JOE'S HOUSE NEWSLETTER
SUMMER 2010
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Joe's House 2K
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Two thousand places to stay, wow! Joe's House just crossed the 2000
mark after the completing the addition of the Wyndham Hotel Group. We've added
11 new brands (see our Partners Page for complete details), which translates
into an additional 560 plus hotels.
Don't forget each of
our Partners offers their discount at all of their participating properties
across the country, regardless of whether the city appears on Joe's House
website. Our Partners Page outlines each discount, how to make a reservation and links for online
bookings.
Although Joe's House caters to cancer patients, any patient,
regardless of their diagnosis can use our discounts. We gladly assist our friends at the National Patient Travel
Helpline with their travelers. Through referrals and inquiries we've helped a
number of patients traveling to new destinations, including Lubbock, Texas,
Delaware and Wyoming this year.
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Why Joe's House
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Patients travel for many reasons. Some live in rural areas
and have no other choice but to travel for treatment. Others travel to receive
specialized treatments that are only available at certain centers. Still others
travel to large cancer institutes for second opinions or clinical trials not
available closer to home. For most, this is a stressful time and leaving the
comforts of home can be overwhelming and expensive.
 Joe's House helps patients
and their loved ones with both by providing a comprehensive, easy to use
service that gives them the benefit of special discounts at both individual
hotels and hotel chains. The inclusion of hospitality and non-profit houses
such as the American Cancer Society's Hope Lodges and Ronald McDonald Houses
only increases the value to those who travel for treatment. Joe's House is a unique
and valuable service for all those who travel for treatment!
by
Maureen Rigney
Director of Community and Support Services
Joe's House Board Member
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New Lodging Option in Chicago: Dewitt Place
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A renovated and restored 1924 vintage building with 82 units, Dewitt
Place offers furnished studio and one-bedroom apartments that are an affordable
alternative to a hotel. Guests enjoy the conveniences of home with amenities such
as a fully-equipped, eat-in kitchen, bed and bath linens, wireless internet
access, satellite HDTV service, private telephone line with free local calling,
a fitness room with steam shower and sauna, with all utilities included. DeWitt
Place is situated in the upscale Gold Coast/Streeterville neighborhood, just
north of Northwestern Memorial Hospital.
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New Board Member
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Welcome to Andrew Cohen, our newest board member. Andrew is the Vice
President of Product Development for UnitedHealthcare's Retiree
Solutions group. He focuses on product development for
UnitedHealthcare's new and emerging retiree products. This includes
insurance and financial services products for large employers and
public sector customers.
Andrew's
eighteen-plus years in the healthcare industry include working with
national managed-care organizations such as Kaiser Permanente, Health
Net, Inc., CIGNA and UnitedHealthcare focusing in the areas of provider
contracting, business and sales development, strategic planning and
end-to-end product development.
Andrew who grew up in Maine currently lives and works in New York City where he has been a resident for more than 15 years.
Andrew's experience in the healthcare industry will be a great asset to Joe's House. We're excited to have him on the board.
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Hospital Website Project
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If you are receiving this newsletter you know that Joe's
House website offers thousands of places to stay near hospitals and cancer
treatment centers. But did you know that Joe's House can tailor a lodging
page for individual hospitals? We have the ability to customize a lodging
directory and build a special page specifically for a single hospital or group.
We will also negotiate with the local hotels on the behalf of the hospital.
Interested? Give us a call at 212 -477-2917 or send an email
to info@joeshouse.org
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Don't forget to follow us on 
As always 100% of your generous donations go to helping us
keep our robust database of lodging options for patients up to date and
current. You may donate via  or on our site at JOE'S HOUSE
Joe's House Newsletter
Winter - 2010
| | Fundraising | |
Despite the recession, despite tough economic times, and despite nay-sayers, Joe's House is in better financial shape than last year! We had a great year, thanks to all of our donors.
It may seem trite, but it's true, we literally would not be here if it weren't for all of the folks that continue to give to us year after year. Your donations are the fuel that allows us to keep our database so robust and help all types of patients from all over the country find lodging. Thank you, thank you! | We're Moving!
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Joe's House is moving. Our new address is:
505 East 79th Street, Suite 17 E
New York, NY 10075.
Move date is Feb 16th, 2010. Please make a note of it for your records. | Patients We've Helped
| | Patients From All Over The Country Get Help From Joe's House!
Patients and family members from all over the country use Joe's House to help them find lodging when they are away from home for life saving treatment. Here are some stories from the past year:
- Frank and his wife traveled to Fresno from their home for surgery. Although Fresno is not listed on our site, we were able to help Frank out with suggestions from our nation-wide hotel partners (see Lodging Partners).
- Janey, a social worker from rural Texas reached out to Joe's House to find lodging for a couple traveling to Milwaukee for treatment. By speaking to our agent at the toll free line and looking at www.joeshouse.org, they were able to find affordable and convenient lodging.
- And finally Juan. Juan's oldest son had brain surgery in New York during the holiday season. During the very busy week leading up to New Year's Eve Juan had to change accommodations. Joe's House was able to give him some suggestions and help him find alternative lodging when the city was almost sold out.
| | Projects | | What We've Been Working On
Year End Renewal: Every single place to stay on our website must be renewed and updated each year. What a job! Starting in October we reached out to over 1500 places to stay. We had a great response and are just finishing up the remaining hotels, apartments, hospitality houses and inns on the site. Most have come back for a second, third and even fourth year. Plus, we have lots of new partners in cities across the country.
Know of a lodging option that we missed? Or, a hotel that is near a hospital that is not on the site? Send us a message at info@joeshouse.org.
| 2010 Lodging Partners
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Thanks to our lodging partners who continue to work with Joe's House.
- Best Western - This is the 4th year that Best Western has included Joe's House in its "Best Western For A Better World" program. Thank you Best Western.
- Drury Hotels - Including Drury Inn and Suites-, Drury Plaza Hotels and Pear Tree Inn by Drury is now in their 3rd year with Joe's House and continues to be a great partner in throughout the midwest, west and south. We appreciate their lasting partnership.
- Red Roof Inns - Now in its 2nd year with Joe's House, Red Roof Inns provide an affordable option for patients and family members.
Welcome to our newest partner: Wyndham Hotel Group. Included are: - Super 8, Howard Johnson, Baymont Inn & Suites, Days Inn, Hawthorn Suites by Wyndham, Knights Inn, Microtel Inns & Suites, Ramada Worldwide, Travelodge, Wingate by Wyndham, and Wyndham Hotels and Resorts, Wyndham Grand Collection and Wyndham Garden.
 Look for these hotels coming soon.
| Did You Know?
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Did you know that Joe's House lists lots of articles and other cancer related news on our Cause page on Facebook. Look for us on Twitter coming soon.
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Joe's House NewsletterSummer 2009
What's New?
Have you seen Joe's House website lately? We have a fresh new look, more capabilities and even more lodging options than before. The premier lodging resource for cancer patients is even bigger and better than ever - with 1400 places to stay!
Newest Board of Director
Welcome to our newest board member, Flo Lugli. Flo comes to us with more than 20 years of travel industry experience. She is a recognized expert within the travel industry and is very excited to join the Joe's House team. Thank you, and welcome, Flo.
Did You Know?
Did you know that Joe's House is on Facebook? We have a page and ways to donate online. It's a fast and easy way to share your belief in the cause and to help raise awareness. Here is a link to our  page.
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Joe's House Projects
We've heard from a number of folks out there who have homes or apartments that they would like to share with traveling patients and families. While coordinating this type of effort is not part of our model, we are always looking for lodging options. Joe's House does not have the capacity to investigate and match indivdual homes, however there are organizations that do. One is HOSTS for HOSPITALS, which works out of the Philadelphia area. HOSTS for HOSTPITALS has about 300 host-families that have provided almost 1,450 patient-families a combined total of more than 41,500 nights of lodging, Mike Aichenbaum is the Executive Director and they are working on expanding their program to other areas. Interested? Read more about them at www.HostsForHospitals.org. Contact Mike at HfHospitals@aol.com or 215-472-3801.
Make Your Donation Work Harder
Does your company have a matching gift program? Many companies have such a program and it's a great way to expand your gift to Joe's House. Your company may match, or even double your donation. Look into it, a little bit can go a long way!
Thanks to Heiress Productions
Heiress Production's show Belles which played in March and April was funny, sad, thought provoking and great theater to watch. Thank Heiress for having Joe's House be the recipient of your last production!
Lodging Facilities of the month
- Homewood Suites in Atlanta - all suite property with good hospital rates in the Buckhead area.
- The Inn at Marquam Hill, Portland, OR - a Bed and Breakfast right on the hill at Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU).
- Furnished Quarters, NYC - affordable furnished apartments near hospitals throughout the city.
Latest News
- We've just added some new cities!
- Milwaukee: Healthcare facilities there are: Columbia St. Mary's, Froedtert Hospital at the Medical College of Wisconsin,and Children's Hospital.
- East Texas: Cities include Beaumont, Lufkin, Nacogdoches, College Station, Tyler and Texarkana.
- With so many places to stay on the site, we start our renewal project in the fall and it runs into the new year. If you are one of our partners, look for correspondence from Joe's House in the coming months. If you know of a lodging facility that wants to be on the site, contact us at info@joeshouse.org.
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 Joe's House NewsletterWinter 2009
Website Update Be on the lookout for a whole new Joe's House website! www.joeshouse.org will have a new look and feel but more importantly we'll have increased functionality for lodging, donors and correspondence. Not only will we be better able to manage our large database of lodging and healthcare facilities better - it will also provide the ability to link more effectively with our cancer and cancer advocacy partners. Thank you David for all of yoru hard work and continued support throughout the years! More patients and families helped Let's hear from some of the folks that we have helped. Joe, who was referred to Joe's House from the GIST (Gastrointestinal Stromal Turmor) organization, needed a place to stay in Portland, OR. He saide "I'm very thankful to have found this site through GIST support international". And "...thanks for having this site it does help." Tom and Vrginia needed help in Illinois. After receiving information from Joe's House they said "Thank you so much for your help it will definitely be to our advantage to use Best Western Inn in Moline, it is within 3 miles of the hospital." Here is what Jennifer, an oncology social worker in Nebraska had to say in response to an email from Joe's House regarding finding lodging and financial assistance for one of her patients - "Thank you so much for your assistance this will be a great, great help!".
In the Pipeline
In 2009 we will continue to market Joe's House to as many cancer related organizations as possible. Look for us at the Association of Oncology Social Work conference in Savannah, GA in early May. Also, you'll find Joe's House visiting lots of our partners in order fo work out new ways to reach partients and family members. Know of an organization that might want to work with Joe's House or have a great marketing idea? Let us know at info@joeshouse.org. | 2008 - Annual Fund Drive Thanks to all of you who so generously gave, our annual donation drive was a fantastic success. In times like these we know it's especially hard to choose among the many worthy causes that ask you for help, and we truly appreciate your continued support.
Every dollar that you donate to Joe's House helps cancer patients and their families. In 2008 we provided information, assistance and support to thousands of people through our website, toll free information line, and directory.
Thank you for your part in making this possible, every donation was a very big help! Special thanks go out to the following for their extraordinary contributions: Doug Smith and Katie Desmond and Mr. and Mrs. C.S. Radford, Jr. And thank you again to David Ulf, our wonderful website developer and master (see the following article), and to MaximumASP for hosting. Broadway comes to Joe's House - A great of theater and a great cause Our friends at Heiress Productions are presenting BELLES, an Off-Broadway play which will benefit Joe's House. Please tell all of your friends, colleagues, and acquaintances about this very affordable Off-Broadway evening. Tickets are only $20! There's plenty of time to see this fun show which runs from March1 9-April 12. Proceeds for the entire run go to Joe's House.
Even in these difficult economic times
THE SHOW MUST GO ON!
Belles: A play in two acts and forty five phone calls.
Belles is the story of the six Walker sisters.... Born and raised in Memphis, the sisters now live in six different U.S. cities and communicate solely by phone. The eldest, Peggy, who remained with Mama in Tennessee, calls her siblings when their mother is hospitalized - nothing serous, she is ate some bad tuna, but the phone calls lead to sometimes comedic and sometimes brutal confrontations about the past and the present. You'll laugh and you might even cry! Heiress Productions presents Belles by Mark Dunn
March 19 - April 12 at The Lion Theater at Theater Row (410 W 42nd Street, NYC) Tickets are only $20....and are online at www.ticketcentral.com or call 212 Lodging Renewal Project We are now 1350 properties strong! Wow, 1350 different places to stay for patients from all over the country. Take a moment to look at our hotel partners and take a peek on our web site to see about the details from each company. Each is offering a percentage off their best available rate at the time of booking. The are some great deals out there! Some of the partners are offering the Joe's House discount at all of their hotels nation-wide (even if it's not listed on our site). This represent thousands more hotel across the country. We are thrilled that all of our partners renewed with us and appreciate their ongoing commitment to serving patients and their family members in need. Our hotel partners: -
Intercontinental Hotels Group - Brands include Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Select and Express, Crowne Plaza, Candlewood Suites, Hotel Indigo and Staybridge Suites. Offer is for all hotels nation-wide. -
Extended Stay America - Brands include Extended Stay Hotels, Extended Stay Deluxe, Homestead Studio Suites, Crossland Suites and StudioPlus Deluxe Studios. -
Drury Hotels - Brands include Drury Inns, Drury Suites, Drury Plaza Hotels and Pear Tree Inns -
Hyatt Place Hotels -
And our newest partner - Red Roof Inns! Offer is for all hotels nation-wide.
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Joe’s House A Lodging guide for cancer patients
Where do our patients find us? How do patients, their family members and caregivers discover Joe’s House? One of our major initiatives in both 2007 and 2008 was marketing Joe’s House. We used several methods, such as placing print ads, attending oncology conferences, and partnering with cancer advocacy groups. But lots of patients find us themselves through various sites and partners.
The easiest and most common way to find us is through Google. Google is certainly the most used search engine on the web. Type in a myriad of keywords such as “patient lodging,” “places to stay near medical centers,” “motels near hospitals,” or use the words “lodging,” “accommodations,” “places to stay,” or “housing” with almost any cancer center name and you’ll see Joe’s House listed. We even have an Ad Word campaign, which features us as a sponsored link thanks to Google Grants. Others find us through cancer advocacy web sites, such as American Cancer Society, Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, National Institutes of Health Rare Diseases, Corporate Angel Network, Patient Advocacy Network, Myeloma International Foundation, Mercy Medical, and scores more (click on the Resources page on Joe’s House to see a complete list). We receive referrals on our site from all types of advocacy and support sites.
Know of a site that could use a resource like Joe’s House? Email us at info@joeshouse.org. The Great White Way Supports Joe’s House Broadway and New York go together like apple pie and ice cream. Next spring our friends at Heiress Productions will put on a play just off Broadway with the proceeds going to Joe’s House. Stay tuned for more details on this fun production and a great way to support Joe’s House. Joe’s House as “charity of the week website” The all-encompassing travel portal, JohnnyJet.com sited Joe’s House as its charity of the week website on September 30th this year. Johnny Jet’s newsletter goes out to thousands of subscribers and gives all types of advice, deals and fantastic travel tips. They loved our concept and told all of their readers who might be in need of our services about it. Check it out at www.johnnyjet.com. More press Joe’s House was sited in an article about traveling for cancer treatment in Cure magazine’s fall issue. Many of our partners, such as American Cancer Society’s Hope Lodges, the National Association of Hospital Hospitality Houses, and Miracle House, were featured. Shopping to help others It’s getting to be that time of year again. If you shop online, and in this economy it makes sense, you can help Joe’s House. Take a minute to go to Good Shop at www.goodshop.com. All you have to do is choose Joe’s House as your charity of choice, then click over to your favorite site, whether that’s Amazon, Best Buy, Target, Wal-Mart, The Pet Store, The Apple Store, Gap, or one of the many others out there. It’s easy and a great way to help Joe’s House.
Renewal Project Each year Joe’s House must go out to each of our lodging facility partners and renegotiate discounted rates for the following year. Yep, that’s right, each of our 1250 places to stay must be renewed for the following year! It’s a very big job and one that takes months to complete. If you are one of our lodging partners and have your medical or Joe’s House rates ready, please let us know at info@joeshouse.org.
Featured Hotel New York in the fall is lovely, the leaves are changing and the air is brisk. But if you are traveling to the city for treatment, its high season and the hotels are frightfully expensive. We’d like to tell you about of a jewel of a deal from one of our participating properties just outside of New York in Fort Lee, New Jersey. The Holiday Inn George Washington Bridge at Fort Lee is offering Joe’s House the fantastic rate of $113 for the rest of the year. For any of you that know how expensive New York hotels are, it’s quite a savings. We send many thanks to Nicholas Searles and the folks at the Holiday Inn GW Bridge. They also now offer a shuttle service to New York Presbyterian Hospital/Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center at 168th Street – another great amenity. Spread the word! Annual Donation Drive This time every year Joe’s House goes out to its donor base to ask for all of you to open your wallets to help us continue our good work. With the economy suffering it will be a challenge for all of us. Be sure to be on the lookout for our donation support request in the mail (both physical and email). If you can, please continue your support to help us carry on with helping patients and their families easily find affordable lodging when they travel for life saving treatment.
Remember your donation is tax deductible and you may donate by check, credit card and online at www.joeshouse.org.
Joe’s House
A Lodging guide for cancer patients
Who have we helped?
As you’ll see later on in the newsletter, Joe’s House now boasts over 1250 places to stay on our site! Thousands of patients, caregivers, social workers and friends look at www.joeshouse.org to locate housing when they travel for treatment. Let’s hear from some of the many families that we have helped.
This from Cynthia on her way to Hawaii for treatment with her husband: “…It’s a great organization that is helping a lot of people in this world who are in need.”
And Ann who traveled to MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston from her home in Kansas told us she “…was so thankful for this service. Thank you Joe’s House”.
We’d love to hear from more of you. If you know someone who has used our service or have heard comments about us, please let us know. You can email us at info@joeshouse.org.
New Website
Joe’s House website has a new look. Thanks to Jeff Cross for helping us design the new banner for our site. Also we’ll be adding our partners to the home page. Check out all of our hospitality partners that help us provide lodging to patients and family members during their battle with cancer.
Shop for a charity
Shop online? If you do, you can help Joe’s House while you shop online. Take a minute to go to Good Shop at www.goodshop.com. All you have to do is choose Joe’s House as your charity of choice, then click over to your favorite site whether that’s Amazon, Apple Store (it’s graduation time!), Best Buy, Target, Travelocity and even eBay! It’s very easy and a great way to help Joe’s House!
Macy’s Shop for A Cause Day – September 20, 2008. Once again Joe’s House is participating with Macy’s in their Shop for A Cause Day. Buy a shopping coupon from us and save 20% off most items at Macy’s on September 20th. Furniture is 10% off and the discount also works for items that are already on sale. Purchase lots and give them away to friends, colleagues, or assistants. Contact us at info@joeshouse.org or our toll free line at 877 563 7468 if you are interested in coupons.
Permanent Status
We’ve hit a new high in terms of the number of lodging options on Joe’s House website. As of June 25, 2008 there were 1262 places to stay listed! We’ve got lists of accommodations in over 80 cities in 45 states! If you know someone who could use our services please pass our website address onto them, or forward this newsletter!
If you know of something that we have missed, please let us know. Send us an email at info@joeshouse.org.
AOSW Meeting
In May Joe’s House exhibited at the annual Association of Oncology Social Work conference held in Louisville, KY. We met with scores of social workers from around the country. As a result we’ve added additional hospitals (Miami, Arlington, Texas and Jackson, MS) and lodging options, and spread the word about Joe’s House. If you are a social worker or patient advocate, please pass this newsletter on to your colleagues and give us any feedback on how we are doing, we’d love to hear from you.
Board of Directors Meeting
Joe’s House annual board of director’s meeting was held on June 23, 2008. Welcome back Dan Frasca, Donald Calahan, Tom Woodall, Maureen Rigney and Greg Galliger. Thanks for all of your hard work. Also, thank you and goodbye to Leora Lowenthal of NYU Cancer Institute who has moved on to get another master’s degree.
Read about us
Cure Magazine will feature an article about the traveling patient population in their upcoming issue. Joe’s House will appear in the article along with some of our partners such as Air Charity Network and the National Association of Hospital Hospitality Houses.
It is important to Joe's House that you are interested in receiving our newsletter. If you are not, please reply to this email and write unsubscribe in the body of the text.
Joe's House Newsletter - Winter 2008
A Lodging Guide For Cancer Patients
2007 Annual Fund Drive
You did it again! Thanks to all our generous donors Joe’s House had yet another great year. Our annual drive raised over $17,000! Thank you, thank you, and thank you!
Every dollar of your donation helps cancer patients and their families. We know that all of you are asked by many charities for contributions and we truly appreciate your continued support. Joe’s House is grateful for all that you have done for us in 2007, and hope you will continue to keep us mind as you plan your charitable giving for 2008. Special thanks go out to the following: The Sam Schubert Foundation, Doug Smith and Katie Desmond and Mr. and Mrs. C.S. Radford, Jr. And thank you again to the American Federation of Teachers for our annual golf tournament, David Ulf for our wonderful website, MaximumASP for hosting and the NYSUT Print Shop for our new brochures.
Lodging Facility Renewal Project
Each year Joe’s House must re-negotiate and research the special discounts and rates seen on our site. With 1000 places for cancer patients and their families to stay, it’s a very big job. Our thanks go to our renewal manager Rhonda Shapiro for the months of hard work she put in contacting, negotiating and cajoling hotels. Using a new program that assists in alerting and soliciting hotels for next year’s rates (thank you Joe Friedmann from BidStork) Joe’s House was able to a contact more hotels than ever. The response was very rewarding!
Between Rhonda’s efforts and our renewed partnerships with hotel chains (see list below) Joe’s House has exceeded last year’s number of lodging facilities! We are now over the 1100 property mark!
Take a moment to look at our hotel partners and take a peek on our web site to see about the details from each company (you may read about them on the Partners page http://joeshouse.org/Partners/tabid/55/Default.aspx or click on an individual hotel). Each is offering a percentage off their best available rate at the time of booking. There are some great deals out there!
Some of our partners are offering Joe’s House discount at all of their hotels nation-wide (even if it’s not listed on our site). This represents thousands more hotels across the country. We are thrilled that all of our partners renewed with us and appreciate their ongoing commitment to serving patients and their family members in need.
Best Western International (offer is for all Best Westerns nation-wide)
Intercontinental Hotels Group - Brands include Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Select and Express, Crowne Plaza, Candlewood Suites, Hotel Indigo and Staybridge Suites (offer is for all hotels nation-wide)
Extended Stay America - Brands include Extended Stay Hotels, Extended Stay Deluxe, Homestead Studio Suites, Crossland Suites and Studio Plus Deluxe Studios (offer is for all hotels)
Drury Hotels – Brands include Drury Inns, Drury Suites, Drury Plaza Hotels and Pear Tree Inns.
Hawthorn Suites
Microtel Inns and Suites
Maps on Joe’s House
Take a look at our new map feature on Joe’s House! When you click on one of the hotels from our search result page, there is a SEE A MAP icon next to the name. Click on SEE A MAP and you will be taken to a Google Map of the location of the hotel.
This is a great way to get a visual sense of where the lodging facility is located in a city and what is nearby. Enjoy.
2008 Initiatives
Marketing and Advertising. Look for our ad in the latest issue of Coping with Cancer magazine. Former presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani is on the cover. The ad will also appear in the next spring issue.
Expanding Our Presence: Even though Joe’s House lists places to stay in close to 80 cites and 46 states, we’re not stopping. Look for these new cities in 2008 – Lexington, KY; Jackson, MS; Newark, DE, and Miami, FL.
It is important to Joe's House that you are interested in receiving our newsletter. If you are not, please reply to this email and write unsubscribe in the body of the text.
The Joe’s House Newsletter is prepared by Ann Calahan with written contributions from other friends and volunteers.
Joe's House Newsletter - Fall 2007 A Lodging Guide For Cancer Patients
Joe’s House continues expansion Thanks to our intern, Clark Welch, Joe’s House expanded its listing of places to stay to another six cities this summer. We now have listings for Little Rock, AR, Charleston, SC, Kansas City, KS, Zion, IL and Tulsa, OK. Clark also supplemented our listings in the cities of Durham, NC and Philadelphia, PA with additional places to stay. Our count of places to stay for cancer patients, their families, and caregivers is now just shy of 1000! We have directories of lodging options in 42 states and 71 cities. See www.joeshouse.org, and thanks Clark! Partnerships Joe’s House is thrilled to now be a resource for the American Cancer Society®. The national call center agents, who speak to thousands of patients each month, now refer those needing lodging to Joe’s House. Our nationwide list of places to stay is the resource of choice for such calls from across the country. The affiliation started this summer and we’ve already received hundreds of referrals. We’ll be working on ways to work together with the American Cancer Society® in other ways in the future. Fundraising Macy’s Shop For a Cause Day – This year Joe’s House is again participating in Macy’s Shop For a Cause Day – October 13th. Mark your calendars for a day of savings and helping Joe’s House. Joe’s House is selling shopping passes for $5 for the Shop for A Cause Day. By purchasing a shopping pass, you’ll support Joe’s House and enjoy a day of great discounts. The shopping pass includes 20% off regular, sale and clearance apparel and accessories, jewelry, bed and bath items, house wares, frames, china, some luggage, kitchen and personal care electronics. There are some exceptions to some name brand items that are listed on the back of the pass. Participants may also enter a chance to win a $500 gift card. Let us know how many passes you would like! They are only $5 and make a nice thank-you gift for assistants, friends, employees, and colleagues. Please hurry: October 13th is not that far away. More Shopping Opportunities to Help Joe’s House What if every time you shopped online a percentage of the sale went to your favorite nonprofit? You can shop your favorite stores online and help Joe’s House at the same time with GoodShop. More than 100 great stores, including (but not limited to) Target, Amazon.com, The Gap, Best Buy, iTunes, PetSmart, Staples and Wal-Mart, have teamed up with GoodShop. The next time you're looking for a new book, computer, DVD, pair of shoes or clothing, go to GoodShop first. Here’s all you need to do. No username or password is required. Go to www.goodshop.com, enter Joe’s House into the line to designate the charity, and click Verify. Then click on the store's logo from the GoodShop site and then shop as you normally would. What could be simpler?
Annual Drive Joe’s House annual donation drive will start next month. Did you know that Joe’s House is almost exclusively funded by generous donors – such as you? Every year we ask for donations to help us build and maintain our lists of places to stay, and you’ve come through. That is why we have been able to grow as rapidly as we have, and serve thousands of patients and their families. We still need your help and the donation drive letters will be coming in the mail soon. Thanks so much for your help in the past. We couldn’t do it without you – literally! New Voice on the Phone Welcome to Shara Gray, our new voice on the other end of the toll-free line. Shara comes to us by way of Clara, our previous agent – who has gone on to another assignment at one of our partners, Angel Flight America Mid Atlantic/ Mercy Medical (Thanks, and good luck, Clara!). Both young women have husbands in the Navy – which is how they met – and enjoy their work, helping others. Since May, Shara has fielded hundreds of calls for us. When we asked her about one of her most memorable calls, she indicated, “It was from a lady who really needed a place to stay. It wasn't even something that we could help her with, because she needed a new permanent home, but I was able to talk with her, encourage her, and most of all listen to her when most people didn't have the time for her.” We are very happy to have Shara on our team! Lodging Facility Renewal Project As a nation-wide reference for patients, Joe's House (www.joeshouse.org) must ensure that our lists of places to stay are current, accurate and timely we go out to each facility to receive their rates, and other information. Hotels change their rates every year, so every year Joe’s House works with our partner facilities to get their information for the coming year. With close to 1000 places to stay, this is an enormous job. We’ll start this fall and finish up in January. If you are a participating lodging facility, Joe’s House will be contacting you soon, but feel free to send us your 2008 information. Contact us at info@joeshouse.org.
 Joe's House Newsletter - Spring 2007
Joe’s House - the housing guide for cancer patients ______________________________ Look how we’ve grown! Think back four years, when Joe’s House had just incorporated – our first directory of places to stay for cancer patients was still many months away. Now Joe’s House boasts 930 places to stay in 39 states! Some of our newer cities include Albuquerque, NMand Medford, OR. As we outlined in our last newsletter, all of our hotel partners renewed with us. We have 180 hospitals and cancer centers listed across the country and are closing in on 1000 places to stay. We only have a few more states to go and we’ll be adding them this summer. If you’re a social worker, or someone who knows of a cancer center or hospitals that caters to out of town patients, please let us know at info@joeshouse.org, we’re happy to add to the growing list. Summer Internship from The University of the South Thanks to The University of the South (Sewanee) and the Stephenson Internship Fund, Joe’s House is the grateful recipient of an intern for the summer. Clark Welch, a junior from The University of the South will help Joe’s House with a market research paper and lots of database work. He’ll also be instrumental in adding additional cities and lodging facilities to the site. Interested in Joe's House for the last several years, Clark decided to get actively involved in Joe's House after his brother was diagnosed with cancer last December. While his brother luckily did not have to travel for treatment, Clark decided that he wanted to get involved in the fight against cancer. What better way to get involved than with Joe's House? Welcome Clark!
Advertising We’ve talked about getting the word out and now we’ve done it. Joe’s House has placed print ads in two cancer related magazines this spring and summer. Look for our ad in Coping with Cancer Magazine (May/June issue) and Women & Cancer (summer issue). For those that don’t subscribe, here’s a link to our ad http://www.joeshouse.org/MarketingInfo/tabid/78/Default.aspx. Our thanks go to Linton Small and Cynthia Ashworth for their help in producing these beautiful and compelling ads. AOSW Conference Joe’s House attended the Association of Oncology Social Work (AOSW) conference in Portland, OR in early May. We met lots of social workers, and have already expanded into two more cities as a result. AOSW is an organization vital to our cause, and we invite all oncology social workers to ask for brochures and spread the word about Joe’s House.
New Logo Thanks to Jennifer Degan, Joe’s House is sporting a new logo. We've added it to this newsletter and It will soon be featured on the site. We are now using it on all of our stationary. You'll recognize the key, which has been polished up and represents a door to places to stay in times of need.
New Board Member Joe’s House is thrilled to welcome Maureen Rigney,LICSW (Licensed Independent Social Worker) our newest board member. Maureen also holds a Masters in Social Work, and is aLicensed Clinical Social Worker - MSW, LCSW. Maureen is the Director of Patient Services at the Lung Cancer Alliance Her background includes work with Community Counseling Centers in Chicago and the Community Connections in Washington, D.C. Maureen’s connections with a cancer advocacy group and her lifelong interest in patients will be a great asset to our board. She says, “The Joe’s House directory is an invaluable resource to patients and their families and I am excited to join the board of directors of such a great organization!” Thanks for taking time out of your schedule Maureen to help Joe’s House! Joe’s House Charity Golf Tournament Fore! Thanks to the American Federation of Teachers and Osprey Club Belmont Bay, Joe’s House was the beneficiary of a day of golf on June 1. About 45 golfers enjoyed a day on the links on this beautiful course, while raising money for Joe’s House. Our special thanks go to some of the sponsors; K & R Industries, Morgan Stanley, Rent-A-PC and BMS Realty Services. Joe’s House raised over $4,000! Thank you!
| Joe's House- the housing guide for cancer patients Newsletter Winter 2006/2007 | 2006 Annual Fund Drive 2006 was very good to us! Thanks to all of our generous donors Joe’s House experienced yet another good year. We raised over $10,000 on our annual drive. That money coupled with our successful fundraisers made for a good positive cash flow for this year. And we’ll need it! Joe’s House will be doing some intense marketing and advertising in 2007. This is the year we’re going to pull out all of the stops to get the word out. We want to make Joe’s House a household name in 2007! We wouldn’t be in business if it weren’t for all of you. Every dollar helps so much. We know that all of you are asked by many charities for contributions. Joe’s House thanks each and every one of you for all that you have done for us in 2006. Joe’s House New Voice on the Phone Joe’s House is very lucky to have a new voice at the other end of our toll free line. Clara Benjamin joined us in 2006 and has done a fantastic job conveying our information to our patients, social workers and other callers. Here is some more information about her. Q. Tell us a little bit about yourself. A. I am a 19-year old newlywed. I married my high school sweetheart and followed him across the country where he serves in the Navy. I am the middle child of five and proud aunt to a beautiful three-year old named Arianna. The Navy has taken us to Norfolk, VA, far from my family in Illinois where my husband serves as an Aviation Electrician. As for enjoyment I like to read, cook, and organize—oddly enough. Also I love the beach; after living in Midwest my entire life and seeing only oceans of corn and sky, I adore running out to the beach. How did you come to answer the phone for Joe's House? I had just moved to the area and was experiencing the joys of being young and married—no obligations and plenty of potential. However, I did not have anything to funnel any of my energy into other than our little white third floor apartment while my husband was at work. I started thinking of finding a job to keep me busy. I mentioned it to a Navy couple we had just met at church that had also just moved to the area. Being a seasoned mover, she immediately began networking I received a call from another woman who requested my resume for a position that just became available at her work. Thus I can to work at Angel Flight operating their national resource and information help line for patients seeking answers on charitable aviation options. Once trained on the Help Line they gave me the opportunity to answer the Joe’s House line and provide further information for patients. Q. What do you like best about working for Joe's House? A. I appreciate the amazing people here at Joe’s House. When my director explained the story of Ann Calahan and her late husband Joe. As the story was conveyed to me she bravely campaigned to put an end to that need and confusion. Not to be overly dramatic, but it is such a courageous story of personal obstacles that are overcome and then transformed for the greater good. That’s what is so great about working at Joe’s House—every, single day average people come together to do awesome things for total strangers so that the world can be better.
Q. What has been your most amazing story connected with Joe's House? A. My amazing story for Joe’s House was a middle aged woman who frantically called to ask for insurance help. She was mistakenly told that Joe’s House would provide insurance money to cover housing. She was in Nashville, TN after learning that her 20-year-old son was in a motorcycle accident that left him in critical condition and coma. After swallowing the huge lump in my throat and holding back the tears, I explained that I could provide that housing information for her, but we were not an insurance company and actually a non-profit organization that could provide housing options at a discount. She apologized both for the tears and the miscommunications and after assuring her that it was no problem, I found the Guest House Inn for 60 dollars a day from our site. “Money is no matter miss; either is the accommodations. I am here for my baby and I would sleep in the hospital if the hotel wasn’t so close. I just need to be close to my son.” I gave her the reservation phone number, and I could just hear that although she was absolutely in family crisis she would at least have a place to sleep and rest. Cathy thanked me that day, but I feel like I should have thanked her because the opportunity to help that mother was priceless. She called three weeks later from a new number to tell me that her son was okay although with some problems. They were on their way home today in an ambulance. She thanked me again and I told her it was my pleasure. We may never speak again, but that call will always be with me. Let’s hear from one of our lodging facilities Here’s a quote from one of our long time partners in Houston. Jackie Oesterman, Sales Manager at the Hilton Houston Plaza – Medical Center says, “The Hilton Houston Plaza-Medical Center supports Joe's House for the outstanding job they do to support those who are in crisis because of cancer. We are pleased to offer special discounted room rates for the patient's and their caregivers while in Houston for medical treatment. We hope to be able to make a difference in these very special lives.” Thank you Jackie! 2007 Initiatives 2007 Lodging Rates and Services. As we mentioned in our last letter each year Joe’s House negotiates rates with our lodging partners across the country. With over 900 properties, it’s a big job! Our friends at Best Western renewed our participation in their “Best Western for a Better World” program. They came in with about 100 hotels and we’re still not finished collecting them. Thank you Best Western! This year our lodging partners of InterContinental Hotel Groups (Holiday Inns, Crowne Plaza and Staybridge Suites) are participating with over 200 hotels! That is quite a bit more than last year. We hope that the discounts provided by both of our partnerships will benefit the thousands of cancer patients out there that are in need. But that’s not all! Our colleagues at AmeriSuites – A Global Hyatt Affiliate and Drury Hotels (Drury Inn, Drury Inn and Suites, Drury Suites, and Peartree Inns) have come through for Joe’s House again in 2007. Check out the great hotels and suites, as well as the generous discounts they are offering patients this year. Marketing and Advertising. As mentioned Joe’s House will be initiating an intense marketing and advertising campaign. We plan to put ads in health related magazines If you know of anyone with advertising expertise that may want to give us a hand, please let us know at info@joeshouse.org. Heartfelt Thanks! Our heartfelt thanks go out, once again to our volunteers! Our web designer, David Ulf continued to improve our site and help us keep our database up-to-date and clean. No thank you would be complete without our hard working researcher and key rate solicitor Rhonda Shapiro. Thanks to our printers (NYSUT Print Shop), who have been a great help to us and always did a superb job. And thank you to all of you that have given advise, helped us find philanthropic minded vendors, and helped with fundraisers. As always, we couldn’t do it without you. New Links on Joe’s House. – Miracle Flights for Kids (www.miracleflights.org) and The Ovarian Cancer Alliance at www.ovariancancer.org.
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