Beads of Courage

I bought the multi-colored bracelet and
necklace at the MOPS meeting!

The studio still isn't complete, but it's better and is now considered a work in progress rather than a mess!  My work this week was interrupted by my birthday and my Beads of Courage Party.  If you don't know about Beads of Courage, please follow the link and learn all about it.  I'm going to give a brief description.  This is an organization that allow children with life threatening illnesses to tell their story with beads.

When a hospital and doctors join together in this program (M.D. Anderson is a member hospital) a child received a bead with each procedure or stick as tests and shots are called.  They collect these beads and some will have so many they're too heavy for them to wear them all!  Now when they're out people, especially other children, look at their beads instead of their sickness i.e. bald heads etc. and when they ask about the beads the child gets to tell their story!

I made these Wednesday!

I don't know about you but this touches my heart!  These children often experience more in a few years than we will ever experience and they have a story to tell, they just need this opening to start ... And that where we come in.  We can make a donation!  $25 supports a child's beads from start to finish.  The beads are donated by bead artists across the country, but costs are involved and so our donation takes care of those costs and a child gets the beads for as long as they are in treatment!  But we can also have fun as we make a donation.  A Bead of Courage Party.  This can just be a fun get together or it can be a Birthday Party or an any excuse to have a party - party!  At this party bowls of beads are put out and you get for a mere $15 a bag with two stretch ties and two pewter Beads of Courage beads and then you pick from the beads and make two bracelets!  They even have a card that tells you what the various colors mean.  You make one for you and give the other away to someone you know needs encouragement or you keep them both - that is up to you, but the $15.00 goes directly to Beads of Courage!  Yay!!!!  It's fun and you've done something wonderful for these very special children.

I first learned of this organization when two women came to our MOPS meeting in Sealy.  I am a MOPS Mentor, just so you know I do not have pre-schoolers - EEK.  Anyway, as they spoke and showed us pictures of children with their beads I just knew I had a heart for this charity.  Through our years with Team in Training (Leukemia Society) we met so many children that would have loved these beads, now they probably get them, but they didn't back then.  I also have a friend that is a pediatric oncologist and I contacted her and she said this is wonderful for the kids and so I've jumped in!  You will hear more as the big fundraiser for the year is coming up in September in Katy, TX and I hope to get parties started all around.  But now to what I made at the party Wednesday night and three special beads I purchased.  Please go to www.beadsofcourage.org and check this out!  Those of you who are friends with me on FB will see updates and if you really want to see one of these special kids - check out Praying for Silas on FB.  He will break your heart and inspire you more than you can even imagine and he's four!


The picture of the book and bead and the three beads together are from the 2012 Beads Design Challenge.  You get a book when you one of these challenge beads.  Children were ask to draw pictures of what they thought represented Hope, Joy, Laughter, Spirit, Life, Love and Peace if they were a bead.  These were the winning pictures.  The pictures were then sent to artists who turned the drawing into a glass bead!  I have three HOPE, JOY and LAUGH.  I hope to add the others, but we will see.  They are a limited edition of 100 of each bead, so I better hurry up!

So here's to Beads of Courage!  I'll show more when I make more!  Let me know if you want to schedule a party and live in the Houston, Sealy or Katy, TX area!