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Support The Painted Turtle and Let The Kids Be Kids

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“There are nearly 20 million children who fight a life threatening condition in the United States and for these children the illness is always present and it cannot go away.” -Isabella L., Grand Worthy Advisor

During the year of 1999, Paul Newman, Page Adler, and a few others co-founded the life changing non-profit, The Painted Turtle.  Adler says she drew her inspiration from the experience she had as a young adult volunteering at Newman's first camp for children with serious medical conditions, the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp in Ashford, Connecticut.  "We wanted to level the playing field and say to kids, 'You can be like any other kid,'" said Adler, who co-founded the camp with her husband, award-winning music producer Lou Adler, and other philanthropists, including actors Paul Newman and Jami Gertz, and NBA coach Larry Brown.  The organization coined its name due to the widespread species of turtles found in most of the United States.  Adler says, "It's an animal that has a tough exterior and a soft interior, very much like these kids that we're serving."

“At The Painted Turtle for children ages 6-17 with all kinds of chronic pain, 90 of them to be exact, can participate in a camp of their dreams, absolutely free. Not only is their trip free of cost, it is free from judgment.” - Isabella L., Grand Worthy Advisor

According to The Painted Turtle’s website, their goal is “to reach beyond illness and inspire children with life-threatening diseases to become their greater selves.” and to “​to empower campers—to make new friends, try new things, build self-confidence, and become more independent in their medical care. In short, we aspire to help our campers discover all that is possible in their lives.”​ Their website also states that their mission is “to provide a year-round, life-changing environment for these children and their families – one that allows children to participate in an authentic camp experience by supporting their medical needs and offers their families care, education, and respite.” Since opening in 2004, the magical environment of The Painted Turtle has served thousands of campers and family members at their year-round camp programs.

The oasis is a​ 17-acre developed site on 173 acres in the Angeles National Forest​ ​located in Lake Hughes, California.​ ​The Painted Turtle has many activities that they offer at their state of the art camp, which include horseback riding, ropes course, arts and crafts, woodshop, archery, team building experiences, fishing, boating, singing and dancing.

“Every child deserves to fun, feel accepted, and be included.” - Isabella L., Grand Worthy Advisor

California Rainbow is excited to learn about and support our 2019-20 Grand Service Project this year, The Painted Turtle. For more information and a virtual tour, visit ​thepaintedturtle.org

By:  Hannah W., Assistant Grand Editor

Did You See The Double Rainbow?

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I decided to take a little journey to find out what was really at the end of it and what I found was – you guessed it, a leprechaun! Bouncing up and down, this little leprechaun told me her name was Goldie and she was more excited to tell me what was in her pot of gold than the Grandies are at Revelations! Contrary to what legend says about her pot of gold, the coins that are filled in it are not made of physical gold but instead something priceless; the acts service she saw the members of California Rainbow for Girls create this year towards Megan’s Wings – the non-profit organization they have chosen to support for the 2019-20 year.

Goldie first explained to me what Megan’s Wing’s goal is and how it was founded. Megan’s Wings started in memory of Megan Savage, who lost her battle to leukemia at the age of nine in April of 2003. As a tribute to their daughter, the Savage family created Megan’s Wings. They named the organization Megan’s Wings because whenever they are lucky enough to see a butterfly it reminds them of her. Megan’s Wings is a non-profit is based in Upland, California. They help families navigate their journey with pediatric cancer by supporting their financial, emotional, and physical needs.

“The course of our lives can change in an instant. One simple action or short phrase can alter our life forever.” – Hannah H., Grand Worthy Advisor.

California Rainbow primarily supports their chosen non-profit by working hard throughout the year raising funds through fundraisers and drives. Each assembly comes up with their own special ways to do this. In just a short time, at Grand Assembly, they will present the funds they raised to the Megan’s Wings founders.

My green loving friend then told me about a few of the times California Rainbow had the luck of the Irish with them and were able to work hands on with Megan’s Wings:

Members of Citrus, Sunshine, and San Fernando Valley Assemblies volunteered with one of Megan’s Wings founders, Kim Savage to help clean up Megan’s Home. Their goal for the day was to make the house spotless before a little boy came home from his last day at chemotherapy. Megan’s Wings and California Rainbow worked together so that he would get to play freely in his home and yard without any worries.

For the 4th of July, Hannah H., Grand Worthy Advisor, Kaitlyn D., Grand Worthy Associate Advisor and Grand Historian, Kellianne B., Grand Choir Director and Representative to Ohio/Pennsylvania, and members from San Fernando Valley Assembly worked with Kim Savage, Co-Founder of Megan’s Wings at City of Hope Medical Center located in Duarte, California to make life a little more joyful. They held a party and spent the day doing hair and nails, playing games, and participating in arts and crafts with the families and children affected by pediatric cancer.

California Rainbow even teamed up with Megan’s Wiings for a fundraiser at San Manuel Stadium to see the Inland Empire 66ers play!

Goldie then told me that all of the assemblies and areas in California Rainbow were making an enormous impact on Megan’s Wings. Here are just a few examples of pure gold;  

Serena’s Bay Area Buddies

These seven Assemblies raised $6,981.46 for our Grand Service Project Megan’s Wings which they presented at their OV! The girls in the area went to the Oakland Observatory, held a sleepover, and then hosted a Service OV at the Masonic Home in Union City.

Marshall’s Martians

Natoma Assembly held a community service event at the Palladio Fall Festival. At the event they made sure to showcase a jar to help raise money for Megan’s Wings.

This little leprechaun’s pot of gold must have weighed a ton because these were only a few of the many, many gold coins she had in it.

Goldie didn’t only have a heart of service but she was full of puns! She wanted me to ask you to MARCH for Megan’s Wings by carrying the fundraising momentum throughout March until Grand Assembly. You can still help! One great suggestion is to make a Personal Pledge to the Grand Service Project. A Personal Pledge is a pledge to give up something or do something, in order to receive a donation – for example, to donate the cost of a cup of coffee instead of having that morning Joe one day! You can turn these pledges in at Grand Assembly. You can also donate any amount through the donate button on  www.gocarianbow.org or click the donate button on our March for Megan’s Wings Facebook post!

Make sure to take all your potatoes, lucky charms cereal, and four leaf clovers to Ontario, CA from April 6-9 2019 for Grand Assembly, The Winter Solstice: All That Glitters and Snows!

Hannah Williams
Public Relations Team

Did you miss out on something at the Last OV?? Step right up!

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Marshall’s Martians took us to Sacramento to see The Greatest Show and boy oh, boy, did it start out with a bang!  Our ringmasters brought in Mrs. Marshall’s area which included the following assemblies, Natoma, Camellia, and Rose.  Not only was every Grand Officer and our Supreme Deputy inside of “The Big Top” but get this, the ringmasters brought 30 members from Natoma, Camellia and Rose assemblies to participate in the Last OV!

Our Grand Worthy Advisor, Hannah H., spoke about how a young boy named Diego had many struggles while going through his treatments with chemotherapy and although he had many battles to fight, he kept hope and his faith near to his heart.  While Diego was facing problems with transportation for his treatments, to help him no longer face this struggle Megan’s Wings were able to buy Diego and his family a car.  This is a prime example of how Megan’s Wings goes above and beyond when they find someone in need. “When faced with adversity people can do one of two things; they can either overcome it or succumb to it.” -Hannah H. Grand Worthy Advisor

To View Hannah’s Speech from the Last OV, Click Here!

Have you made your Personal Pledge to the Grand Service Project yet?  This is a new fundraising opportunity to raise money for our statewide service project, Megan’s Wings.  A Personal Pledge is a pledge to give up something or do something, in order to receive a donation.

The new Membership Team members were announced and will serve for one year.  The newest member from the south is Emily M. from Fullerton/Yorba Linda Assembly and from the north is Kaelyn S. from Marysville Assembly.

The new southern Leadership Team members will serve for two years.  The southern member is Katie S. from Visalia Assembly and the northern member is Megan L. from New Hope Assembly.

The new Grand Marshals (Vivacious Vans) for Grand Assembly 2019 are the following girls: 
Emily M. from Fullerton/Yorba Linda Assembly
Emily M. from San Jose Assembly
Abigail S. from Marysville Assembly
Makena M. from Oak Summit Assembly

The Pages for Grand Assembly are:
Supreme Deputy:  Isabella L. from Golden Star Assembly
Grand Directors: Cristina M. from Natoma Assembly
Grand Worthy Advisor: Cameron M. from Fidelity Assembly
Grand Executive Committee: Kamryn M. from Redding Assembly and Jordan M. from Rose Assembly
Pot of Gold: Ryanne G. from Woodland Assembly
Sound: Carshe’la B. from Concord Assembly and Angelina R. Buena Park Talent: Sami M. from San Fernando Valley Assembly and Destiny M. from Roseville DeReimer Assembly
Decorations: Alexandra H. from Natoma Assembly
Registration: Beth H. from Unity Assembly

See you at the next greatest show in Ontario, CA from April 6-9 2019 for Grand Assembly, The Winter Solstice: All That Glitters and Snows!

Hannah Williams
Assembly Resources Committee, Public Relations Team

2019 Grand Service Project

2019 Grand Service Project

To view the video of Grand Worthy Advisor Hannah making the announcement of this year's Grand Service Project, Megan's Wings, at the First Official Visit in 2018 by click on her picture on the right.

Below is the transcript of the speech given by our Grand Worthy Advisor, Hannah, introducing our new Grand Service Project, Megan's Wings (www.meganswings.org) at theFirst Official Visit in 2018.

The course of our lives can change in an instant. One simple action or short phrase can alter our lives forever. Kim and Dave Savage were an average American couple, happily married and raising their children in a small suburb located in Southern California. One of their daughters, named Megan, was a sweet, outgoing little girl with a courageous heart and a considerate soul. But, one day, the course of the Savage’s lives changed with one, four worded phrase: your child has cancer.

Megan had been diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, a rare type of leukemia which affects the blood and bone marrow. They began treatment in California but Megan needed more specialized care that wasn’t available here. So the family packed up and started to seek treatment in Texas. The attention Megan needed during her battle coupled with the temporary move to Texas caused her mom, Kim, to not be able to maintain her job. Funds became tight and the family began to struggle in a way they had never struggled before: financially. Fortunately, they had a great support group of friends, family and coworkers to help them with these struggles and they were also involved with a Foundation in Texas which aided them in this time of need. Unfortunately, Megan lost her battle to Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in April of 2003, at the young age of 9 years old. The Savages were devastated, but they remembered the support system that was available to them and they wanted that support system to be available to other families coping with the same problem.

So, in January of 2005, 20 months after Megan passed away, the Savage Family established Megan’s Wings to assist other pediatric cancer patients and their families and to honor Megan’s memory. Based in Upland, Megan’s Wings helps families navigate through their journey with pediatric cancer through supporting the financial, physical, and emotional needs of families, acting as advocates, supplying resources and transportation and funding cutting edge cancer research. Their goal is to improve the care and quality of life of children coping with cancer and they do so through various programs.

Their patient aid program helps families pay their bills, compensating for the lost income from parents having to take off work to provide their child with around the clock care. This assistance comes in the form of medical or utility bill payment, gas cards, groceries, and even rent or house payment. They also provide temporary housing to families whose child needs to stay close to hospital for treatment through Megan’s Home.

As a tribute to their daughter, the Savage’s created Megan’s Wings. They named the foundation Megan’s Wings because butterflies remind them of her whenever they are fortunate enough to see one. This year, we can work together to help Megan’s Wings provide their services to even more families. The assistance we provide will help families be able to focus on their child, instead of worrying how they can make it all work. California Rainbow, I ask you to join me in supporting Megan’s Wings’ mission of helping families impacted by childhood cancer take flight. Thank you.

California Rainbow Donates $61,341.80 to Families Forward to Help Homeless

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Imagine being homeless. You are a mother with three kids. You and your kids are trying to make things work and pay bills and one day you lose your house. What would you do?

Amanda was facing this issue with her kids when she called Families Forward, an organization in southern California that helps homeless families.  After contacting Families Forward, she was paired with a caseworker that helped her find stable housing and a job. Her kids also benefited from Christmas and Back to School programs addressing the needs of her young family.  In 2018, Families Forward helped over 284 families like Amanda’s find this kind of stability with jobs and housing.

Amanda’s story was shared by Families Forward’s Director of Development Ms. Jen Granger during a presentation at California Rainbow’s annual Grand Sessions in Fresno in March 2018. Ms.Jen Granger was delighted and amazed to find out that California Rainbow had raised $61,341.80 dollars for Families Forward over the past year. Grand Worthy Advisor Alana presented Ms. Granger with a check representing the collective fundraising efforts of the members throughout the state.

A service report was also presented at the event in which it was announced that in addition to fundraising efforts, Rainbow members had donated backpacks, food and toys to many of the Families Forward programs throughout as well as volunteered at their headquarters sorting food and inventory. Additionally, the membership of California volunteered a grand total of 8,198 hours to various service projects and made “Hope in a Bag” homeless care kits they could pass out to homeless throughout the state.

Rainbow Girls of California can be proud of their contribution toward helping homeless families and other charities this past year.  Many children and parents have hope for the future and a stable lifestyle thanks to the generosity of California Rainbow.

Watch the video of the girls announcing the amount California Rainbow had raised throughout the year along with Ms. Jen Granger’s speech here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRZV0I8-6hM

Find out more about California Rainbow at www.GoCARainbow.org
Find out more about our 2017-18 Service Project, Families Forward at www.families-forward.org/

Food Drive for Families Forward

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At the Northern Instructional on Saturday, June 17th in San Francisco, Grand Worthy Advisor Alana called upon California Rainbow to participate in several different types of service projects to benefit families across the state.  First, we will be having a food drive that will culminate at the Southern Instructional that will benefit our Grand Service Project, Families Forward, directly.

She is also encouraging Assemblies all across California to hold food drives to benefit their local food banks as well.  Click on the images below to download the flyers for the California Rainbow Food Drive!

Click on image for full color PDF.

Click on image for grayscale PDF.

Click on image for full color PDF.

2018 Grand Service Project

2018 Grand Service Project

See the video of our Grand Worthy Advisor Alana making the announcement of this year's Grand Service Project, Families Forward, at the First Official Visit in 2017, by clicking on her picture on the right.

Below is the transcript of the speech given by our Grand Worthy Advisor, Alana, introducing our new Grand Service Project, Families Forward (www.families-forward.org), at the at the First Official Visit in 2017.

There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home, there’s no place like home. These famous words spoken by Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz are true, there is no place like home. But what if you don’t have a home to return to? What do you do then? Not all of us can click our heels together and magically find ourselves within the comfort of our own home. For many of us, our homes are a safe place to which we can return after a tough day at school or work. Unfortunately, not everyone has this same luxury.

Over 600,000 families in the United States go without a home every year. We know that a family will stick together through thick and thin, even if that means being homeless. As Californians, we are aware of the exceptionally high cost of living in California. As a result, many families in the state cannot afford a home. So, how can we work to solve this problem? We can work to give each family the home that they deserve so that they can start a new life going in the right direction--forward.

Families Forward works to do just that. Located in Orange County--an area known for its high cost of living--Families Forward helps provides over 150 low-income families in 2016 with a place that they can call their home. In addition, this organization also works to provide the families with access to its food pantry, career workshops, family support programs, basic school supplies, and helping families during the holiday season. Families Forward works to make sure that these families can start a new, better life filled with dignity, hope, and empowerment.

This year, let us work towards ensuring that every family has a place that they can return to every night. I would like to encourage each assembly to help out the families in their local community by planning a food drive or assembling homeless care packages for those in need. You can also reach out for the support from our sponsoring bodies and youth groups so that our Masonic family can work together to help families in need. I am pleased to announce that California Rainbow has selected Families Forward as our 2018 Grand Service Project and with our help we can make sure that families can keep moving forward and never have to look back, so that we all can say that “There’s no place like home.” Thank you.

California Rainbow Donates 891 Backpacks to A Place Called Home for Underserved Southern California Students

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Contact: Amy Kimes
714.293.6135
carainbowgirls@gmail.com

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – You could say that backpacks were stacked and overflowing in car trunks across the state. California International Order of the Rainbow for Girls (CA IORG) collected a total of 891 backpacks for A Place Called Home (APCH), an organization located in South Central Los Angeles dedicated to aiding underserved youth by giving them direction in education, arts, and overall well-being. Within less than a month, girls and adults throughout the state collected more backpacks than they could have dreamed of – 891 backpacks! A Place Called Home had only asked the International Order of the Rainbow for Girls to collect 500 backpacks, being satisfied with whateverPR_082916_CA-rainbow-pr-backpacks_PIC1 amount of backpacks would come their way. But when the members, alumni, and supporters throughout California came together, they not only accomplished a phenomenal goal, they greatly exceeded it!

APCH helps youth take ownership of their lives and guides them in the right direction. One of their main focuses is helping their members stay in school and pursue a higher education and career. Backpacks are a fundamental necessity on every child’s back to school list and this backpack drive allows APCH to help its members have a fresh start at the beginning of the school year. CA IORG was excited to assist in this drive because it would help many children to achieve their full potential in school by helping them feel confident. Backpacks are one of the many ways that kids express themselves and when they have a new backpack, it gives them a boost of confidence that they otherwisPR_082916_CA-rainbow-pr-backpacks_PIC2e wouldn’t have. This is just a small way of helping kids feel excited about school and learning and CA IORG is honored to be a part of it.

The International Order of the Rainbow for Girls is a non-profit service organization for girls ages 11 to 20 that teaches girls to be leaders by building confidence and public speaking skills in a safe and fun environment. It teaches girls
to help others with service to create a better community. Each year, CA IORG’s Grand Worthy Advisor, or statewide president, chooses an organization to be the state’s Grand Service Project. This year, Grand Worthy Advisor Heidi Johnson has chosen A Place Called Home to be California Rainbow’s statewide service project. Throughout the year, assemblies throughout the state will collect money that will be donated to APCH in spring 2017. But the service for APCH doesn’t stop at donations like the backpack drive; CA IORG has found ways to support APCH on multiple levels, which is what the organizaPR_082916_CA-rainbow-pr-backpacks_PIC3tion is about: giving back to your community and serving others.

California Rainbow encourages and inspires youth to come together to make a difference – like how its members joined forces to provide 891 students with new backpacks for the school year. Just think, changing others’ lives can be as simple as a backpack drive. For more information on California Rainbow, contact Dana Regier, Supreme Deputy, International Order of the Rainbow for Girls in California at Dana.Regier@gocarainbow.org or Amy Kimes, Statewide Promotional and Marketing Team, International Order of the Rainbow for Girls in California at 714.293.6135 – carainbowgirls@gmail.com.

Click here to view the Official Press Release Page

Calling all backpacks!

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A message from Heidi our Grand Worthy Advisor:

ATTENTION: Calling all backpacks!

Hi California Rainbow and friends!  A Place Called Home needs our help! Every year in August, A Place Called Home holds a “Back to School” giveaway where they provide backpacks filled with school supplies to children in the community.  California Rainbow has been asked to help their event by holding a backpack drive.  We will be holding two backpack drives, one at the Southern Instructional (July 16th) and one at the Northern Instructional (July 23rd).  If you are unable to attend either instructional but would still like to donate, please contact the Grand Assembly office at dana.regier@gocarainbow.org. The backpacks are for children to use in the school year so please no drawstring backpacks.

Thank you for helping make a difference in getting children ready for a new school year!

A few additional details…

  • We will be collecting the backpacks at the State Instructionals.  Please bring your donation with you to that event.
  • CAIORG will arrange for the delivery of the backpacks, so please do not send or drop off any at APCH.
  • If you would like to donate additional items like pens/pencils, notebooks, markers, etc. those will be accepted but we are focused on meeting a need for 500 backpacks that APCH has.
  • If you have any questions please email the Grand Assembly office.

For a downloadable flyer about the backpack drive, click here!

2017 Grand Service Project Announced!

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On May 29, 2016, at the First Official Visit hosted by Districts 17 and 20, GWA Heidi announced the Grand Service Project for the Dynamic Deer and California Rainbow.  We will be working to benefit a non-profit organization named A Place Called Home.  Heidi also asked that each assembly conduct a book drive to benefit a local program in their own communities.

You can read the transcript of her speech on the 2017 Grand Service Project page on the website or watch her give her speech on the CA Rainbow Girls Facebook Page (words in bold are links to the specific pages).