United Brachial Plexus Network, Inc.

Hi All, Although legal reasons have prevented me from posting, a matter has come to my attention and I feel that I must ask for your help. Please, please join me in getting out your checkbook and making a donation to UBPN. Due to the poor economy, high unemployment and other factors, most non profits, including UBPN have increased a decline in donations. Especially with Camp right around the corner, it is important for all of us, who have not donated to UBPN recently, to do so right now. Please write out a check, made out to United Brachial Palsy Network, Inc. and mail it to -- 1610 KENT ST. KENT, OHIO-- 44240. No amount is too large or too small. If all of us gave only $10.00, just think what the total amount would be. Higher amounts would help even more.Please note: I am not on the UBPN board nor even a committee member. I am only a UBPN taker. For many years, these boards, the old Lester ERb's board and Bridget's Outreach magazine have helped my family. We have had the means of support, sharing and suggestions with other people who know and understand our unique injury. Our hearts are filled with gratitude and I'm sure yours are also. After you have mailed your check, please take my hand and join our giving circle by posting a message saying, " I gave to UBPN today." Wouldn't it be nice for so many people to give and post that this, combined with the other two UBPN message boards, became the longest thread of all. We could call it our, Donation With THanks Thread. Thank you.

I just wrote out and mailed a check to UBPN. Am I the first to take your hand and join the " donation with thanks" circle? I do not think that it is necessary to sign our names to this post.

Null,
The number of jobs that people with limited use of an arm can do is limited. Jobs for these people are hard to come by and, for one reason and another, often hard to keep. They’re not entitled to compensation from social security disability insurance. They’re not entitled to army or other service pensions because they’re not entitled to serve there country. Why don’t you go after money from those who can afford to part with it and want to give. There are philanthropists, big business, and government to name a few. BP injured people have serious survival issues – leave the alone. You are asking for money from people some of whom may live at home with their parents indefinitely. If you want to tell me what a wonderful thing you are doing for them, I say to you “go get funding and start a business for these nice people and give them jobs. The key word there is GIVE.” You shouldn’t be asking these particular people for money. Thanks!

I was hoping to address this issue in a President's Column but my time has been completely swallowed up for the last two months with preparations for camp and the next issue of Outreach.

I would like to reiterate to all on these boards that UBPN is composed entirely of volunteers. We have no paid staff whatsoever. Our board of directors are all performing a myriad of functions on a daily basis and in many cases, using their own finances to do so.

We exist entirely on donations. We have tried to pursue grant funding and corporate funding but have found that we need to be in existence for a longer period of time before pursuing these funding sources. We also need to continuallly show the IRS that we have broad support, nationwide, from our consituency.

Outreach goes out to almost 3500 people. We have a full camp planned in the next week. Our statistics of website usage continue to climb exponentially. Clearly we are reaching an audience hungry for information about brachial plexus injuries. We have so many things we would like to pursue, but are hindered by finances and esp. by time/volunteers.

One way that everyone can help us is to make sure that you send us any address change you may have. When Outreach goes out, we send it bulk as a non profit organization, this saves us postage. However, in order to keep that non profit status with the US Postal Service, we also need to have "Address Service Requested". That means if the address is incorrect it is returned to us, with either the new address marked or an insufficient address marked (if a forwarding has expired). These cost us $.70 per return. I would estimate we have between 5-10% returns each mailing. So we incur the intitial cost in sending out the Outreach and then have to pay for it to be returned as well. AND you don't have an Outreach in your hands.

SO ... this long story is to ask that, even if you can't make a contribution to UBPN, you keep us informed about any change in address and help us to keep our costs down. Email any changes to info@ubpn.org.

Thanks much and I appreciate the original poster of this thread for bringing this topic to your attention.

Nancy Birk
UBPN President