CHESTER — It’s always the season of giving as the Kent Island Giving Circle met to hear presentations from organizations seeking funding April 1 at the Four Seasons Club House at Kent Island.
More than just donating money, the mission of the Giving Circle is “to educate ourselves to the local needs of the community and leverage our collective resources to support those needs,” organizer Rona Sue Warner said.
“It’s about education as much as giving,” she said.
Every October and April, three local organizations present to the group, introduce who they are, and demonstrate how their needs support the community.
The 30 members of the Giving Circle collectively donate $100 each, twice a year to a Queen Anne’s County charity and following presentations, votes are cast for which organization to present the collected money to.
This session’s $3,000 funding was awarded to the Veteran and Military Support Alliance (VAMSA) for their work supporting local veterans and their loved ones and addressing PTSD.
VAMSA Executive Director Eric Johnson presented information on the work of the local open resource center for vets, families and their caregivers.
Johnson was driven by his own experiences as a United States Air Force veteran returning home from active service and noted the importance of streamlining finding help for himself and others.
“I have lived a life of service,” he said.
The mission of VAMSA is to “operationalize thank you for your service” and provide a way to meet needs as they are presented, according to Johnson.
Picking up where the Veterans Affairs can’t, VAMSA provides local resources to veterans, families and caregivers, including claims support, wellness programs, housing and education assistance and like minded support groups.
Identifying how service related conditions and disabilities develop further down the line, VAMSA is also looking out for the next generation of veterans by teaching at college ROTC classes.
In 2023 VAMSA’s Suicide Saves prevention program saved recorded several lives saved with its suicide prevention program, according to Johnson.
With the Giving Circle’s funding, VAMSA will seek additional training for its volunteers, the majority who are veterans themselves, “who bring a wealth of experiences,” he said.
Eventually VAMSA would like to build a nationally recognized organization, Johnson said, but for now they are proud to continually help one local veteran at a time.
More information about VAMSA, including a complete list of services, can be found at https://qacveteransupport.org.
Also presenting their mission to the Giving Circle was Scott Lockerman and his Belgian Malinois Khari of the Maryland Police K9 Foundation. This organization seeks to equip K9 units in underfunded police departments and keep them outfitted, equipped and trained, Lockerman said.
Police K9s are an investment and a benefit to communities as a preventative measure to help deter crime and scoop out drugs, he said.
“We are committed to providing for the needs of active duty K9s as well as the needs of those K9s that have retired,” Lockerman said.
Fully trained police canines can cost between $16,000 and $20,000 that not all police departments can afford, not to mention additional safety costs of ballistic vests, heat alarms for patrol vehicles and other preventatives to keep dogs safe, he said.
Queen Anne’s County does not currently have a canine unit and the Maryland Police K9 Foundation is steadily looking to change that, he said.
The K9 Foundation aims to eventually have a brick and mortar building available for training, he said.
More information about the Maryland K9 Foundation can be found at mdpk9f.org.
The other presentation to the Giving Circle was Project Linus, committed to embracing the art of sewing and the act of service, this is an organization dedicated to providing handmade “blanket hugs” to children.
Project Linus is a national organization, but each chapter is responsible for the distribution of its own local blankets and the Maryland Mid Shore Chapter has supplied over 4,200 blankets to Queen Anne’s, Kent, Talbot and Caroline counties since its inception in 2016, according to Maryland Mid Shore Chapter Coordinator Kim Couch.
Project Linus partners with numerous children programs including local hospitals and foster care agencies to supply handcrafted blankets and “give them something that’s theirs they can carry with.”
“Even hospitals that don’t have a pediatric unit, kids come into the ER all the time,” she said.
The group is entirely self-funded and is always collecting materials of yarn, thread, scissors and more, as well as monetary donations.
“Basically anything you can think of to make a blanket,” she said.
“Blanketeers” from all over the region meet monthly for Make a Blanket Day and all ages are welcome to gather, hone their quilting craft and inspire future generations of knitting enthusiasts.
“Passing along that knowledge and helping children is very important to us,” Couch said.
More information about Project Linus can be found at www.projectlinus.org.
Members note it is never an easy decision to vote for compelling worthwhile organizations presenting to the Giving Circle time after time.
“The power of group giving is that it opens the possibilities,” member Kathy Sells, of Kent Island said.
“It’s always hard to make a final decision,” she said.
Even for organizations not chosen for funding, the Giving Circle gives members the opportunity to learn about local worthwhile organizations they might not have known about right in their backyard and to pass along that knowledge to others.
“All the groups were wonderful. We’re all so impressed,” Warner said.
The Kent Island Giving Circle meets every October and April to consider organizations for donations.
The Giving Circle is currently in the process of developing a website and more information about how to get involved can be found by contacting Warner at warneronthebay@atlanticbb.net.
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