Community
The Bellingham Roller Betties are very involved with the community events in Whatcom and Skagit Counties in Northwest Washington State. We have currently spent over 150 hours performing community service, and have raised over $3,000 for local non-profit groups.
| Bike to Work and School Day- Betties hosted a “Refreshment Station” during Bellingham’s June 2007 “Bike to Work & School Day”. Our skaters had tons of fun supporting alternative transportation, and will be participating in this event again in May 2008. | 20 hours |
| * Relay for Life- July 2007 marked the Betties’ first participation in the 24-hour walk-a-thon for the American Cancer Society, where we raised $1,200 to support the fight against cancer. | 120 hours |
| * Toys for Tots 2007- As part of the Betties’ annual Christmas Burlesque Show in 2007, we asked the audience to bring a toy for our Toys for Tots drive, resulting in over 100 lbs of toys for local families. | |
| * Girl Scouts of America- After our March 2008 bout, we were proud to present our local troop of Girl Scouts a check for $800. | |
| * Bellingham & Ferndale School Districts- The Betties held a coloring contest during their April 2008 bout and donated money to the winners’ schools, totaling in a donation of $1,200. Everyone walked away as winners! | |
| * Whatcom Early Learning Center- During April 2008, the Betties donated all proceeds from our annual Roller Bettie ‘Earth Day’ Garage Sale to the Whatcom Early Learning Center- the total raised was over $800. | 180 hours |
| * Sustainable Connections- For the May 2008 bout the Betties donated $800 to Sustainable Connections to support sustainable living. The Betties work hard to make every bout “towards zero waste”. | |
| * Lighthouse Mission 2007- Bellingham Roller Betties don’t just donate money- we also give our time and energy! In November of 2007 we joined other community members at the Lighthouse Mission to prepare and serve a delicious Thanksgiving Dinner. | 20 hours |
| * Parades & Local Community Events- Betties love to participate in local events. Here are just a few places we’ve been seen over the past few years… Ski to Sea, Bellingham Pride, Bellingham Farmers Market, Sustainable Connections Members Meeting, and the International Women’s Day Parade. | |
| * Lighthouse Mission Thanksgiving Dinner 2008- In November they donated their time at the Lighthouse Mission serving Thanksgiving dinner to those in need. | 6 hours |
| * Toys for Tots 2008- During these economical hardships the Betties worked overtime collecting toy donations for the local Toys for Tots drive. Resulting in another donation of over 100 lbs of toys! | 10 hours |
| * Project Homeless Connect 2009- To increase the organized capacity of people in Whatcom County to care for one another. Project Homeless Connect (PHC) is a national initiative sponsored by the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, and is now implemented in over 200 cities across the United States as well as Canada, Puerto Rico and Australia. Project Homeless Connect helps families to get dental and medical care, find jobs and a safe place to live, etc. For more information, visit HERE | 20 hours |
| * Bellingham Food Bank 2009- The Bellingham Food Bank has been helping to feed our community since 1972. Their mission is to reduce hunger in Bellingham by providing wholesome foods to those in need on an emergency or chronic basis and by educating the community on the problem of hunger. The Food Bank accomplishes this mission by community advocacy, local food drives, non-perishable food and cash donations. In March the Betties donated $875 of their bout proceeds as well as 198 lbs of food to the Bellingham Food Bank. | 5 hours |
| * Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Project- The Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association (NSEA) has been “giving a helping hand to salmon” since 1990. The NSEA is a community–based nonprofit organization dedicated to restoring sustainable wild salmon runs in Whatcom County. Planting trees is not an easy job! However the Betties did it to help the salmon enhancement project down by Whatcom Falls in January 2009! | 35 hours |
| * The Opportunity Council- The Opportunity Council (OC) is a local community action agency which has been helping people and changing lives since 1965. They strive to serve homeless and low income people. The OC works to create positive change, both in the lives of the people they serve and in our community. Their programs provide a range of services including helping people in crisis meet immediate needs while providing long-term support. They shelter people who are homeless, feed people who are hungry, prepare young children for school, help keep people safe and warm through the winter, and so much more. | |
 * YMCA Superhero Convention - The Roller Betties hosted games for YMCA superheroes age 3 to 6. Superheroes played games that helped them learned how to save our planet with a Johnny Trash & The ReCyclops recycling game, and also assisted Captain Safety in making sure the Betties wore the proper derby safety equipment. |
18 hours |
The Bellingham Roller Betties are proud to be active in local Whatcom & Skagit County Social, Community, and Environmental charities. In our daily lives you will find us Betties working in local businesses, raising children, going to school, and volunteering in our communities. Our goal is to use our organization to benefit the communities that support us, both on and off the track.
As a registered not-for-profit group, we feel it is important to do our part to support other local non-profit organizations who are working to make our area thrive. Check back often to see what projects we are working on, or to suggest new ones. Roll on!
