Turn books into powerful conversations with Little Voice Books!

fundraiser

New Name, Same Walk, Bigger Goal

It’s back!

For the fourth year in a row, Little Voice Books is excited to join The Dementia Society of Ottawa and Renfrew County in the Walk for Dementia! This powerful community event has brought people together since 1996 who have been impacted by alzheimer’s or a related dementia to raise funds for much-needed programs and services.

In August 2017, the Alzheimer Society of Ottawa and Renfrew County became The Dementia Society of Ottawa and Renfrew County to more properly reflect the constituency it helps and the scope of its expertise. And so, the Walk For Alzheimer’s became the Walk for Dementia.

While the name has changed, the goal remains the same!

When an individual receives a dementia diagnosis their life changes forever. So does that of their closest family or friends who often take on the role of caregiver. The majority of people who approach us for help, or are referred, are walking the dementia journey as a caregiver, spouse, child or close friend. On other occasions an individual who has been diagnosed with dementia will connect to us. Some of our social programs and education offerings are designed for caregivers to attend with their loved ones.

By offering caring and supportive counsel, dementia and caregiver information, education, referrals and help navigating the health and social care system as well as social, recreational and caregiver peer support The Dementia Society helps over 7,500 people every year and receives the support of thousands of donors, volunteers and supporters to sustain our efforts. This is truly a community organization working for its community.
– The Dementia Society

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Donate a Book to Toy Mountain Today!

This Christmas Little Voice is extremely excited to support a local initiative that is working towards bringing a smile to every child’s face in Ottawa on Christmas morning!

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Each year, Toy Mountain and the Salvation Army provide toys to over 20,000 children. This year, the goal is to leave no child in Ottawa without a gift to open on Christmas morning. By supporting the Toy Mountain Movement, you are helping children have a magical Christmas by not only donating a copy of Little Voice/La petite voix but also by contributing $5 from every book sale to the campaign!

The Little Voice Movement is a way for us to use our platform to give back to our community and country. With every book sale, Little Voice donates $5 towards any give cause or charity. With Toy Mountain, we’re asking you to use the coupon code below to purchase a book that will be donated to a child this Christmas.

Every book that is purchased using the coupon code “toymountain” will not only be donated to this incredible cause but Little Voice will also donate $5 from each book sale to support the Toy Mountain in reaching their goal of giving every child in Ottawa a gift this Christmas.

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See how you can fundraise $15, 000 in one month!

By now, you’ve heard about the Little Voice Movement and the potential it has to make a difference in your school, community, or child’s future.

With many teachers getting ready for back to school, a lot of our social media has been flooded with stories on how teachers go above and beyond to support their classrooms by purchasing supplies, books, materials, etc…

Little Voice is lucky to know many teachers across Canada and so, we know how many of our teachers pay for many of their classroom supplies out of pocket. Our Little Voice movement was launched with these teachers in mind.

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Côté Martial Arts Stands Behind One Young World

“Don’t let money fears stop you from chasing your dream!”

With One Young World less than two months away, Amanda’s fundraising campaign is now more important than ever! In order to attend One Young World, delegates must fundraise £2,655 (GBP) – roughly $4600 Canadian.

I am truly thankful for the community support I’ve received thus far, without your donations, my dream of attending One Young World would be far from a reality!”

Little Voice is very excited to announce Côté Martial Arts as one of Amanda’s official OYW sponsors! (more…)

INTRODUCING THE LITTLE VOICE MOVEMENT

After almost one year in the making … here we are. Today, Little Voice is extremely excited to introduce to the world for the very first time …

The Little Voice Movement

In December 2014, the Little Voice team set out to create a children’s book we hoped would inspire all those who would read it. We wanted to not only develop a book that would encourage children to listen to their inner voice and chase their dreams, but also a platform that would enable us to give back in our community.

After launching the Little Voice book, we succesfully created the Little Voice Forget Me Not Project, a project that allowed us to use our platform to donate a portion of every book sale to the Alzheimer Society of Canada. To date, Little Voice has raised close to $7,000 dollars in honour of Amanda’s grandmother Teresina Bernardo, and has been recognized by eTALK Canada and Starbucks Canada for our fundraising movement. 

In addition to the Little Voice Forget Me Not Project, Little Voice has worked closely with a number of community initiatives, supporting local schools, charities and not-for-profits … but we wanted to do more.

If we could create a movement and fundraise close to $7,000 dollars, what was stopping us from supporting others within our community to do the same.

Today, Little Voice is pleased to launch our official movement: The Little Voice Ambassador Program that will enable Canadians across Canada, children and adults alike, to start their own movement under one of three platforms: 1) For your school; 2) For your Community; or 3) For your Future.

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By creating a movement under our first platform, teachers and parents can fundraise on behalf of their school. By creating a movement for your community, people can fundraise on behalf of a local charity, cause, individual or group in need. By creating a movement under our last platform, a parent or child can fundraise using the Little Voice Ambassador Program to support a child’s future education with a donation to their Registered Educations Savings Plan (RESP).

Movement Page ButtonsThere is no age limit, no time limit and no cost to join, simply a desire to make a difference in your community, school, or future!

With every movement, Little Voice will donate $5 from every book sale to the Ambassador’s cause. Registered Ambassadors will receive a coupon code that will track sales through our website and enable us to donate back to their movement. In turn, Little Voice continues to donate a portion of every book sale to the Alzheimer Society while supporting many more movements across Canada.

As we launch our movement today, we are very excited to have a number of movements already underway! Visit our Registered Movements page to learn about our first movements with CHEO, Proud to Be Me, the Alzheimer Society of Ottawa and Renfrew County, #RosalinaStrong, the Half Moon Bay Public School and more!

Be sure to catch Little Voice on CTV Ottawa Morning Live this morning at 9:20am, at noon with UpFront Ottawa and this evening from 7:00 to 8:00pm on Twitter, using  the hashtag #wethelittle, and Facebook, on our event page, for a live chat where we will answer all your questions about our movement, our book and our journey. 

A BIG thank you to everyone who has continued to support our message and vision.

By working together, we hope the Little Voice Movement will grow to not only impact our local community here in Ottawa, but also communities across Canada.

Supporting the #RosalinaStrong Pixie Fund

On February 4, 2016, the Bedynski-Belli family received the news that their five year old daughter Rosalina had been diagnosed with high risk, stage 4, Neuroblastoma.

When we first found out this news, our family was beyond speechless. Shortly after Rosalina’s diagnosis, we were introduced to the Candlelighters of Ottawa, an organization that helps families like ours cope with cancer related situations. They provided us with binders of information, prepared us for the procedures Rosalina would have to undergo, and much more.  They also donated an iPad to Rosalina filled with apps focused on learning activities in order for her to not fall behind in school. These are only but a few of the reasons why Candlelighters hold such an important place in our hearts, along with all those at CHEO.

The Bedynski-Belli family has set out to raise funds to support both the Candlelighters and CHEO for all of their amazing work in supporting their daughter during this difficult time.

When Little Voice learned of the #RosalinaStrong Pixie Fund, we knew we had to give back.

Screen Shot 2016-06-08 at 3.39.19 PMChildren are the biggest reminder of that little voice inside us, the one that gives us strength during times of weakness, and hope during times of despair. In Rosalina’s case, her little voice continues to motivate her to be strong as she undergoes treatment. Rosalina is currently undergoing her fifth treatment of chemotherapy but she remains strong with the support of her family and community.

To date, the #RosalinaStrong Pixie Fund has raised over $3,500 dollars both online and in person.

 

In addition to Little Voice’s regular donations to the Alzheimer Society of Canada, from June 10 to June 30, Little Voice has committed to supporting Rosalina’s fundraising efforts by donating $5 from every online book sale to her cause.

Let us rally behind the Bedynski-Belli family and pray for Rosalina’s speedy recovery.

You can also support this cause directly by visiting https://www.youcaring.com/rosalina-575383!

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What it means to Dream BIG

Where to begin… 

It seems like just yesterday, I came across a Kickstarter campaign for a film that shared a message much like my own. This message encourages children, and adults alike, to believe in themselves and their dreams! After watching the trailer for the Dream, Girl film,  I saw myself and the journey I had taken with Little Voice in the stories of the women featured in this film. I saw my struggles, my fears, my determination and that same little voice that once inspired me to write a children’s book, inspire others to do extraordinary things too!

On the morning of June 5th, the Dream Big Dream, Girl Luncheon, I asked myself how I got here. How did watching a trailer to a documentary, produced by two women I didn’t really know, turn into me putting on an event for over 140 women. The short answer: inspiration. The longer answer: when an idea gets in my head, I run with it, and that’s exactly what led me to put on this inspirational luncheon.

I didn’t really know what to expect going into this. Would people be interested? Would people attend? Would they be as inspired as I hoped they would?

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An Open Letter in Support of the Dream Big Dream, Girl Inspirational Luncheon

Hello,

My name is Amanda Bernardo and I am a local Ottawa author and advocate for both the Alzheimer Society of Ottawa/Renfrew County and Canada.Two years ago, I set out to write
a story I hoped would inspire all those who would read it. Along the way, I realized I was also creating a platform where I could create real change in my community and in the lives of
all those my story would touch.

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In creating this platform, I began promoting a positive movement that would inspire people to listen to their little voice; a voice that would encourage them to be proud of who they are and capable of accomplishing anything! I began working closely with local schools and
organizations, such as CHEO, the Boys and Girls Club and the Proud to be Me Foundation, by donating books and providing inspirational talks.

In sharing my story, I also knew early on that I wanted to tell a story that I felt was not told
nearly enough. This story, unlike my own, is one where our little voice is forgotten, where the memories that make up the sum of our life story are stripped away and the loved ones that are left behind are suddenly strangers. This is a story that we refer to now a day as Alzheimer’s disease. In my attempt to tell this story, I created the Little Voice Forget Me Not Project;
a project that donates a portion of every book sale to the Alzheimer Society of Canada, a cause I hold extremely dear to my heart and have pursued in honour of my grandmother.

As a passionate volunteer in my community, I wanted my movement to not only teach
kids about themselves but also about the importance of giving back and helping others, whatever the cause may be. 

This upcoming June, I am hosting an event that will promote each of these stories, with a
special focus on inspiring women and young girls in our community. The event is a special screening of the soon to be released film “Dream, Girl”, a documentary whose producer comes from our very own nation’s capital. The film’s mission is to share the stories of amazing female entrepreneurs, from brand new startups to million dollar industries, in order to inspire the next generation of leaders. Proceeds from this event will also go towards supporting the 2016 #WalkForAlzheimers!

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The film’s world premiere will be this May in New York City, with special screenings that will
follow shortly after in Canada and the United States. When I first watched the “Dream, Girl”
trailer, I knew I wanted to be part of this movement and share this inspirational message
with others. The film brings to light the importance of teaching young girls and women
that they too can become leaders:

“Any person, male or female, could be a leader. Anyone is capable, it just so happen
for us [women] it’s more complicated. I hope for us this is the generation that changes because I think that it’s time for change.”

[embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2T4j1aTa4A%5B/embedyt%5D

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Walk for Memories 2016

Little Voice is extremely excited to announce that we will be walking our second walk in support of the Alzheimer Society of Ottawa and Renfrew County this upcoming May! 

Not only will Amanda and Samantha be registering a team for this amazing event; they are also very excited to be on this year’s planning committee!

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Little Voice is hoping to raise $1,000+ in honour of Teresina Bernardo! If you would like to donate to our walk, or if you’d like to join our team, please follow the link below! 

Thank you in advance for your generosity and support!

Click here to join our team or donate to our walk!