American Heart Association - START!

Take the first step to a heart-healthy life. Start walking!

Heat disease is the number one killer of men and women in America. But did you know that just 30 minutes a day of physical activity can improve your health and decrease your risk of heart disease? An easy way to work physical activity into your regular routine is to start walking. For every single hour of regular, vigorous exercise, you can add two hours to your life expectancy.

It's easy to start whether you're by yourself or with friends, family and co-workers. You'll all feel a difference and live longer, heart-healthier lives.

Join the movement!

American Heart Association Local Offices:

Georgia

• Athens
• Atlanta

Upstate South Carolina & Western North Carolina

• Greenville

American Red Cross

The beginning of every year there's a shortage of blood. Blood banks use up much of their supplies because of the holidays. Patients in our area and throughout the country are counting on your help to be sure that blood is available when it's needed. The need is constant.

The next several days are critical.

If you can give blood, OR if you can host a blood drive, please call 1-800-RED CROSS or log onto www.redcrossblood.org to make an appointment or learn more today.

Blood Donation Centers

Anderson County:
AnMed Health Blood Center
60 North Fant Street
Anderson, SC
864-512-1135

Stephens County
The Blood Connection
1308 Sandifer Blvd.
Seneca, SC
864-882-8364

White County
American Red Cross Blood Donation Center
311 Jesse Jewel Pkwy., SW
Suite 102
Gainesville, GA
800-448-3543

Who Needs a Flu Shot?

Flu IQ

National Adoption Month

November is National Adoption Month, a month set aside each year to raise awareness about the adoption of children and youth from foster care.  The 2011 theme for National Adoption Month is Build Capacity to Make Lasting Change.  

The first major effort to promote awareness of the need for adoptive families for children in foster care occurred in Massachusetts in 1976, when Governor Michael Dukakis announced an Adoption Week. The idea grew in popularity and spread nationwide. In 1984, President Reagan proclaimed the first National Adoption Week, and in 1995, under President Clinton, the week was expanded to the entire month of November.


Every November, a Presidential Proclamation launches activities and celebrations to help build awareness of adoption throughout the nation. Thousands of community organizations arrange and host programs, events, and activities to share positive adoption stories, challenge the myths, and draw attention to the thousands of children in foster care who are waiting for permanent families. 

To learn more about adoption click on the following links:

• For the state of Georgia - click HERE

• For the state of South Carolina - click HERE

• For the state of North Carolina - click HERE

Autism Speaks

Autism is the fastest-growing developmental disability in the United States.* Today, 1 in 110 children is diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, a 600% increase in the past 20 years.

Despite this prevalence, research shows that many parents of young children are generally unaware of autism. This campaign seeks to educate parents about the growing rate of autism in this country and to ultimately increase the level of early detection. To this aim, PSAs encourage parents of young children to visit www.autismspeaks.org to learn the early signs of the disorder.

Because there is currently no cure for autism and no effective means to prevent it, early detection is the crucial first step in helping children with autism. With appropriate early-intervention services from ages 3-5, between 20% and 50% of children diagnosed with autism will be able to attend mainstream kindergarten. 

Georgia
Autism Speaks - Georgia Regional Office
900 Circle 75 Parkway
Suite 445
Atlanta, Georgia   30339
770.451.0570- office  
770.451.0580- fax
georgia@autismspeaks.org


South Carolina and North Carolina

North Carolina Chapter Office
4530 Park Road; Suite 320
Charlotte, NC  28209
(704) 561-0003 - phone
(704) 561-0010 - fax

The Ready Campaign: Prepare, Plan, Stay Informed

Emergencies happen everyday and The Ready Campaign educates Americans about preparing for and responding to emergencies, including natural disasters and potential terrorist attacks. Ready asks individuals to do three key things: get an emergency supply kit, make a family emergency plan and be informed about different types of emergencies and appropriate responses to each.

Download the Family Emergency Plan and get prepared for an emergency now. You can save your plan has a PDF file or you can print it out to share with your family.

Local Emergency Offices:
Georgia Emergency Management Agency
Office of Homeland Security
PO Box 18055
Atlanta, GA 30316
(404) 635-7000
1 (800) TRY-GEMA / 1(800) 879-4362

South Carolina Emergency Management Division
2779 Fish Hatchery Road
West Columbia, SC 29172
(803) 737-8840

Macon County Emergency Services
104 East Main Street
Franklin, NC 28734
(828) 349-2067

Mike Shelley - The Newest Face of Diabetes

I am the newest face of diabetes. I was unaware of the symptoms of diabetes and I didn't feel sick. But when the diagnoses came in that I had Type 2 diabetes I was shocked! Needless to say I got right to work to learn more about this silent epidemic. More than 2 million people are diagnosed with type 2 each year and more are unaware they are at risk.

You can reduce your risk of diabetes by lowering your cholesterol and your blood sugar through diet and exercise. Learn the symptoms and get tested. To learn more about diabetes go to the American Diabetes Association web site or contact your local office:

Atlanta, GA
225 Peachtree St NE
Suite 550
Atlanta, GA 30303
(404) 320-7100

Greenville, SC
701 Grove Rd
c/o Greenville Hospital System
ISC-3rd Floor
Greenville, SC 29605

Family Emergency Preparedness

91% of Americans believe it’s important to be prepared for emergencies. However, only 58% of households report having taken any steps at all to prepare. In order to encourage more Americans to prepare themselves, their families and their communities, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) educates and empowers Americans to prepare for and respond to all kinds of emergencies.

The Ready Campaign asks individuals to do three key things to prepare for the unexpected: 1) get an emergency supply kit, 2) make a family emergency plan, and 3) be informed about the different types of emergencies that could occur and their appropriate responses.

At the website www.ready.gov, Americans can find national and local preparedness information, and tools needed to prepare for and respond to potential emergencies.

Georgia Department of Homeland Security
PO Box 18055, Building 2
Atlanta, GA 30316-0055
(404) 635-7000

South Carolina Emergency Management Division
2779 Fish Hatchery Road
West Columbia, SC 29172
(803) 737-8840

April is National Autism Awareness Month

Autism is the fastest growing developmental disability in the United States according to the Centers for Disease Control.  Today, 1 in 110 children is diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, a 600% increase in the past 20 years.  Despite this prevalence, research shows that many parents of young children are generally unaware of autism.

Because there is currently no cure for autism and no effective means to prevent it, early detection is the crucial first step in helping children with autism. With appropriate early-intervention services from ages 3-5, between 20% and 50% of children diagnosed with autism will be able to attend mainstream kindergarten. 


To learn more about Autism and how you can help click one of the links below:

Autism Society of Georgia

South Carolina Autism Society

Big Brothers Big Sisters - Start Something

There are over 75 million children in the U.S., and nearly 10 million of them are at risk. What if every child fulfilled his or her potential? As the nation's largest donor and volunteer supported mentoring network, Big Brothers Big Sisters makes meaningful, monitored matches between adult volunteers ("Bigs") and children ("Littles")

Research has shown that positive relationships between youth and their Big Brothers and Big Sisters mentors have a direct and measurable impact on children's lives. By participating in Big Brothers and Big Sisters' youth mentoring programs, Little Brothers and Sisters, compared to their peers who did not participate in the program, are more confident in their schoolwork performance, able to get along better with their families, less likely to begin using illegal drugs, less likely to begin using alcohol, and less likely to skip to school.

To learn how you can donate or volunteer contact your local Big Brothers Big Sisters office:

BBBS of Northwest Georgia Mountains, Inc.
101 E Crawford Street - Suite 400
Dalton, GA 30720
bigb@windstream.net
www.bbbsnga.org
(706) 278-0702

Anderson Office
3223 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd
Anderson, SC 29625
norrisf@bbbsupstate.com
www.bbbsupstate.com
(864) 483-0180