Galens Tag Days
Every winter Galens members don red ponchos, grasp metal buckets, and take to the streets of greater Ann Arbor to collect monetary donations for the children of Washtenaw County. Held on the first weekend of December since 1927, Tag Days has become an important Ann Arbor tradition and occupies a central role in Galens' mission to support the children of Washtenaw County. Galens members annually raise tens of thousands of dollars, and one-hundred percent of that money is donated to local charities committed to helping children.
The 2011 Tag Days will be held on Friday and Saturday, December 2nd and 3rd. Please generously support Galens Tag Days!
If you would like to contribute to Tag Days by mail, please send a check to "Galens Medical Society" to:
Galens Medical SocietyC.S. Mott Children's Hospital, Rm F-8412
1500 E. Medical Center Drive, SPC 5250
Ann Arbor, MI 48104-5250
To learn more, please contact our 2011 Tag Days czars:
Katie Bohard (kbohard@umich.edu)
Stephanie Berry (berrysa@umich.edu)
Steven Allen (allensg@umich.edu)
Kathleen Murphy (kmmur@umich.edu)
Organizations Supported
2010 Total Funding Distributed: $64,000
- $40,000 to Mott Childrens Hospital
- Part of the $200,000 donation to the new Mott Childrens' Hospital over 5 years. The new childrens' hospital is set to open in December 2011.
- $1,800 to Mott Child and Family Life Department
- The Child and Family Life Department has been with Mott Childrens' Hospital since 1922. The organization runs programs for kids in Mott, the PICU, and the NICU. They also work with kids in the child life rooms and in individual kids' rooms. Money donated this year was used to support extended hours for the Family Resource Center and a therapist that staffs the center.
- $3,000 to Corner Health Center
- Corner Health Center provides free and sliding scale healthcare for kids from 12-21 years old, mostly from Ypsilanti, MI. Most of the population they serve are without health insurance and unable to afford to pay out of packet. No one is turned away because of inability to pay. Money donated this year was used to purchase AV equipment and educational DVDs for pregnancy and parenting.
- $2,100 to Family Book Club
- Founded in 1981, the Family Book Club's goal is to promote literacy and a lifelong love of reading for children in Washtenaw county. Galens usually supports the Mother and Babies Program, which provides educational materials to help mothers learn how to read to children. Money donated this year was used to purchase books for a new program called "Toddler-U" which provides milestone-appropriate books to low income children aged 0-5 and their parents for learning and parent-child bonding.
- $474 to Michigan Pulmonary Disease Community
- The Michigan Pulmonary Disease Community provides support to patients with cystic fibrosis and their families in Michigan. Money donated this year was used to support the efforts of the foundation for 7 children in Washtenaw county including sending care packages, sending the children to a camp of their choice, giving the children gift cards for attending their quarterly visits, and sending the family on a day trip to the destination of their choice.
- $1,640 to National Kidney Foundation of Michigan
- The National Kidney Foundation of Michigan provides support to patients with kidney disease and their families in Michigan and also provides educational programs in the community about kidney health. Money donated this year was used to send Washtenaw county children to Kidney Camp.
- $3,000 to Ozone House
- Ozone House health clinic was created in 2002 to provide free counseling for troubled kids (aged 10-20) and provides services for abused, homeless, and runaway teenagers. For the past several years, the clinic has incorporated a nurse practitioner-run health clinic for STD screening, counseling, etc. There is also a psychiatrist on-site part of the time. Money donated this year was used to pay the nurse practitioner who runs the clinic and for clinic supplies.
- $2,251 to Perry Nursery School
- Perry Nursery School is a preschool for children in Washtenaw county who at high-risk due to financial or living situations. The school has been operating for 75 years. Tuition is on a sliding scale based on parents’ ability to pay. In addition to educational programs, the school also provides help for parents, a social worker, breakfast and lunch for the children, and other services. Money donated this year was used to fund a new Explorations program at the preschool for 166 children where they will be exposed to different experiences in the community that they may not otherwise see.
- $1,175 to Project Healthy Schools
- Project Healthy Schools provides health screening and education about healthy living for 6th graders in Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor, and some Detroit middle schools. Evidence is clear that the program has worked and they would like to expand the program to 7th and 8th graders as well. Ypsilanti schools also like the program and would like to incorporate it into their general curriculum. Money donated this year was used to fund equipment for Ypsilanti schools to continue to implement the program for all of its 6th grade students.
- $3,360 to Special Days Camp
- Special Days Camp is a week-long summer camp for children aged 5-17 with cancer and leukemia. The camp is staffed by U of M Pediatric HemeOnc doctors and volunteers. Money donated this year was used to send 22 kids from Washtenaw county to camp.
- $3,200 to the Family Learning Institute
- Begun with grants from Washtenaw County and the city of Ann Arbor, and a generous start-up donation from a local entrepreneur, the essence of FLI's program is to have professional teachers test students on intake, develop individualized lesson plans that target their weaknesses, train volunteer "coaches," pair each student with a coach in a long-term, continuous relationship, and conduct regular follow-up testing to gauge progress and refine lesson plans as needed. Coaching is done in private rooms away from school to maintain anonymity, minimize embarrassment, and remove students from any negative associations they may have with school. FLI has demonstrated consistent success, regularly raising most students' reading levels by one, two, or three grades within one year - students who, without intervention, would be expected to fall farther behind.
- $2,000 to Camp Bold Eagle
- Founded in 1969, Camp Bold Eagle is the oldest camp of its kind in the country. This specialized camp for children with hereditary bleeding disorders serves boys and girls ages 6 through 13.