Beads of Courage Opens in the UK

[RSimmons]

Hello All,
My name is Robert Simmons and I'm the Bead Donations Director for Beads of Courage in the US and I'm new to Frit Happens. Some of you may know me from LE. We're just opening programs in hospitals in the UK and I'd like to provide some specific information about BoC and how you can become involved with our programs if you like. Below is a description of who we are and what we do followed by the specifics of the beads we need and our UK address for donations. I can be reached here now as well as at BoC  - rsimmons[at]beadsofcourage.org if you have questions or comments. More detailed information about the organization can be found on our web site:  www.beadsofcourage.org

Beads of Courage in the UK is sponsored by: Be Child Cancer Aware
www.bechildcanceraware.org

Every bead tells a story of strength, honor and hope.

What is the Beads of Courage Program?

The Program is a resilience-based intervention designed to support and strengthen children and families coping with serious illness. Through the program children tell their story using colorful beads as meaningful symbols of courage that commemorate milestones they have achieved along their unique treatment path.
How it works
Upon enrollment each child is given the Beads of Courage bead color guide with a detachable membership card. Their Beads of Courage journey begins when each child is first given a length of string and beads that spell out their first name. Then, colorful beads, each representing a different treatment milestone are given to the child by their professional health care provider to add to their Beads of Courage collection throughout their treatment as determined by the Beads of Courage Bead Guide (available from Beads of Courage, Inc.)

The Beads of Courage® Program is available for the following:
•   Cancer and Blood Disorders
•   Cardiac Conditions
•   Burn injuries
•   Just launched in November 2010: Neonatal ICU Families
•   Coming in Summer 2011: Beads of Courage for children coping with a chronic illness.
All Program bead guides were developed in collaboration with experts in the field (nurses, doctors, child life specialists and social workers) so that each bead guide would reflect meaningful acknowledgment of a child's treatment journey.

The Beads of Courage Program depends upon two types of beads:

1.Program Beads. These are the vast majority of beads that we use in the program. These beads are commercially manufactured due largely to the sheer numbers involved. These beads are the ones that you may have seen on bead guides that correspond to specific events in treatment. We don't ask artists to make program beads.

2. Act of Courage Beads. These are the artist-made glass beads that are given to acknowledge the milestones in their treatment journey. This year, we expect that we will need approximately 100,000 of these handmade beads donated so that children can continue to receive one-of-a-kind beads for significant treatment milestones. These beads truly bring the arts to our arts-in-medicine mission. Thank you!


What is an Act of Courage Bead? Act of Courage beads can take almost any form that you would like to make - it's an opportunity for you let your imagination go and make new things or whatever you want to do. The 3/32 (approx. 2.5mm) mandrel is preferred but other sizes are also usable.
Special Requirements for Act of Courage Beads:

 When you make beads for us please be sure to have nice 'puckers' on the ends of the beads. Sharp edges on the bead holes can cut fingers so beads with sharp edges can't be sent out. Overly frilly bits sticking out might break off and leave sharp edges on the surface so please be sure that raised dots have solid connections (no undercuts) and that surface decorations are robust enough to take some knocking about.

 We also ask that you refrain from using reduction frit or glasses that give a metallic sheen on the surface due to heavy metal issues with these materials. We can't send metallic reduction surface beads out to the kids.

 Anneal your beads properly in a kiln to be sure that they don't crack. Cracked beads have to go into the trash.

 Before you ship please make sure that the bead release is cleaned out. Beads with the release still inside take more time for our limited staff to clean and this seriously slows down our turnaround time.

 When you send your beads please include a brief inventory in the package along with your contact information. We want to send you a Thank You certificate and a receipt for your donation. If you send beads from multiple donors in one box just include the same information for everyone so that they can all be recognized. A bead donation form can be downloaded from this page: http://www.beadsofcourage.org/pages/beadartists.htm

Following these requirements will help us get the beads out to the kids quickly and get your acknowledgments and receipts back to you in a timely fashion. All donated beads are inspected and sorted by our staff and making sure that your beads meet the need really helps things move along. Quality is far more important than quantity.

Bead Delivery to Hospitals. None of our member hospitals are set up for direct donation. All beads distributed in our programs are our responsibility so we need to see every Act of Courage bead before it goes out. Please remember to send all of your donated beads to the Beads of Courage UK Headquarters for distribution. You can request that donations go to your nearest member hospital if you like, but remember that there are a lot of kids that need you beads who aren't near beadmakers and they would love to have your beads, too. Please keep in mind, when possible you will be personally invited to special Beads of Courage events at member hospitals where you can deliver Dream Beads in person. We look forward to having more of these events in the future!

Our new UK mailing address is:

Beads of Courage, Inc.
c/o Sarah Drummond
2, Park Close
Wickford, Essex SS12 9EH.


Thank you all for your generous support of Beads of Courage.

Robert Simmons
Bead Donations Director
Beads of Courage, Inc.

[ARBeads]

Hi Robert,

Welcome to Frit Happens

Thanks for all the info, I'm now of to make beads and get this ball rolling!

Ruth x

[Veebee]

Thanks for hopping over to our little forum Robert, you will find lots of enthusiastic support here! 

[Les]

Hello and welcome to FH Robert

I hope the scheme is a huge success

I figured I'd move this thread into the organisations board as it may become quite established

[awrylemming]

Hi Robert, and thanks for making it over to talk to us 

[RSimmons]

Thanks for the warm welcome. I wasn't quite sure where to go so I appreciate the re-direction. I'm looking forward to being a regular member here and can hopefully contribute to the overall forum.
Cheers,
Robert

[Les]

Your contributions will be very welcome
Are you a lampworker yourself Robert ?

[Veebee]

I'm quite excited actually 

[ScarletLeonard]

Thanks for putting htis on FB Les it didn't show up in my recent unread.

Been reading all the threads on LE, I'm a little overwhelmed.
But at least now I have a great reason to have a go at all these BOC tutes that I have been saving up.

Is there a list of participating hospitals anywhere? Would be interesting to see where they are going in the UK

I'm super excited. Also I think I'm going to have to buy more mandrels I only have 2 2.4mm ones lol.

[SilverGems89]

Welcome to Frit Happens Robert! i'm really excited to hear beads of courage is coming to the UK, i will have to get making some beads for donation  

Oh i also have a question, you mention trying to avoid using reduction glasses on the surface of beads because of heavy metal content, does that also include using metal leaf such as silver and gold on the surface?

[RSimmons]

Your contributions will be very welcome
Are you a lampworker yourself Robert ?

Yes, I've been a lampworker for about 10 years. I work mostly in soft glass making beads and pictorial murrini (butterflies, fish, petroglyphs, signature cane, etc.). My wife is a serious seed beader and I make cabochons for her as well. I dabble in sculptural work in borosilicate, too. I got involved with Beads of Courage as a donor when Jean Baruch first posted her plans on the WetCanvas! forum in the US, so I've been working with them as a volunteer since just about the beginning. I'm a scientist in real life.

I don't have the list of new hospitals yet but will post it as soon as it lands in my mailbox.

The prohibition on metallic surfaces stems from the fact that many reduction glasses contain lead and leave an almost pure metallic lead surface on the bead ( and yes, lead can look like gold on glass). Without careful analysis the folks handling the beads can't tell lead from other metals so to be safe we've just gone with an encased metals only policy. There are legal issues involving lead in the US with the Consumer Products Safety Commission.

R

[Steampunkglass]

Hello and welcome! It's excellent to hear this has now come to the UK too, it's such a wonderful program. Do you take marbles as well? 

[liquidglass]

Hi Robert and welcome to FH, it's fantastic that this has now come to the UK, I've read such a lot about the program and it will be great to help.
Kevin

[Margram]

Hello Robert, and welcome . This is a lovely scheme and I'm sure loads of us will take part. (I personally think it would be unnecessary for you to send out acknowledgements to each of us every time we send a bead - sounds like a lot of un-needed admin for you...)(unless it is just an email)

[RSimmons]

Kevin, we do take marbles but they don't end up with the kids in the hospitals. Marbles make excellent 'Thank You' gifts for special donors or helpers and can go into some of the other programs that we run.

Margram, as a charitable organization we're sort of required to acknowledge donations. We are, however, working on an on-line version of the receipt process that will cost less on our end (very important!) and speed the process for all concerned.

Robert