Cardinal Services Tootsie Roll Drive Planned May 1, 2
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Staff Report-
No one seems exactly sure what year they began the project, but the Sacred Heart Knights of Columbus has sponsored the fundraiser, working intersections and storefronts at least since the 1970s, according to a press release from Cardinal Service. In that time, the community has collected hundreds of thousands of dollars – $320,000 since 1997 alone – all of it remaining in the community and donated to Special Olympics and Cardinal Services.
The 2015 Tootsie Roll Fund Drive is May 1 and 2. Volunteers are still being sought to work two-hour shifts, and may call Linda Bruss at 574-371-1312 to sign up.
The donation to Cardinal will be applied to the community living program, which empowers people to live in their own apartments with just the amount of staff support they need and want. For those who have been in institutions and group homes most of their lives, it’s an enormous and liberating change, the release states.
Rather than being limited to what’s best for the group, they make their own day-to-day choices based on what they want. This independence often leads to tremendous personal growth and increased quality of life, according to the release.
Nona Bliton is looking forward to this for herself. Living in a Cardinal group home, she has wanted her own place for years. However, the state decides who gets to move and when.
This past winter, after years of waiting, Bliton got word that she’s been approved. Now, Cardinal is taking steps to prepare her new apartment. Asked when she’s moving, Bliton flashes a huge smile, raises her fists in a cheer of success and says, “Soon!”
According to Bliton, one of the best things about the move will be her ability to go to church when she wants to go, and not just when there is a consensus at the house. She knows that church and other things will soon be her own choice and she’s excited about the future.[[In-content Ad]]
No one seems exactly sure what year they began the project, but the Sacred Heart Knights of Columbus has sponsored the fundraiser, working intersections and storefronts at least since the 1970s, according to a press release from Cardinal Service. In that time, the community has collected hundreds of thousands of dollars – $320,000 since 1997 alone – all of it remaining in the community and donated to Special Olympics and Cardinal Services.
The 2015 Tootsie Roll Fund Drive is May 1 and 2. Volunteers are still being sought to work two-hour shifts, and may call Linda Bruss at 574-371-1312 to sign up.
The donation to Cardinal will be applied to the community living program, which empowers people to live in their own apartments with just the amount of staff support they need and want. For those who have been in institutions and group homes most of their lives, it’s an enormous and liberating change, the release states.
Rather than being limited to what’s best for the group, they make their own day-to-day choices based on what they want. This independence often leads to tremendous personal growth and increased quality of life, according to the release.
Nona Bliton is looking forward to this for herself. Living in a Cardinal group home, she has wanted her own place for years. However, the state decides who gets to move and when.
This past winter, after years of waiting, Bliton got word that she’s been approved. Now, Cardinal is taking steps to prepare her new apartment. Asked when she’s moving, Bliton flashes a huge smile, raises her fists in a cheer of success and says, “Soon!”
According to Bliton, one of the best things about the move will be her ability to go to church when she wants to go, and not just when there is a consensus at the house. She knows that church and other things will soon be her own choice and she’s excited about the future.[[In-content Ad]]
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