Inspiration. I'm Going To Walk The Walk.

                                                  Andrea's Personal WalktheWalk Page
Several weeks ago, I ran into a friend of mine who I used to see at the local park with my son. Our children attend school together and play together at times. Her name is Mrs. Joyce, she comes from the beautiful island of jamiaca..one of the sweetest, wise and most positive women I have ever met.
One Spring day We ran into each other, delighted to see her, I sense a difference in her demeanor immediately. Her eyes filled with their usual light were focus and far away, After hearing she had just returned from the hospital, she told me she had cancer of the breast.


My inside shook but I would not show her that. Assuming she may have already seen and heard the emotional shock this takes to see and hear. Gently I looked her in the eye and nodded and said "Ok, so what is the next step?" I refused to say, "Sorry to hear that" or "Oh, I'm so sorry" These are normal and justified responses of course ...but I went straight to the thought of progress, encouragement and focus on what were the next steps to fight back and recover.
Without, a crack in her voice or missing a step her unshattered faith spoke loud and clear through her soft voice. Leaning in she said to me " God is in charge, I have no fear nor will I falter. I rest on my faith ..it has never let me down and this will not be any different child"
"My Dear, she continued. "I will go through whatever treatments are available and do what I must but I will not fear, nor will I doubt God plan for me"
 

We...hugged and the warmth of her heart spread through by body... a warm and swift surge of pure positive energy. It is women like Mrs. Joyce who inspire me everyday. I said to her, I will have a conversation with God tonight about you, she said thank you.
Later that night I did just that..in deep meditation I asked what could I do to help her ..to be used as an instrument of good will on her behalf and others just like her.

 

 

I'm in Training T-Shirt -WalkWear.Org

http://www.walkwear.org

And here I am...it came to me to learn about MoonWalk NYC..I have found what I have been looking for. The one thing that will challenge me..take me out of my comfort zone and do SOMETHING! positive, encouraging, bold, brave and inspiring. This is it.
June 14th, I ran into Mrs. Joyce today. I told about the event and she was thrilled! "Guess, who I am going to walk for?"
"Who?"
"For you, dear heart, I'm walking for you Mrs. Joyce..."?
If I could describe the warmest hug, the highest euphoria, you could feel from the hug this woman reached out and gave me generously..it would be amazing. This is best I could do to describe it.
36days to go....and with every step I will think of her.

Those of you who know me from my selling days on Etsy under my SwanRiverStone and Nyblaque shops know I am no stranger to working and supporting a good cause. I have participated in fundraisers such as Aids Walk, March of Dimes etc. my first team effort was with HeartsforHaiti, and Etsy Project Embrace Team. It is has been six years since I have publicly participated in such a large scale fundraising event. I am very excited. Visit my personal page to follow my progress and journey through all this:
http://walk.convio.net/site/TR/PowerWalk/WTWFY13?px=1003631&pg=personal&fr_id=1040

Spread the word! Tweet, Facebook or Blog about  WalkTheWalkAmerica http://walkthewalkamerica.com/

Live Strong;-)

Pages and Progress

Hey Family,

Just wanted to share with you a few screenshots of the charitable organizations I am registered with that I have been donating portions of my Etsy sales and items to.

This is a recent screenshot of a video email I received from the President and CEO of the American Red Cross with video feed showing some of the devastation in Haiti but what ARC has been able to do to help. I nearly cried halfway through the end. It's really bad down there but hope is growing. I appreciated  receiving this as it is intended to keep contributors up to date with what's going on and where the donations are going.

This is my personal page with Team ACS where dontions can be contributed directly to help me with my personal fundraiser goal to contribute to Team Etsy Project Embrace's overall team goal.My goal is to raise $1,000 dollarsso far I have raised $200 

. As you can see I have a long way to go...

This is the email link to my personal goal page where friends family, supporters and contributers can see my personal progress page above for themselves. I have had a few customers ask me for this link that purchased ACS items.

And here is our Team Etsy Project Embrace Page- I omitted the teams names to protect their privacy. The beaming beauty is Laura Slocum, the inspiration behind the idea of EPE.

Our Team goal is to raise $9,000 dollars for cancer research and awareness.We are at $6.710.00 !!! We are sooo close;-)

You can find Laura's blog at http://staytuned09.blogspot.com/

HeartsforHaiti.etsy.com now has a blog! http://etsyforhaiti.blogspot.com/

and Facebook Page! http://www.facebook.com/heartsforhaiti

The love is pouring at HeartsForHaiti.etsy.com- Currently raised for Doctors Without Borders (after fees): $23,969.74 as of 11:25pm EST 1/30/10

Thx for visiting

Ny

Donations to Haiti Part II - Hearts4Haiti

I was commenting on a few TeamEpE Treasuries when I came across one created by Loveartworks that featured items from an Etsy collective shop called HeartsforHaiti.

"HeartsforHaiti is an Etsy collective of donated items from hundreds of Etsy shops to raise money to rebuild Haiti. 100% of the proceeds from this shop (minus Etsy fees and Paypal fees) go directly to DoctorsWithoutBorders (http://doctorswithoutborders.org ). This shop has permission to use the DoctorsWithoutBorders name and a separate bank account and Paypal account have been opened to maintain the integrity of this shop"

And the response is HUGE..HeartsForHaiti.etsy.com Currently raised for Doctors Without Borders (after fees): $10,037.37 (as of 8:30 EST 1/21/10)  since it's opening January 14th, 2010 with currently 688 donated items and 888 sales- and more items pouring in everyday!- it's a wonderful thing to see.

Please,please,please stop by and support or donate- or promote HeartsForHaiti.etsy.com on your Twitter, Facebook, blogs or however you can;-)If you Twitter you can follow Doctors Without Borders' updates from Haiti at @MSF_USA. If you have an Etsy shop, Etsy buyer account or your own website, you can go to Heartsforhaiti's Profile Page and scroll down to the bottom to cut and paste the HeartsforHaiti Etsy shop mini html code to put on your blog or website and spread the word.

"I'm gonna make a change, for once in my life. Gonna feel real good, gonna make a difference , gonna make it right" -Man in the Mirror- Michael Jackson

Be Well, Stay Strong

Ny

Donations to Haiti Part I

Hey Family,

Just wanted to share with you what I did as part of my efforts to help the victims of the disasterous earthquake in Haiti. I donated all these items yesterday. I will be making some care packets later on tonight.
I also opened a section of simple, conservative earrings in my shop named Handmade4Haiti- In this section $5.00 of every item sold will be donated to the America Red Cross.


I hope what I am sending will help at least one family in need. I really pray it.does
Ny

Ny's October Closeout Shop Event For EtsyProject Embrace

If anyone who has ever followed my blog or met me in person. I am always looking to help someone in need or help bring awarenes to very special subjects.

Though I am closing up my Nyblaque account on Etsy, I didn't want to go without giving something back. From October 9th -Thru October 31st all my inventory has been donated to the Etsy Project Embrace Team. As an honorary member of EPE, 25% of proceeds from every item - yep every bead, feather, earring or necklace sold in my shop will be donated to the EPE''s Team Fundraiser Page for the American Cancer Society.

as a thank you to contributors, I offer:

* FREE WORLDWIDE SHIPPING on orders $25.00 & over

*$5.00 off on orders $20-$24.00.

*Or your choice of a pair of Faceted Green Chalcedony Briolettes in 14K Gold Fill or My signature Journey Necklace in your choice of  faceted onion briolette pendant as a FREE GIFT for orders $50.00 or more.

EPE has set a goal of raising $4,000 so far. We are halfway there at $2.500! You can see the results at the ACS website here: http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR/TeamACS/TACSFY09National/895191330?pg=team&fr_id=17840&team_id=529966



I am currently working on a special EPE Bracelet this weekend that's similiar in style to the "Ireland "Bracelet I created earlier this year.

You can also visit any of our teams Etsy shops by visiting the EPE Team page or typing  key word"Teamepe" in Etsy or even Google search engine.

Be Well,

Stay Strong,

Ny

Brenda Novak's 5th Annual On-line Auction has begun !!

Hey Family!

Remember back in February I blogged about Brenda's auction for one of my old "Find Motivation"posts? If you don't remember, you can read the original link here:

http://nyblaque.blogspot.com/2009/02/find-motivation-brenda-novaks-5th.html

I 've been so busy lately, I forgot I am a registered participant in this auction! so I have to come back from my vacation from Etsy a lot earlier than I planned LOL. But it's worth it.

Brenda Novak is the amazing writing talent behind such books as " Every Waking Moment" "Cold Feet" "Still Water Trilogy" and her latest editions " The Last Stand Series"
You can learn more about Brenda and her amazing story here: How is all started Brenda Novaks Journey.

The 5th Annual On-line Auction to Benefit Diabetes Research was started in 2005 and has been a huge success by raising over $250.000 just last year alone. The auction started May 1st and runs through the month. Brenda's assistant, Lauren Hawkeye contacted myself and 30 other awesome Etsy Artist to participate in this event. We can be found here under Lauren Hawkeye's Treasure > Treasure Chest (Sponsored by Etsy Artisans) So far things are off to a great start as bids are coming in daily.

These are the items I have donated to the auction:

The Journey Necklace

Intrigue

XOXO-Hugs and Kisses

This event is deeply personal to me as my grandmother passed away in March 2007 from her battle with Diabetes. I know I would be making her proud by participating and bringing attention to anything that would help find better treatments and a cure for this disease.

For more information about the auction and/ or Brenda visit Welcome to Brenda's Online Auction link, or check out http://www.brendanovak.com/auction_abouttheauction.shtml & www.eharlequin.com

Thanks for visiting,

Be Well,

Ny

Brenda Novak’s 5th Annual Online Auction for Diabetes Research

Ms. Lauren Hawkeye, Assistant to Brenda Novak, A New York Times Bestselling Romantic Suspense Author, contacted me on January 2,2009. Lauren was looking for some great creations for this year’s auction. She happended to be searching on Etsy when she found my shop and wondered if I would be willing to donate some of my items to the auction! Are you kidding?? Of course I said YES!

Brenda Novak is has written such books as " Every Waking Moment" "Cold Feet" "Still Water Trilogy" and her latest editions " The Last Stand Series"

I personally am inspired by this awesome writer as I read her biography. Can you imagine catching your child's day care provider drugging your children with cough syrup and Tylenol to keep them sleeping while you worked?? Brenda writes that was a huge part of the motivation for her to work from home and behind her now amazing career. Please read more about her amazing story here: How is all started Brenda Novaks Journey.

The 5th Annual On-line Auction for Diabetes Research which was started in 2005 and have been a huge success with by raising over $250.000 just last year alone and the expectations for this year are even bigger. The auction opens May 1st and runs through the month but items are being added as they receive them. This is a very special event and is deeply personal to me as my grandmother passed away in March 2007 from her battle with Diabetes. I know I would be making her proud by participating and bringing attention to anything that would help find better treatments and a cure for this disease.

For more information about the auction and/ or Brenda, see the above website, check out http://www.brendanovak.com/auction_abouttheauction.shtml or www.eharlequin.com You can find the current items I have reserved for the event in my shop in the Auction4DiabetesResearch section:

Remember, 100% of all the money raised goes directly to Diabetes Research. Together, we can find a cure to this disease.

A New Liver for Luka!- Enter and Help the Spring Into Action Contest

Help us "Spring to Action" and win huge amount of gifts by bringing awareness to Carole's Liver Transplant for Carole Stites-Luka who is in desperate need of a liver transplant. You can read the complete rules at: http://liver4carole.blogspot.com

No donations necessary to enter! But they are appreciated, you can donate in honor of Carole Stites-Luka at: www.transplants.org/

So far, 10 fantastic artisans, including myself are donating, 20 Fantastic Prizes - There will be TWO WINNERS! Anyone can win, open to all entries. CONTEST RUNS UNTIL 2/28/2009 - One grand prize winner and one runner up!!First prize winner, gets choice of 10, 2nd prize winner gets remaining 10 items!!

Follow updates on Twitter: http://twitter.com/liver4carole

Thanks again to Sue & Linda for making this possible
http://tackyhandmade.etsy.com & http://seastardreams.artfire.com
http://laacesplaace.etsy.com

Be Well,
Ny

For Carole- Liver Transplant Fund-Updated

This post was originally listed on december 20th,2009

I found this wonderful thread on Etsy and jumped right in to participate!

Carole Stites-Luka Is In Dire Need Of A Liver Transplant.
Read: http://liver4carole.blogspot.com For More Information

See The Etsy Thread Of Support with over 25 Etsy Shop donating items!! and the list is fast growing!Ny
<<>!This Season, help support giving the greatest gift of all: LIFE !
*************************************************************************************
Update-

There were not enough responses to the Etsy thread unfortunately so the thread was taken down. Everyone will be directed to Carole's blog which will have all the instructions on how to donate, etc. A drawing has been decided and folks are putting together a basket- you can learn more at the blog liver4carole.blogspot.com.

Let as many people as you can know about this blog - On New Year's Day we will announce the winner to the drawing.