Beaufort Nonprofits and Charities

I whole-heartedly endorse this organization for the awareness they bring to heart health matters for the military community to include active-duty service members, their families, and veterans. The relationships they have with other organizations and the outreach events they conduct brings awareness to the standards of care issues that face our active-duty service members, their families, and veterans, especially since the tremendous stress they are under makes them more susceptible to heart issues. Furthermore, this organization addresses a personal issue that has affected my life and my family’s lives. Myself, being a veteran with a history of heart issues in my family and getting of the age to start worrying about heart issues have concerns for my heart health. My father passed away from heart issues, my younger brother has already had three heart attacks so the family history is substantial. I use the VA system for my health care and have been told I am of an age to start having heart check-ups such as ultrasound on my arteries. At the same doctor’s appointment was also told that those services were not available at the VA clinic or VA hospital for my care so I would need to seek civilian services for this test. (I have since this appointment had a TIA - mini stroke, which I think with proper testing may have been detected earlier issues that lead to this) In addition, my son, who was born in 1987, was born with a heart condition. When we were stationed in Puerto Rico there wasn’t care available for his condition, so we had to fly back to the US for medical care and check-ups. I feel Military Hearts Matter helps bring awareness to the lack of care available to those who serve, their family members, and veterans.

This foundation is a tribute to two beautiful young people that were tragically lost to soon to a drunken driver .This foundation provides supports and guidance for individuals who have been affected by drunk driving because the actions made by one individual affects all those who loved the lives lost.

A State Trooper thanks COWS after being shot in the line of duty -<br><br>This Thanksgiving I would like to give a big thank you to the C.O.W.S organization.<br><br>After being shot in the line of duty this year, COWS reached out to me and offered to assist in anyway they could for my children. During this trying time in my families life my kids did not understand completely, my youngest didn’t understand why daddy couldn’t play or why I was in the hospital, or why you have to be careful when just trying to snuggle. My oldest was scared - didn’t know what to think. A job he has always been proud of and admired, a job he talked about in school on many occasions, a job he was proud to talk about and show off my car at his school, a job that meant so much to this kid that worships everything about his dad. <br>— Now has become a job that almost took his dad from him, a job that scares him, a job that has made him at such a young age understand so much about this crazy world. <br>He turned on the news a 6 in the morning after my incident to see what had happened to his daddy. A 6 year old shouldn’t know how to do that. When COWS reached out to me I was really grateful after seeing the struggles my children were going through. COWS put a smile back on their faces. If only for a little while, they felt special. People they did not know were sending them gifts and helped us to keep their lives as normal as possible.<br><br>Seeing the light in their eyes when the big box was for them, seeing them play with the gifts, just seeing them feel special because someone out there cares about the work their daddy does also cares about them. Really helped them recover that feeling - especially for my oldest - that there is still good in this world and in the job they have always cherished.<br><br>COWS I thank you and support you for all you do for the children of wounded services men. You change the lives in these kids for they live a life not like most. In a world full of hate because people refuse to just get along, a world that idolizes criminals. Organizations like COWS keep that good light burning. God bless and Happy Thanksgiving.

Currently headed by a gentleman who feels it is appropriate to talk down to women. The president, Ron, also feels free to spend money without seeking approval from the community. He also allows certain people who he favors to have improvements to their home approved and deny those same improvements by others who he dislikes denied. He is an entitled pig who looks at our community as his fiefdom. <br><br>In addition, he and his wife are working to change all the covenant to be more restrictive and give themselves more power. <br><br>The secretary of the HOA also feels free to insult and demean veterans and anybody who dares to disagree with her. She is a horrible human being who freely runs her mouth.

Kids love the whole operation!

Received excellent resources to teach children about natural disasters. The children enjoyed the books and songs and doing the volcano dance.

From Victim to Survivor: A Story of Hope<br>Hope Haven of the Lowcountry<br>www.hopehavenlc.org<br><br> A young woman is raped by her boyfriend. She tells him no, she does not want to have that type of sex with him, but he doesn&rsquo;t listen and he forces her. Afterwards, she is bruised, beaten and betrayed. She calls the police and is taken to the nearest hospital. Her boyfriend is arrested, but he may not even be held overnight and could be home before her. Already feeling violated and exposed, her clothing is taken from her as collection of evidence in the investigation and she is asked to wait in a room she can&rsquo;t leave in nothing but a hospital gown, which after her assault makes her feel more exposed. The nurse shows a stranger into the room. He says he&rsquo;s a volunteer advocate from Hope Haven of the Lowcountry, a child advocacy and rape crisis center. He begins telling her what Hope Haven is, how they offer counseling, legal services, medical referrals, and advocacy for her. He tells her that what happened to her is not her fault, and that what she was wearing, how sober she was, or who she had sex with in the past should ever be used as reasons to justify her rape. Rape is never justified. He tells her that the doctor is going to collect evidence from her body and it is going to make her feel more violated, but it is the best option to make sure she gets justice for the crime committed against her. She has the option to not report or to collect the evidence and report later. She decides to go through with the exam and all the evidence is collected. Afterwards, the advocate asks her about her safety and whether or not she wants to go home. She says she doesn&rsquo;t feel safe. So, the advocate gives her the contact information for a local domestic abuse shelter and she calls and makes the arrangements. She spends the night at the hospital. But, before she goes to sleep she knows that tomorrow she has somewhere safe to go, that an advocate was by her side when no else could be, that her evidence was handled properly by the hospital and the detectives, and that tomorrow someone from the Hope Haven staff would be there for her.<br> As a volunteer advocate, I&rsquo;ve seen assault victims just like this one. I&rsquo;ve been that stranger who had to walk into a hospital room and tell a victim that everything would be okay. I became a volunteer two years ago after graduating from college and moving back home to Beaufort, SC. I started volunteering at my church and that is where I learned about Hope Haven. After going to Mercer University and where I learned about the horrors of rape, sexual assault, and sex trafficking throughout the world, I wanted to do my small part to help within my community. After 25 hours of training, I learned how to be an advocate for victims of sexual assault, and how many obstacles they face when reporting their assault. I learned that most victims don&rsquo;t report for fear of being blamed. I learned that 1 in 4 women will be assaulted in their lifetime and 1 in 6 men will be assaulted in theirs. I learned that only 6% of assailants will ever be convicted for their assault. And, I learned that rape and sexual assault are not far flung problems in big cities, foreign countries, and differing cultures across the sea, but is an epidemic worldwide, even in our own community. While this is usually a subject that many people choose to ignore, I stand with Hope Haven that it is an issue that needs discussion and more importantly needs action.<br>Hope Haven is the road to recovery for children and adult victims of trauma in 5 counties of the South Carolina Lowcountry. Last year, they serviced 544 clients with counselling, support groups, and advocacy, while also furthering prevention efforts in at-risk homes and local schools to stop the epidemic from spreading. While I hope I can make a small difference in the life of a victim, I know that Hope Haven makes all the difference in the world. Their biggest goal is to make every victim, their friends, family, and society around them, no longer see themselves as victims, but to empower them as survivors and help them get back to living life.<br>

Beaufort County Open Land Trust is an accredited land trust. Accreditation means Beaufort County Open Land Trust meets national quality standards for protecting important natural places and working lands forever. Beaufort County Open Land Trust has demonstrated to the Land Trust Accreditation Commission its commitment to excellence. Accredited land trusts meet national quality standards for protecting important natural places and working lands forever. These land trusts demonstrate their commitment to excellence by adopting Land Trust Standards and Practices, the ethical and technical guidelines for the responsible operation of a land trust, and meeting the accreditation requirements drawn from them. Learn More: http://www.landtrustaccreditation.org/about.

My husband and I have a small traveling resident theatre company catering to seniors in retirement homes, senior centers and life care facilities. We would not exist without the advice and support of the Arts Council of Beaufort County. Jenny and JW Rhone have offered their knowledge and support every on every step of our journey. They have not only supported our small company, but have ccreated a wonderful space for artists to perform, paint, design and teach. <br>The positive energy of <br>ARTworks is contageous. I hope this lives on for many, many years in Beaufort