vitamin Bridge has impacted more than 17,000 lives (x2) through the donation of CVS Health prenatal vitamins. While greatly blessed to have recently received a grant to hire our first part-time employee, Communications Coordinator, Chasidy Tidwell, The Vitamin Bridge success has been and will continue to be fueled by its dedicated volunteers.
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Nonprofit volunteers are often thought of as providers of physical labor and for those volunteers who have moved and delivered vitamins or built the platform on which we store vitamins, your backs have come in handy. Thank you! Yet, much of the organization’s progress has been through tapping the minds and experiences of others.
I'm often asked, "How can I help?" My response is, “What is your skill set and what would you like to do?” Many have offered their professional expertise. As an example, we turn to trusted friends who happen to be very good attorneys for legal advice. Great comfort is taken in knowing that contracts are in order, employee policies are correct and regulatory guidelines are being met.
Another example of volunteer support is a project that involved evaluating over 250 corporations and foundations for possible grant opportunities. A group of eight tackled this assignment, saving much time and establishing a list of qualified, prospective Vitamin Bridge donors from which we are mining for future financial grants.
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It’s not possible to mention Vitamin Bridge volunteers without giving a shout out to my good friend, Don Mason, who retired in 2020 and, shortly thereafter, asked how he could help. Our conversations led to Don becoming The Vitamin Bridge’s volunteer Distribution Coordinator which encompasses the logistics of delivering prenatal vitamins to the 34 locations across Texas being served with prenatal vitamins.
Don’s fingerprints can also be found other places including facilitating a relationship with the Frisco UPS Store for out-of-town shipping and physical improvements to our prenatal vitamin storage. The storage area project, suggested to us by interior designer and Vitamin Bridge advocate Brenda Weinrich, also tapped into the architectural design skills of Rob Delph. Rob and Don recently dedicated a recent Saturday to constructing a platform on which prenatal vitamins are stored.
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So many of you have provided or offered your time. Your generosity is greatly appreciated and we are seeking to offer even more volunteer opportunities. Please let us know if you are interested in volunteering by clicking on the following link:
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The link will take you to our website where you can fill out a simple questionnaire for submission. We’ll do our best to accommodate with opportunities for service, even remotely. Speaking on behalf of the more than 17,000 (x2) who have benefitted from donated CVS Health prenatal vitamins, thank you!!!
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FIRST-TOUCH PROVIDER SPOTLIGHT
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Congratulations to FirstLook for the July 1st opening of its new, state-of-the-art sexual health and pregnancy center located in Waxahachie, Texas. Since 1995, FirstLook has served more than 40,000 residents in Ellis County and surrounding areas, many facing unplanned pregnancies. The new facility more than doubles its capacity to serve others.
The Vitamin Bridge is proud to support the work of CEO Donna Young, Nurse Manager Becky Scasta, FirstLook’s staff and its many volunteers as they impact lives in Ellis County. We’re looking forward to stopping by for a tour!
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The first two years of The Vitamin Bridge would not have been possible without our most valuable resource – VOLUNTEERS. Generous friends of The Vitamin Bridge have offered their time to help with deliveries, professional services, manual labor and much more. Thank you!
From day one, our focus has been on efficiently getting prenatal vitamins to women who would benefit from early access. By maintaining an all-volunteer status, we kept expenses low and maximized the number of women served. Today, we are positioned to reach even more of the most vulnerable in our communities because of the ongoing support of our team of volunteers.
I can’t say enough about our dedicated volunteers! If you missed it and are interested, scroll up to Hats Off to Our Volunteers and learn how to become a Vitamin Bridge volunteer.
Martha Day
Co-Founder and President
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Follow @thevitaminbridge on Instagram for the latest news and updates!
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The Vitamin Bridge receives donations through Amazon Smile. Register with Amazon Smile so that a portion of your purchasing dollars go to support disadvantaged, expectant moms.
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Established in 2019 as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation, The Vitamin Bridge was formed to provide prenatal vitamins and healthy nutrition information to disadvantaged, expectant mothers. Everyone deserves a healthy start to life!
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