Healthy Lifestyle Committee
Team coordinators from last year's community walking competition. With this month dedicated to women’s heart health, Maureen Hillary believes it’s important to have the awareness out there. “Women especially need to know they’re susceptible to heart disease, the greatest killer of women,” Hillary said. “Women keep taking care of everybody but...
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Mid-Michigan Cat Rescue
Personality profiles and finding your perfect match —sound like the latest dating website? Not quite. This is the level of detail and care that goes into the adoption process at Mid-Michigan Cat Rescue (MMCR) to ensure that every cat finds a perfect match. “It’s not as simple as just pointing to the cat you like and taking it home,” said Sara Vicary,...
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Clothes For A Cause
Working as a first grade teacher, Lisa Jelenek noticed something about one of her students. The boy, walking to gym class, had ill-fitting shoes. When she asked the boy about it, he said his parents couldn’t afford shoes. And that’s when Lisa’s idea for opening the Clothesline in Laingsburg came to her. The Clothesline has a simple mission statement:...
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Helping Women of the World: Zonta Club of Lansing
Celebrating its 90th birthday this January is the Zonta Club of Lansing. Organized in 1922, this chapter of the Zonta Club was a spin-off from the Detroit club — one of the original nine Zonta clubs. From its early beginnings with only 29 members, Zonta Club of Lansing has grown over the years and sponsored eight more local clubs including Owosso and East...
Continue ReadingLetting Dance Happen
Dance can happen where you least expect it — in a city crowd or even an antique mall. Happendance, mid-Michigan’s only non-profit professional dance company, happened unexpectedly, too. In 1976, Michigan State University graduate student Diane Newman and fellow classmates needed something to do on their summer break. So they decided to give live performances...
Continue ReadingSisterhood of the Traveling Sandals
Rising from the darkness of an addiction, Jennifer VanderGalien recruited her sister, Tiffany Kennon, to found the aptly named Shining A Light — a nonprofit organization based in Tanzania that helps women reclaim their lives. Shining A Light was born when, following rehab, it was suggested VanderGalien take a mission trip to Tanzania — located in East...
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Lions with a Big Heart
Matthew Sherrod, Aversa Henley Radforn, Valerie Benjamin-Glover, Evelyn Dungey, Bennie Boyd and Yvonne Christopher. While an international organization, there are many traits that make the local district of the Lions Club special. St. Stephen’s Community Church in Lansing is home to the District 11 C-2 branch of the Lions Club in Michigan. Chartered in April...
Continue ReadingSierra Rose Farms: Putting One Hoof in Front of the Other
A place for horse-riding lessons, camps and birthday parties, Sierra Rose Farms is also a place for people to change their lives forever. Sierra Rose Farms in Dewitt implemented a program in 2001 for kids to familiarize themselves with horses. Soon after, Lee Ann Hull, co-executive director and president, began hearing from parents, teachers, schools and...
Continue ReadingLeague of Michigan Bicyclists
Michigan’s shorelines are a beautiful place for bicycling, and the League of Michigan Bicyclists (LMB) wants all roadways to be equally as welcoming for bicyclists. The League of Michigan Bicyclist’s mission is to promote bicycling and the safety of bicyclists on roadways. The statewide nonprofit began in 1981 with its shoreline bicycle tours as a way...
Continue ReadingCapital Area Literacy Coalition
The ability to read and write is a basic need for individuals today, yet thousands in the Lansing area are illiterate. The Capital Area Literacy Coalition (CALC) opened in 1985 to help adults and children learn to read, write and speak English. This past year, CALC helped 1,093 adults and children in more than 75 locations. According to U.S. Census statistics...
Continue ReadingFenner Nature Center
You may have heard of Fenner Nature Center, located on the corner of Mount Hope Avenue and Aurelius Road, but you probably have not heard of The Fenner Conservancy, the non-profit that saved the nature center from being closed after city budget cuts in 2009. The newly named Fenner Conservancy took over management of the nature center in 2009 when former director...
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MiCAFE: Michigan’s Coordinated Access to Food for the Elderly
Food is a basic need in life, yet thousands of older adults in Michigan do not have enough money to feed themselves. To aid adults age 60 and older, Elder Law of Michigan, Inc. created Michigan’s Coordinated Access to Food for the Elderly (MiCAFE) program in 2001. MiCAFE helps seniors apply for food assistance from the government. Elder Law is a non-profit...
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