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Summer

mbuckley — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 15:41:53 +0000

Well, well well. It’s been a while since I have been here. Busy, busy, busy. Where to start? The boys are great – Ted & I started a lawn care business and we mainly do grass cuts on foreclosed homes. He is still cleaning carpets and is looking to go back to school. Tom is doing very well in school and has a plan – he changed his major to liberal arts and will apply to Va Tech for next year. He wants to be a Health & Human Services major. Matt has is driving permit and his heading to NJ next week to visit. He went to a teen camp for 3 weeks and had a blast. Billy’s summer has been very busy – camp for a week, NJ for 3 weeks and football practice has started. First day of school is 8/24. YEAH!

The Foundation continues to roll along. We did get our state funding for this fiscal year. BUT we are facing budget cuts btwn 5-15%. This would be devastating. Beacon House serves almost 50 folks and No Limits 16. The friendAble social club has a new location – we are using a city facility that is much larger and the space is perfect for our needs.

Enjoy the dog days of summer!

Matt

Catching up

mbuckley — Thu, 28 May 2009 15:51:20 +0000

Hi all – haven’t posted in a bit. So what has been going on? The Spring Ball at Tallwood High School was a huge success. I guestimate almost 200 attendees! I did have a tear in my eye when I saw Scott walking in with a corsage for his date. The night was special and meant so much to them. I want to thank everyone who helped and donated time a great clothes. We are very excited about doing it again next year.

It is hard to believe that it almost been a year since we won the contract to open Beacon House and No Limits. We have come a long way from working from a kitchen table.

The boys are doing well – Ted is working, Tom is taking a full load for summer semester, Matt is doing very well at school, and so is Billy. As for me, the Foundation is taking up some time and I am looking at a couple of opportunities in the business process outsourcing world.

Take care,

Matt

Spring Ball

mbuckley — Fri, 08 May 2009 18:39:41 +0000

Tonight is the night! It is our first annual Spring Dance! We are so excited!

It is for adults with disabilities (not just brain injury survivors) and it is being held at Tallwood High School. The date is this evening from 6 pm – 9 pm.

Here are some more details: Tallwood High School is hosting the Ball and is sponsored/adopted by the Noblemen and Nobleteens of Tallwood. Student groups are taking care of everything and really running the show. There will be a red carpet, banners, photographers, DJ, food. Invitations have been mailed out. For the last two weeks, people have been dropping off dresses, gowns, a tuxedo, sport coats, dress shirts and slacks, shoes and belts. We all want them to look their best. One group home has rented tuxedo’s and has hired a limo!

Right now we have reservations for 190 people and we are expecting another 75 – 100 staff and volunteers. This has taken a life of its own! I really want the our community to know about and see what this remarkable group of young people have done for a population that is in desperate need of social activities.

This is their Prom.

Keep the Faith!

Matt

Next week

mbuckley — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 18:40:02 +0000

Friday, May 8th is the night of the first annual friendAble Social Club’s Spring Ball! We have 175 reservations plus at least another 70 staff and volunteers. We asked and you responded: people have donated gowns, dresses, sport coats, dress shirts, slack, shoes, belts. Cousin Christine sent us 30 brand new ties! People are gonna look sharp. I want to thank Tallwood High School, the Noblemen and Nobleteens in advance for what is going to be a great night.

Yes, I know Tuesday of last week was the five year anniversary of Mary’s injury. It was uneventful and a calm day. The pain is less, so is the hurt but those will be with me the rest of my life. The great news is I have such great memories of my time with Mary and her legacy lives on in our boys.

On Monday the 20th, I was invited to speak to medical students at Eastern Virginia Medical School to give my perspective of the health care industry. Good thing I was given only 15 mintues. I enjoy talking to them and trust me, when we talking (I was part of a panel), there were tears and looks of shock. Maybe they were starting to realize that the classroom is not real life.

The golf outing is almost upon us – May 15th. So far, a good show of support and we are anticipating about 60 golfers. Contact me if you are interested in playing or helping – matt@maryfoundation.org

Keep the Faith,

Matt

Easter

mbuckley — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 18:57:21 +0000

Our Easter was great. Although the Easter Bunny did arrive late – he could not find the easter baskets! So he improvised and it all worked out. The boys wanted steaks on the grill for dinner. I thought “I can do that!”. So some nice steaks (grilled to perfection), mashed potatoes, stuffing, salad, vegatable medly and biscuits made for a great meal. Then to the couch to watch the end of the Masters. What a great tournament this year. I really enjoyed it and it was good to see some new faces challenging.

On June 9, the Beacon House and No Limits are going to a Tides minor league baseball game – 12:15 first pitch. And the price is right – FREE! The Tides and parent club, Orioles, have a program where they donate tickets to organizations like us. Pretty cool.

The Mayor of Va Bch is coming to visit us on April 23 and the clubhouse members love showing off!

Couple of other dates: May 8 is the Spring Ball and we have over 110 RSVP’s, not including staff! May 15th is our 3rd annual golf outing at Little Creek Amphib base. Check out the website for details: www.maryfoundation.org and come join the fun!. The next friendAble night is this Saturday and I think we will be doing karaoke.

That is all, for now.

Matt

This week

mbuckley — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 19:59:52 +0000

I am heading to Tallwood High School in a little bit. The student council selected the Mary Buckley Foundation as recipient of the proceeds from the student vs. faculty basketball game. I am very excited about this and want to acknowledge the SCA and Brian Mitchell. Going to the game also are clubhouse members Larry, Gigi and Karla. Joann and Venus will be there also. Should be a fun time.

Great news – our new and improved website is up and running. Check it out at www.maryfoundation.org

Upcoming events – our first Spring Ball and dance is May 8, also at Tallwood HS. The 3rd annual golf outing is May 15 at Little Creek Amphib base.

At home, everyone is fine. Matt now has his learner’s permit. Yikes! Billy is having 5 friends sleep over on Saturday. What, am I crazy?????

Have a great week and weekend.

Hello

mbuckley — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 20:11:13 +0000

all. Pretty standard week. Nephew Pete and his girlfriend were in town earlier in the week. It is always great when the boys and Pete get together. They all enjoy each other’s company.

I think there is some confusion about the Foundation’s structure and all our programs. So here is the description: the Mary Buckley Foundation operates three programs: Beacon House clubhouse in Virginia Beach, No Limits day program in Onancock (Eastern Shore) and friendAble social club which uses the Beacon House office and is mainly funded by a Sentara Health Foundation grant. Joann’s drivers education program at the Va Bch public high schools is part of the Beacon House. Hope that helps.

At the Beacon House, we had our St. Patrick’s lunch yesterday and the corned beef and cabbage was awesome! Some of the best I’ve ever had (no offense Mom).

No Limits on the Eastern Shore will be celebrating its 10th birthday next Thursday, the 19th. So Joann and I will be heading up there for another St. Paddy’s lunch. Can’t wait!

The 3rd annual golf outing is set for May 15th at Little Creek’s Eagle Haven golf course. Please support us in any way you can. Look for an email from me – it will include the flyer with all the information.

Have a great weekend,

Matt

Happenings

mbuckley — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 21:20:25 +0000

Hi all – exciting stuff this week. We sure dodged a bullet with no snow accumulation this week.

Our very own Beacon House was featured in an article in this month’s Hampton Roads Health Journal. Here is the link: http://www.thehealthjournals.com/article-283-traumatic-brain-injury-putting-the-pieces-back-together.html. Jim, Larry and Mary are all members at the Beacon House. Plus I found out today that Tallwood High School here in Va Bch will be doing some stuff for the Foundation. First, on April 1, all proceeds from the teacher vs. student basketball game will be donated to us. Second, they will host the first friendAble social club’s spring dance on May 8. Red carpet and all. The 3rd annual golf outing is set for May 15. Thanks to cuz Jimmy, we will be playing at Little Creek Amphib Base’s Eagle Haven Golf Course. The details are going out tomorrow. So dust off the sticks!

Late last week, we met with Community Services Board of Virginia Beach. Our presentation introduced us and what we are doing to help the community. We put the idea out there to use a city facility to hold the social club. This was well received and we are hoping we can find a larger place.

The Foundation now has an intern (actually a practicum) and a volunteer who attends the Norfolk State Unversity’s clinical counselings school.

Keep the Faith,

Matt

The Happenings

mbuckley — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 20:04:56 +0000

Hello everyone – so, what is going on? Look for our new and improved website – it should be ready by next Monday. We are applying for several grants, including one to finish our kitchen build out.

The social club keeps on rolling – we had over 40 folks for game night! Some very exciting news – the social club will be having its first Spring Ball in May. It will be held at Tallwood High School in Virginia Beach (thanks Tallwood!). I’ll let you know the details as they unfold.

Our wish list is still alive and well: lcd projector, kitchen cabinets, van, 2 desktop computers with monitors, copy machine, Wii games.

Keep the faith,

Matt

Hmmmm

mbuckley — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 18:45:15 +0000

Hi all – pretty quiet week. Some kinda bug has gone through the Buckley house, starting with Billy and now I have the crud. Men are such wimps when we are sick. Anyway, been going to work but I probably shouldn’t because I don’t want the staff and clients catching the bug.

Things continue to go well. Monday was a holiday but Joann, Tommy and I spent the day re-painting the office. The wear and tear has taken its toll in only 4 months. Not complaining though – its a good problem to have. We now have an intern and a graduate student volunteer in addition to our staff of 8. I am heading to the Eastern Shore No Limits program tomorrow.

The Mary Buckley Foundation has chosen to be part of Virginia’s Wounded Warrior program where we would provide services to veterans who have suffered a brain injury. We are part of the Community Services Board’s grant application and we should know shortly in regards to the funding. Wish us luck.

Hard to imagine how far the MBF has come. I vividly remember my epiphany in June of 2005 when I heard Mary’s voice telling to quit feeling sorry for myself, get off my butt and make some good out of the tragedy. And here we are. Gotta say, I am proud of what we have done. It would not be what it is without a terrific staff and supporters.

Expect Miracles,

Matt