On behalf of all of our Board, I wish you all many blessings in the coming year! We all thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your support this year, and for giving us the opportunity to help so many people.
I was given the task of summarizing our many stories of giving to post on our website. For the Billy Keane Foundation, we believe it is important that you see the good that is being done with your donations. I find it interesting that we really don’t have to look very far to reach out to our community. Every one of the families and individuals that we have helped are either “friends of friends” or family members of someone amongst all of you, our BKF donors. This organization is really like one big family that is here to show love and support to each other when we need it. I am honored to be a part of something so special!
When members of the Board are informed by our Gifting Committee that we have helped someone, we all feel this warm sense of fulfillment. It is a truly amazing feeling! There truly is more joy in giving, than in receiving! I hope you all have this same feeling when you read this, because all of this is possible because of you. However big or small, it is because of your help that we have been able to lend a hand in the following ways:
- We have supported two separate families that have had house fires, where they have lost everything but the shirts on their back, including their Christmas presents.
- We have supported a family who recently lost their husband/father in a battle with cancer.
- We have supported another family dealing with the loss of a family member and extensive medical bills. This family has also lost a son in the military, supporting our country, and our help will allow them to continue doing charity work in his memory.
- We have supported an individual who had lost his way after the death of his child. A gift of love and care was shown in paying his rent.
- We have supported a deserving family in the midst of recovering from a car accident. Due to extensive medical bills, they are struggling with bills, and we were able to help with their mortgage payment.
- We have adopted several families this Christmas, throughout the Philadelphia Community, where there is desperate need.
We are so proud of the support that we have been able to lend, and frankly, quite amazed at the things we have been able to do, simply because some friends got together to remember a loved one and support each other through their own grief. Tears stream down my cheeks as I conclude this, because I think of my brother and I can feel his emotions conveyed through to me over all of this. He too, has tears from Heaven streaming down his cheeks. He is blown away at the good that is being done in his name.
It has been two and half years since Billy’s passing. For all of us on the Board, we feel a sense of peace about his passing because of all the good that has come of it. For this, we thank all of you. We hope that you will continue to support us, and we look forward to seeing you all at our next event.
Happy Holidays and God Bless You All!
Karen Keane Smith