One of the most beautiful things about waking up in the morning is that the past is behind you and you have a clean slate to begin another day. Even more beautiful is the fact that the day can be anything you want it to be. You have total control over what your day is going to be like even if faced with adversity. Others can’t make us feel a certain way, as we have total control over the power of what we feel. Have you ever encountered those people who just… Read More

They say that there are two things that are for certain in life, death and paying taxes. Well in reality you could not pay your taxes but certainly with bad consequences. However there is no way to cheat death, or at least not yet. It is a process that we all have to deal with in our lives. Having a loved one leave us is a painful experience that often takes us a lot of time to get over, if we ever do. But in the end, do they ever really leave… Read More

There have been many times in the program where I have spoken or written about passion and the benefits of following it. We often go through our lives questioning why we are here? We do all the things society says we are supposed to do like getting married, having children, going to college and buying a home. Yet, at the end of the day there still seems to be something missing inside and we continue to question just what our purpose is for being on this planet. Sometimes, it takes many years… Read More

Yesterday, I went to see the movie Mary Queen of Scots for the first time. I have always been interested in period movies and especially English history. I knew her story but not of some of the intricate details of what eventually led to her downfall and execution. As I sat in the theatre, I began to think about all the wars and conflicts over time and realized that usually they resulted from two things, the lust for power or religion. Then I began to think what the world would be like if… Read More

Nowhere is gratitude more evident than throughout the holidays. We see it on an individuals face when they open our gift. It is shown by our host when we present them with a thank you present at a party. It is on the face of the Salvation Army bell ringer when you drop a few coins in the red kettle. No matter where you go, somewhere you find someone showing gratitude for a deed that was just done or gift that was given. If you have ever had the opportunity to experience… Read More

It is a new year for Bring Smiles to Seniors and I hope that you all had holidays that were filled with love, laughter, celebration and magic. What an incredible year for our organization as we delivered 40,515 cards to over 200 unique senior communities in all 50 states and Puerto Rico. We could not have done it without all the help of the people who support this program and are excited for what 2019 will bring. Last year, I set a goal of 20,000 cards after having delivered 18,810 in 2017… Read More

Yesterday, on my Facebook news feed this image came up that I posted a year ago. It said” The most dangerous risk of all – the risk of spending your life not doing what you want on the bet you can buy yourself the freedom to do it later.” Going through the Lymphoma diagnosis with my dad made this reminder even more meaningful than it was a year ago. How many times during the course of our lives do we pass on doing what we actually want in the moment, in hopes… Read More

Have you ever had that moment when your body and soul are trying to tell you something but you just can’t quite figure out what it is?  There is something you are supposed to know, yet you either are just too busy trying to get on with your day and life that you don’t take the time to stop and listen?  Finally, when you do figure out what it was, you wish you had because it would have been better to know sooner? This morning I am going to share a personal… Read More

One of my favorite times in the Bring Smiles to Seniors program is when we have sent a batch of cards out to the schools and they come back with the students messages written inside. Most of our cards come from elementary age children, although we do have high schools and colleges involved as well. We have to read every card for appropriateness and it is very rare that we ever have to pull a card. When we do, it is usually because there is a message that may mean one thing… Read More

Year End Giving This past year was an amazing year for Bring Smiles to Seniors having delivered 40,515 cards to over 200 senior communities in all 50 states. We exist because of the kindness of our donors. As you can imagine our largest expense is postage required to mail cards to senior communities for delivery by the activities director and our decorating program. If you are planning your year end giving we hope that you will consider us. We are a registered 501(c)(3) and donations are tax deductible. Donations can be made… Read More