The founding members of the Board of Directors are often asked why we started this foundation and how we determined what the mission should be. It’s a fair question. There are so many worthy organizations, what is it that makes the Bartko Foundation special and what is it that deserves your support?
The Bartko Foundation is unique in that all of our efforts are in collaboration with a long list of other service organizations. These larger organizations provide invaluable help to many people, but most are limited in the support they can provide due to organizational structure and funding streams. They are restricted and can’t fill gaps that create roadblocks and obstacles and prevent women from meeting their goals. And so they refer their clients to the Bartko Foundation.
“...our lives should not be judged by what we get out of life but how our living makes a difference.”
But what else drives us? First and foremost: this foundation is a legacy to Irene and Ted Bartko who raised their children and grandchildren to know that the purpose of life is not to just be, but to give back, that our lives should not be judged by what we get out of life but how our living makes a difference.
Given that motivation and core value, it was an easy decision to create an organization whose mission is to support minority women and their children in attaining self sufficiency. There is a large body of research to explain why this is needed. Recent studies at the University of Pittsburgh, the Pittsburgh Urban League and national institutions all explain that in western Pennsylvania, single women of color and their children are the poorest of the poor and continually face significant obstacles in obtaining meaningful education, employment, safe and adequate housing, reliable transportation, etc.
But as members of the board, our support is driven more by our hearts than by our heads. We hear the stories of women who are struggling to give their children a good start in life. We feel the pride when a young mother struggling to go to college while holding down a part time job and caring for two children says “I want to do this so my children can be proud of me and have a positive role model.” We feel the struggle when a mother sacrifices everything to get her family into their first home. We appreciate the effort of taking two buses to get to work and child care, let alone carry a toddler and all the paraphernalia that children need to get through the day. We know how it hurts when someone says “Sorry, but we can’t help you with that”.
In our hearts, we understand the frustration, guilt and pain of not being able to give children everything they need. But thanks to the generosity of our supporters, we also know joy! Oh, we know the joy, pride and satisfaction that come from working hard and supporting one another. And we rejoice and celebrate with the women we serve.
And so, we ask for your support so that the celebration will continue for more women that they may achieve hard sought goals and fulfill long held dreams, dreams that carry them and their children into a future of hope, prosperity, gratitude and continued success. Please, be generous in your giving and take comfort in knowing that today, indeed, you made a difference.