The Gift of Time

10th AnniversaryCorporate Sponsorship Opportunities

5precious minutes and counting given to families over the last ten years.

Andre Sobel River of Life Foundation

1 2 6 4 2 0, ,

Contact:Anne Swireaswire@andreriveroflife.orgT: 240.994.4183

You can give the Gift of Time to families across the country.

Find out more...

It was one womanʼs time with her son...A new period marred the life of Valerie the day her teenage son Andre was diagnosed with a malignant and inoperable brain tumor. A year after, in 1995, the family suffered his devastating loss. Shortly thereafter, Valerieʼs mother died, and a year later to the day, her husband Erwin, 54, took his own life. Through the subsequent months of crushing grief, Valerie sought to redirect her life.

What has continued to haunt her was the witnessing of children who were alone in hospitals: having to face their fears, their pain, treatments, and, at times, even their death alone. In most cases, these children were from single parent/single caregiver homes. Upon reflecting on her own experiences with her child, she found it hard to imagine how brutal it must be for those in a similar situation, without financial means or the support of another caring partner.

This injustice was the motivation for establishing the Andre Sobel River of Life Foundation (ASRL). As if surprised by a spiritual revelation, the vision of the foundation and its purpose became clear to her. “Experiencing the sudden onset of a life-threatening illness of a child devastates every family,” she said. “But for the single parent without financial resources, it is inconceivable.”

that has given hope to so many others...

“I can tell you that our son Simon has benefited greatly. Without the assistance you pledged and provided I would not have able to spend the time that I have had with him, I would not be able to speak on his behalf, and be the advocate as I have been for him, you made all the difference.”

~ Danny Meyer

“We have come a long way…the Andre Sobel River of Life has played a big part in keeping CJ and I together. So if we ever reached the point where we have nothing left we will remember we have it all and that is life with each other.”

~ Cassie Sargent

“If it wasnʼt for a foundation like yours, our family could easily have been without a home.”

~ Joy J. Hunell

“I canʼt tell you what it means to our family to have received your support. The mortgage payment and grocery money were a welcome breather and will go a long way in helping us scramble to our feet again financially.”

~ William M. Torres

children braving their way through illness...

Four year old Alia is now in hospice care in the end stages of Acute Myeloid Leukemia. Her parents want only to comfort, love and be with her, and each has taken leave from work to be at her bedside.

Alia

Aliaʼs Dad works in technical support and her Mom is a Navy airline mechanic for the U.S. military. But as Aliaʼs health declines, her familyʼs household and medical bills are mounting fast, and Mom and Dad are struggling on their limited income to make ends meet.

Daniela & Andrew

AlexIf medals were given for trips to the hospital, Alex would display a chest of shining brass. This thoughtful eight year old has endured more than 10 surgeries to tackle his congenital facial paralysis and cardiac problems.

For his single Mom, being with Alex during his surgeries and recovery was non-negotiable, so she scaled back her full-time work to care for him. But medical bills piled up quickly. So did household heating and rent bills and the added cost of gas for the six hour trip to the hospital. And Alexʼs two other adopted siblings also needed Momʼs attention.

Daniela and Andrewʼs beloved father died suddenly of a massive heart attack in 2005, leaving their mom a widow, and the family struggling to cope with their tragic loss. Just as Mom had begun to pull her life back together and had started training for a new job, thirteen-year-old Daniela, a top ranked tennis player in her state, was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. It was Thanksgiving, 2008. Daniela has now lost much of her ability to speak or move, and as she is losing her sight, her motherʼs constant loving care is non-negotiable.

When ASRL heard about Bernardineʼs superhuman efforts, we realized that she had come to the end of her physical, financial and emotional resources. As Danielaʼs condition declined further, the familyʼs finances grew more precarious, and the family risked losing their home – their one refuge during this painful and uncertain time.

and parents being able to provide care.

The Andre Sobel River of Life Foundation lifted me high during one of the lowest times in my life.  My daughter being diagnosed with a rare incurable life threatening illness was by far the worst day a mother could experience, but the financial devastation was almost too much to bear. 

One day during a particularly high stressful moment I came across the Andre Sobel River of Life website.  I called the number on the screen and the people on the other side changed my life at that moment.  Not only did I personally speak with Valerie Sobel, but her entire staff listened when I cried and took action.  It may not seem like much to most, but when there's nothing anyone can do to change your child's condition, there's someone there to help make life more bearable.

Not worrying about the rent for a couple of months or wondering if this is the day they're coming to shut off the electric is a burden bigger than most can imagine and the Andre Sobel River of Life Foundation lifted that burden and allowed me to focus all of my energy on my daughter and her care.  Thank you so much to everyone at the ASRL Foundation for making a difference in the world one family at a time! 

Kimberly Boschi

You can give the Gift of Time to families across the country.

Find out more...

Gift of Time Hospital Sponsor

ASRL provides major grant support to top ranked pediatric hospitals around the country to implement its “Gift of Time” family assistance program – providing “the gift of time” through urgent financial support to single parent families of seriously ill children when all other resources are exhausted. Aid is given within 24 hours of the request.

Sponsors may choose to fund an existing hospital partner or partners (each hospital costs $25,000/year) or propose a new affiliation with a pediatric hospital in the community of their choice.

Hospital Sponsors have allowed ASRL to expand into Chicago through a partnership with Memorial Childrenʼs Hospital and have sustained partnerships with:

•# Boston Childrenʼs Hospital•# Morgan Stanley Childrenʼs Hospital, NYC•# Childrenʼs Hospital of Philadelphia•# The Childrenʼs Inn at the National Institutes of Health•# Akron Childrenʼs Hospital •# Texas Childrenʼs Hospital•# Lucile Packard Childrenʼs Hospital at Stanford•# Childrenʼs Hospital Los Angeles •# Miller Childrenʼs Hospital, Long Beach •# Ventura County Childrenʼs Hospital, CA

pays for three months of overdue rent for a critically-ill child and their family facing eviction.

Your sponsorship is matched 1:1 by the hospital, doubling the impact of your giving.

$100,000 over four years

Gift of Time Hospital Sponsor

Hospital Sponsors will assist approximately 25 families at each hospital each year, and this impact is doubled because each hospital is required to match ASRL program funds 1:1.

Benefits to Hospital Sponsors:

•# Opportunity for your company to name the hospital family assistance program

•# Your company will be featured in a press release announcing its sponsorship to all ASRL media contacts and to hospital media contacts as negotiated

•# Your companyʼs sponsorship will be featured in an ASRL newsletter article and on the ASRL website

•# Twice annual narrative report documenting the many ways “the gift of time” has been given to families

•# Listing in ASRLʼs annual report

•# Invitations to special events, major donor recognition activities and receptions hosted by the Andre Sobel River of Life Foundation

•# Other benefits as mutually agreed along with regular updates from the Foundation.

Hospital sponsorships are also offered at the $75K, 50K and 25K levels/year.

pays for three months of overdue rent for a critically-ill child and their family facing eviction.

$100,000 over four years

Gift of Time Family Assistance Sponsor

ASRL provides urgent financial assistance to over 500 families each year whose children are seriously or terminally ill. By paying for rent, mortgages, utilities, transportation and other everyday needs for these struggling families, ASRL gives parents “the gift of time” to be at the bedside of their children, providing the child with the comfort, love and support they need.

Sponsors may elect to support families whose children have a particular disease or condition (Cancer cases, Respiratory cases, heart cases, or hemophilia cases, for example) or may provide general support to families whose children have any life-threatening diagnosis.

Benefits to “Gift of Time” Family Assistance Sponsors:

•# Your company will be featured in a press release announcing its sponsorship to all ASRL media contacts

•# Your companyʼs sponsorship will be featured in an ASRL online newsletter article and on the ASRL website

•# Your company will receive an annual narrative report documenting the many ways “the gift of time” has been given to families, along regular updates from the foundation

•# Your company will receive invitations to special events, major donor recognition activities and receptions hosted by the Andre Sobel River of Life Foundation

•# Other benefits as mutually agreed along with regular updates from the Foundation.

pays for three months of overdue rent for a critically-ill child and their family facing eviction.

$20,000-$100,000+ per year

Gift of Time Special Needs Sponsor

Paying rent, mortgages, transportation costs to the hospital, groceries, cell phone and utility charges and funding the special needs of siblings are the top ways that ASRL provides “the gift of time” to struggling families.

GIFT OF TIME Housing SponsorshipsGIFT OF TIME Travel Sponsorships

GIFT OF TIME Food and Groceries SponsorshipsGIFT OF TIME Keep in Touch Sponsorships

GIFT OF TIME Keep Warm Sponsorships GIFT OF TIME Siblings are Special Sponsorships

At the $5,000 - $25,000 level, sponsors may chose to give the gift of time in any of the above categories, knowing that your gift will give targeted support to financially desperate single parent families.

•# Your companyʼs sponsorship will be featured in an ASRL online newsletter article and on the ASRL website

•# Your company will receive an annual narrative report documenting the specific ways that your “gift of time” sponsorship – for housing, or travel, or sibling needs or the like -- has benefitted specific families, along regular updates from the foundation

•# Your company will receive invitations to special events, major donor recognition activities and receptions hosted by the Andre Sobel River of Life Foundation

•# Other benefits as mutually agreed

pays for three months of overdue rent for a critically-ill child and their family facing eviction.

$5,000-$25,000 per year

Gift of Time In-Kind Sponsor

ASRL welcomes inquiries from companies wishing to provide in-kind gifts to families of sick children such as:

•# Airline mileage

•# Gift, grocery and gas cards

•# New laptop computers and game technology for children isolated by their illness

•# Hotel and car rental vouchers

•# And other creative solutions that assist families needing access to their childʼs medical care

To inquire, please contact Courtney Kramer at 310-276-7111 or courtney@andreriveroflife.org.

pays for three months of overdue rent for a critically-ill child and their family facing eviction.

Make the Gift of Time Timeless by EndowingThe Andre Sobel Family Assistance Program

Your companyʼs gift of $100,000 and up may be used to endow the “Gift of Time” family assistance program within the Andre Sobel River of Life Foundation or at one of ASRLʼs partner hospitals around the country.

By endowing the program, and providing a perpetual stream of income to fund urgent family needs, your company will make “the gift of time” timeless – available now and for future families whose children face catastrophic illness.

For more information, contact ASRL CEO Anne P. Swire at 310-276-7111 or aswire@andreriveroflife.org.

pays for three months of overdue rent for a critically-ill child and their family facing eviction.

$100,000 and up

pays for three months of overdue rent for a critically-ill child and their family facing eviction.

Andre Sobel Award

Andre Sobel Award SponsorThe André Sobel River of Life Foundation offers an annual essay contest for young survivors of

a catastrophic illness. The award is an integral part of foundation. Offered annually since the launch of the foundation, the contest is now in its ninth year. The contest gives teen survivors the chance to share their stories and thoughts, providing a cathartic outlet for themselves and allowing others in their close circle to gain insight. It encourages the winners to pursue a cherished dream after their illness, as Andre was not able to do.

Awards

•# $5000 cash prize for first place winner o#Winners may use prize money in whatever manner they wish. Previous winners have used

money to begin an online forum for cancer survivors, to take a longed-for family trip and to help pay for their college education.

•# Additional cash prizes to second and third place winners and three honorable mentions •# Gift card and certificate of participation for all entrants

Participation

•# Approximately 150 entries per contest•# Participants range in age from 12 to 21 years old with a majority of participants between 16 and

20 years old•# Entries from all across the United States. The top six essays in 2008 came from six different

states: NC, TX, KS, MD, AZ, and CA .

pays for three months of overdue rent for a critically-ill child and their family facing eviction.

Andre Sobel Award Sponsorship Opportunities

Award Sponsor: $25,000

o#Cash awards for 1st-3rd places and honorable mentions

o#High profile marketing and outreach of Award featuring Award sponsor

o#Winners event o#Special recognition and gift for

readers and judges o#Gift cards and recognition for all

participants

pays for three months of overdue rent for a critically-ill child and their family facing eviction.

Winners Event Sponsor: $10,000

o# To pay for all costs associated with a larger scale event to celebrate winners including transportation and lodging for winners

o#Opportunity to create a special event or experience for winners, such as a visit to your company or shadowing company executives

Participants Sponsor: $2,500

o# Covers the cost of gift cards and certificate of participation given to all entrants

Spanish Language Sponsor: $25,000

To cover cost of launching parallel SpanishLanguage component and attracting 150 newparticipants from Spanish-Speakingcommunity

o#Cash awards for 1st- 3rd places and honorable mentions

o#Gift cards and recognition for all participants

o#Marketing and outreach in Spanisho#Finding leaders in the Spanish

speaking community to serve as judges and readers

o#Special recognition and gift for readers and judges

The Gift of Time Campaign will be running through the end of 2010.

Sponsorship materials are available at http://www.andreriveroflife.org

or by contacting ASRL CEO Anne P. Swire at 310-276-7111 or aswire@andreriveroflife.org.