Happy New Year! Celebrate with the Indoor Cycling For Charity Spin-a-thon.

Start the New Year off right with “Indoor Cycle For Charity” spin-a-thon at the North Rutherford YMCA Ronald Reagan Family Center in Smyrna.

Classes will take place between 7 a.m. and 11 a.m. on Wednesday, New Years Day in 45-minute increments at the North Rutherford YMCA Ronald Reagan Family Center, 2001 Motlow College Blvd, Smyrna, TN 37167. 

There is a suggested $10 donation per person. Every participant will receive bottled water, healthy snacks and be eligible for a door prize. Those who contribute $20 or more will receive a t-shirt.

The Indoor Cycle For Charity event will hosted by guest instructors Crystal Martin, whose selected charity will be Progress Inc., which provides care to seniors and people with disabilities, and Jessie Casey Clark, whose selected charity is the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, funding research for Type 1 Diabetes. Each class will feature a unique theme and heart-pumping music.

A reservation is required and can be made by calling the North Rutherford YMCA during regular business hours at (615) 220-9622. Reservations will be taken until Tuesday, Dec. 31. You do not need to be a YMCA member to participate, but non-members should plan to arrive 5 minutes early to sign in as a guest.

Event co-chairs and their selected charities are:

Jessie Casey Clark – JDRF – Classes 7 a.m. & 8 a.m. http://midtennessee.jdrf.org

Crystal Martin – Progress Inc. – Classes 9 a.m. & 10 a.m. http://progress-inc.org

Stories of Progress: Portia Streator's a Ball of Energy & Ambassador for Progress Inc.

Portia Streator has received care giving assistance for several years, and she sees Progress gives her new freedom.

I recently had the great pleasure of spending an afternoon with Portia Streator, a gregarious 28-year-old who loves kittens and all things glitter. Her life living with Cerebral Palsy has been a challenge, but it has also taught her to keep a positive attitude. Having help from caregivers at Progress, who understand her condition and treat her with respect has made the difference.

"I would recommend Progress to anybody," Portia said."They really do care about you as an individual."

 Portia, a Nashville native who now lives in LaVergne, spent her early years enduring dozens of surgeries, physical therapy and, at one point, believed there was very little she could accomplish considering her disability.

"I just kept saying, 'I can't do this. I can't do that,' and finally one day my physical therapist told me 'You need to take can't out of your vocabulary,'" Portia said. "Every since then, I've stopped using that word." 
Portia is now studying to become a paralegal.

Portia also doesn't accept excuses from those around her, but she says employing friends and others as her caregiver over the years has shown her not everyone abides by her motto.

"My mom needed some help caring for me a few years ago, so we employed some people we knew," Portia said. "They would be late. They felt like they could do whatever they wanted." 

Her mom ran into similar problems with home health agencies. Earlier this year, Portia's social worker referred the family to Progress. Though Portia was reluctant, she said the services, level of commitment and genuine concern for her needs and wants have been a refreshing change.

"The first day with my caregiver April we were out at the mall. Progress wants you to get out," she said. "A lot of these companies say the client comes first, but Progress really means it." 

Portia says her caregivers April and Rachel have become her friends, and she tells everyone she meets how happy she is with Progress.

Go to Ruby Tuesday's This Friday, Saturday or Sunday to "GiveBack"

GiveBack Program will donate 20 % of every meal purchased along with this flyer.

• 
  Ruby Tuesdays is inviting you to Clean Your Plate for Progress!
  Print the image above and present it at the locations listed below for lunch or dinner on Dec. 13, 14 or 15, and Ruby Tuesday's donates 20 percent of the proceeds to Progress. 
• 
  NASHBORO SQUARE • 2304 MURFREESBORO PIKE • 615-366-0314
  DONELSON PIKE • 520 DONELSON PIKE • 615-316-0278
• 
  Ruby Tuesday's GiveBack program will help dozens of children with disabilities attend Progress Inc.'s summer camp Camp Progress.
  
  Grab your family and friends and join us at one of the locations.
  

  *Must present this flyer to your server in order to be considered a part of the GiveBack program. Ruby Tuesday's will not accommodate coupon usage or other discounts in conjunction with our GiveBack Program.

Camp Progress #GivingTuesday Campaign Raises Funds and Awareness

Thanks for giving to Camp Progress and making a difference for youths with disabilities.

Online Day of Giving Raises Funds for Camp Progress

Progress participated in the National Day of Giving - Giving Tuesday - devoted to telling the stories and funding the projects of some of the world's most worthy causes. 

The modest first time move for Progress resulted in nearly $1,200 raised towards the exciting new summer camp Camp Progress, which is a unique six-week camp for youths ages 10-22 with intellectual disabilities. It's the only full-day camp for kids with disabilities in Nashville.

Executive Director Donna Goodaker got the word out through our e-mail campaign and several others shared the Camp Progress campaign on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. 

Through the online campaign, we were able to let our supporters like Missy Mitchell, the parent of one of our Camp Progress campers, share why Camp Progress is so essential to youths with disabilities. Read her story here.

Thanks to all who helped make this possible. 

If you'd like to share why you gave and for more on our online giving campaign for Camp Progress,visit http://www.crowdrise.com/campprogress/fundraiser/progressinc.

A snapshot of some of the giving that took place at our Crowdrise fundraising page.