Turn Your Passion into a Mission to Help Others

English: Logo for the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation as of September 2008. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Ever thought about entering the 2012 ING New York City Marathon, but needed a little extra inspiration to get you there? Or, maybe you tried to get into the NYC marathon through the lottery, but were one of the thousands who didn't get selected?

Well, today might be your lucky day! The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, dedicated to curing spinal cord injury and improving the quality of life for people living with paralysis, is looking for enthusiastic, inspiring and committed people to run in honor of those who cannot. The Foundation has 30 coveted spots available on Team Reeve for the 2012 ING New York City Marathon, taking place on November 4, 2012. Participants are required to raise a minimum of $4,000 for the Foundation.

To apply for a spot, simply visit http://tinyurl.com/82auwxs to fill out the application. Applications will be vetted by the Foundation, with winners being notified within approximately one week of submission.

Additionally, Team Reeve has teamed up with exclusive training facility La Palestra in New York City, which will provide free coaching, strength training, nutrition counseling and training runs to all Team Reeve members. If you live outside of New York, the staff at La Palestra will provide tele-coaching.

So, to all you runners out there...Go Far. Be Inspirational. Do Good.

The information was provided by The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation through MyBlogSpark.

The Real Rosie the Riveter Oral History Archive at NYU, April 3

The Tamiment Library & Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives at NYU and Elizabeth Hemmerdinger and Spargel Productions Cordially invite you to celebrate the opening of The Real Rosie the Riveter Oral History Archive Comment by Ruth Milkman Professor of Sociology at the CUNY Graduate Center and Professor and Academic Director, Joseph F. Murphy Institute for Worker Education and Labor Studies With special guest Rosies Tuesday, April 3rd, 2012 6 pm to 8 pm New York University Tamiment Library Elmer Holmes Bobst Library, 10th Floor 70 Washington Square South New York, NY 10012 Light refreshments will be served RSVP to rsvp.bobst@nyu.edu

Resource: Laundry-Less Worry for moms and dads

LaundryLocal.com provides a quick and easy laundry and dry cleaning solution in NYC and Los Angeles (more cities coming soon) for those with very little time or too tired to do their own laundry. 

Using LaundryLocal is a FREE simple three-step process: 

1. Enter Your Location
2. Schedule a Laundry Pick-Up and Delivery with LaundryLocal’s pre-screened launderers and dry cleaners in your neighborhood
3. Confirm and Place Your Order

LaundryLocal then whisks your dirty duds away and their service providers carefully sort, wash, fold, and/or dry clean your clothes and return them smelling fresh and clean.  You can even customize your order with special instructions.

After you place your order, you’ll receive a notification via e-mail.  You can go online, check the order, and securely pay for your services.   There’s even a toll-free number (888-702-WASH) for customer service questions and information.  

LaundryLocal.com is perfect for:

• Apartment dwellers
• Busy moms and dads
• Single guys who are confounded by laundry soap and separating colors (you know who you are)
• Professionals on the go
• Seniors who have done more laundry than they care to remember
• Anyone looking for more free time!

Washing your clothes has never been so easy or affordable. 

Related articles

• How to Cut Your Laundry Bill in Half this year! (athomeorganicfarms.wordpress.com)
• The Awesomeness of Doing Laundry (butterflylessons.com)
• A Greener Dry Cleaning and Laundry Service Experience (mindfulmomma.typepad.com)
• Because the Laundry is Never Done (amandaswrinkledpages.com)

Millenniums of Manhattan Winter Package Specials

New York City’s Premier Hotel Brand Offers Specialized Packages all Winter Long

This winter, Millenniums of Manhattan is rolling out the red carpet for guests, offering an array of packages sure to delight any traveler, whatever their needs may be!

Each Millenniums of Manhattan location, Millennium Broadway Hotel and Millennium UN Plaza Hotel, is offering special New York City centric packages featuring some of Manhattan’s most beloved attractions, designed to give visitors the best of The Big Apple.

Here is a sample of the specials and packages being offered by Millenniums of Manhattan this winter:

MILLENNIUM BROADWAY HOTEL

Be the toast of Broadway at the Millennium Broadway Hotel in New York City, located in the heart of Times Square with a calming, upscale ambiance and access to Broadway theaters, Fifth Avenue shopping, midtown Manhattan business and fine dining.

Stay and Play                                                                                                   

Bring your family to New York City and stay at Millennium Broadway in the heart of Times Square.

This package includes:

·        Accommodations in a standard guest room

·        4 complimentary discounted coupons (50% off regular price) for Gray Line’s Walking/Audio Tour

·        4 complimentary discounted coupons ($6 off adults; $4 off children) to Madame Tussauds Wax Museum.

Terms & Conditions

Based on availability. Offer is non-transferable. Promo code for booking: STAYPLAY

Millennium Broadway's Celebration Package

Millennium Broadway is celebrating 20 years in Times Square in 2010. Help kick off our special date with our New York City hotel's Celebration Package!

This package includes:

• Overnight accommodations
• Full American Breakfast for two in our Manhattan hotel's Restaurant Charlotte
• Free in-room movie
• Popcorn, soda, candy delivered to room
• 2 Millennium Broadway Celebration cupcakes delivered to your hotel room

Terms & Conditions

Based on availability. Package is non-transferable. Promo code for booking: BIRTHDAY

Broadway Plus Parking

Enjoy our Broadway hotel's perfect location, Times Square views plus valet parking to make your trip to New York City easy and stress free.

This package comes with:

• Overnight Accommodations
• Valet Parking

Terms & Conditions

Based on availability. Package is non-transferable. Valet Parking only; 24-Hour Parking. No “in and out” services. Promo code for booking: BPPARKING

MILLENNIUM UN PLAZA HOTEL

Offering the best views in the world's greatest city, New York City, the Millennium UN Plaza welcomes business travelers, foreign dignitaries and sightseers from around the world to experience the hotel’s signature ambiance and prime location on midtown Manhattan’s trendy East Side.

Summer in Winter                                                                                 

Featuring the only indoor tennis court in any hotel in the city, guests to the Millennium UN can warm up with a private court time on the hotel’s 38th floor, and afterwards, enjoy panoramic city views from the heated pool on the 27th floor.

Guests who book the Summer in the Winter Package receive:

• One night stay in a Superior Room
• Private court time for one hour
• Access to heated indoor pool and fitness center on the 27th floor
• Two complimentary drink tickets at the hotel’s Ambassador Grill

The Summer in the Winter Package is available from November 1st to March 31st, priced from $249. Private lessons with a tennis pro are also available for an additional cost.

Terms & Conditions

Based on availability. Offer is non-transferable. Promo code for booking: SUMMERW

Millennium Romance                                                                                       

Treat your special someone to a romantic getaway in New York City. Let Millennium make it easy for you with this Manhattan hotel deal. Our Millennium Romance Package will pamper you with:

• Early check-in available upon request
• In-room sparkling wine and chocolate covered strawberries upon arrival
• Full American Buffet Breakfast for two in our restaurant The Ambassador Grill
• Access to fitness center and indoor swimming pool
• Late check-out available upon request

Terms & Conditions

Package is based on availability. Blackout dates might apply. Offer is non-transferable.

Promo code for booking: ROMANCE

Please visit www.millenniumhotels.com for further information.

New law strengthens penalty for injuring pedestrians while driving recklessly; PSA campaign to feature national print and outdoor ad exposure

NEW YORK – With the start of the school year just days away, a public awareness campaign regarding the recently-signed Elle’s Law was unveiled today.  The legislation, sponsored by New York Assembly Member Micah Kellner and State Senator Martin Malavé Dilan, was signed earlier this month by Governor David Paterson.  Elle’s Law strengthens state motor vehicle laws by increasing the penalty for injuring a pedestrian while driving recklessly.  The law is named for 4-year-old Elle Vandenberghe, who was struck by a driver who reversed through a crosswalk to secure a parking space in September 2009.

The ad campaign, featuring Elle’s smiling face and taglines including “Reckless Driving Wrecks Lives,” “Children Break… When Drivers Don’t,” and “She Almost Died For A Parking Space,”  will appear inside 250 New York City Transit buses, at approximately 30 bus shelters across New York City, on billboards statewide, and in the pages of national newspapers and magazines including Harper’s Bazaar, People Style Watch, Sports Illustrated, The New York Observer and The Wall Street Journal.  The campaign was created by the New York City-based advertising agency Chowder, Inc.

“I am proud that Elle’s Law will help protect the millions of students across New York state who are heading back to school this month, as well as pedestrians of all ages,” said Heather Vandenberghe, Elle’s mother, who first urged lawmakers to pass the legislation as her daughter began to recover from the near-fatal accident.  “On behalf of parents everywhere, I would like to thank Governor Paterson, Assembly Member Kellner, State Senator Dilan and the generous supporters and media companies who provided their services pro bono to help make this public awareness campaign a reality.” 

Elle Vandenberghe was on her way to preschool when she was struck by a motorist driving backwards on a Manhattan street to secure a parking spot.  Elle, who was three years old at the time of the accident, spent eight months in the hospital and continues to recover from a massive head trauma and brain damage.  Meanwhile, the driver was given a traffic summons, per New York State law.  The newly-passed “Elle’s Law” will result in any driver injuring a pedestrian while driving recklessly having his or her license suspended for up to a year.  (Current laws are already very strict for reckless driving either under the influence or impaired by alcohol.)

“One of the ads reads, ‘Reckless Driving Wrecks Lives’,” said Heather Vandenberghe. “I hope that Elle’s Law will act as a strong deterrent to reckless drivers, and in doing so will prevent other families from enduring what ours has.”

In addition to the PSA campaign, the web site http://www.elleslaw.org will feature resources including information on the 38 states – plus Washington D.C. – that do not appear to have laws specific to pedestrian safety, and a form visitors may use to contact their local legislators to advocate for similar laws.  A Facebook “fan” page can be found at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Elles-Law/140850212621514.

Companies who provided pro bono services toward the Elle’s Law campaign include Dan Klores Communications; Chowder Inc.; the LVMH Group; Kerwin Communications; Digital Color Concepts; CBS Outdoor; Cemusa; Fuel Outdoor; and the publications Harper’s Bazaar, People Style Watch, Sports Illustrated, The New York Observer, The Wall Street Journal and Departures magazine, with more to launch in the coming weeks.

According to 2008 data from the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, there were more than 15,000 pedestrian accidents statewide, with more than 97% resulting in physical injuries. Only 2% of those accidents involved drugs or alcohol.

Meet Leslie Blodgett and Get an Autographed Bottle of Bare Skin 11/18 and 11/19!

If you’re going to be in or around NYC or Tampa this week, RSVP today for your chance to meet Leslie Blodgett—and get a bottle of Bare Skin autographed!

Leslie will be making two in-store appearances to celebrate the launch of her exclusive new fragrance collection, Leslie Blodgett Perfume Diaries!  Come talk beauty with the woman behind the Bare Skin scent, sample the fragrance, and if you’re one of the first 100 to buy a bottle on the day of the event, Leslie will sign it!*

Sephora Times Square

At 42^nd Street and 7^th Avenue

Wednesday, November 18

5:30-7:30 PM

RSVP here!

Sephora International Plaza

2223 N. West Shore Blvd.

(Cross-Streets: West Shore & Boy Scout Blvd.)

Thursday, November 19

6-8 PM

RSVP here!

*Leslie Blodgett Perfume Diaries purchase required for bottle or packaging to be autographed. Autograph possible but not guaranteed after first 100 bottles have been purchased on day of event.