For many communities throughout Northern New Jersey, election season started in March. For Gilda’s Club – which provides cancer victim support in Passaic, Bergen and Hudson counties – a vote could mean their ability to reach many people who cannot get to their local headquarters in Hackensack.
Instead of paying to run an advertisement during this year’s Super Bowl, Pepsi Cola decided to donate the money to charities with one caveat: the groups must get support for their efforts from the general public by having people vote via email.
“This project would help extend our reach and allow us to help so many more people in need of support.” – Ruth Dugan
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Gilda’s Club for Northern New Jersey is seeking to get votes between now and the end of the month that will qualify the group to get a $50,000 grant from the Pepsi Refresh Project. The company is offering 40 grants in varying amounts.
“We want to purchase vans,” said Ruth Dugan, former chairperson for Bayonne Medical Center who currently serves as the board president for this chapter of Gilda’s Club. “This will allow us to reach many more people in Northern New Jersey.”
Gilda’s Club, which was named in memory of Saturday Night Live comedian Gilda Radner, who died of ovarian cancer in 1989, provides a variety of support programs to cancer victims, often through local hospitals.
As of March 1, the “Gilda’s Club Cancer Support Squad” project has been up for public vote at www.Refresheverything.com/cancersupportsquad.
Where the money goes
“There are 1,330 new cases of cancer diagnosed everyday in New Jersey, and there are countless people in need of support,” Dugan said. “If selected, this project would help us create a mobile cancer support program to reach underserved populations that live too far from our clubhouse in Hackensack and are in need of cancer support. Cancer knows no boundaries. This program would help us extend our physical boundaries by allowing us to bring our support services directly to more communities, like those in Hudson County.”
The “Gilda’s Club Cancer Support Squad” would enable Gilda’s Club’s social workers and volunteers to bring their in-house programs – such as weekly wellness groups, workshops, networking groups and social events – to various locations.
“This grant would help us provide more people in need with a refuge from the physical, emotional and financial turmoil of cancer,” said Dugan.
Additionally, the $50,000 grant would help purchase two fuel-efficient vans, pay for the printing of outreach materials needed to conduct programs, and cover the costs of registration, auto insurance, and gas for a year.
Since the nonprofit’s financial backing comes primarily from private donations and special event fundraising, the “Pepsi Refresh Project” presents a unique opportunity for the organization to seek a new source of funding to jumpstart a new community initiative.
“It only takes a minute to vote. This project would help extend our reach and allow us to help so many more people in need of support,” Dugan said.
Online users can vote once per day for the entire month and are encouraged to tell their friends, too. The top 10 projects in each grant category ($5,000, $25,000, $50,000 and $250,000) will win the corresponding amount.
To vote for the “Gilda’s Club Cancer Support Squad” project, visit www.Refresheverything.com/cancersupportsquad. More information about Gilda’s Club NNJ is available at www.gildasclubnnj.org, Gilda’s Club NNJ’s Facebook page or by calling (201) 457-1670.