Tag: pittsburgh

Book ‘Em Needs Your Books & Paper Bags
Letter to Book ‘Em. Photo Credit: Book ‘Em Facebook Page. Click here to read the text of the letter.

Attention book lovers! Book ‘Em is a Pittsburgh non-profit that needs your help to send books to prisoners in Pennsylvania.

I spent a few hours yesterday in the basement of a building on Penn Avenue yesterday with a group of volunteers who were picking out books and packing them up to be sent to prisoners across the state. I had no idea that the basement below the Thomas Merton Center was set up as a little book-shop by mail. If you love browsing book stores and picking out books then this is the volunteer opportunity for you! Prisoners from across the state can write in and request books. Some requests are specific, most are for general categories of books. I love browsing bookstores, but I have promised myself I will not buy any new books until I’ve read the ever growing pile of books in my house. Fulfilling each request was a challenge of browsing the Book ‘Em bookshelves and make a best guess at what each person might like to read.

Here are a few things that I learned about Book ‘Em this weekend:
- Many of the requests that I filled yesterday were for educational books. If you have books to donate please check the list of requested books here.
- Book’Em’s biggest need is money to cover the cost of shipping books. If you want to help with the cause, please consider sending a few dollars to Book ‘Em via the donation page here.
- Paper Bags! Book ‘Em wants your empty paper bags. Instead of throwing out paper grocery bags, please donate them to Book ‘Em to be used for wrapping up books to be mailed.
- Volunteer! Volunteers are needed to help pick out books and pack them for shipping. You can see a calendar of volunteer days here.
Books and paper bags can be dropped off at the Thomas Merton Center, 5129 Penn Ave, Monday through Friday from 10 to 4 and during our Sunday work sessions.

If you would like to learn more, follow Book ‘Em on Facebook here or in this 2013 Post-Gazette article about Book ‘Em: “Book ‘Em shipments brighten Pennsylvania inmates’ lives.“
July 11, 2016
2016 Pittsburgh Marathon Map & Hashtags
Sunday May 1, 2016 is a busy day in the City of Pittsburgh. Today is the Pittsburgh Marathon and graduation at University of Pittsburgh.

Here is a .jpg of the Pittsburgh Marathon Map. You can download a larger .pdf of the map here: 2016 Pittsburgh Marathon Course Map.

Pittsburgh Marathon Hashtags & Twitter Accounts to Follow

If you are following the race on social media, here are some hashtags to follow…
- #RunPGH – I’m using #RunPGH because I think that is what I’ve used in the past.
- #GameonPGH
- #PGHMarathon
- #PittsburghMarathon
- #3Cheers – mostly for community events happening around the marathon
Follow these folks on Twitter for Pittsburgh Marathon updates:

I’ve added all of these accounts to this PghMarathon Twitter list.
- @PghMarathon
- @P3Revents – Official account of Pittsburgh Three Rivers Marathon, Inc. – organizers of the@PGHMarathon, @LibertyMile,@Pgh10Miler.
- @KGorman_Trib – Reporter covering from finish line
- @Allegheny_co – Tweeting from finish line
Tweet and UPMC is Giving the Neighborhood with the Most Spirit A Green Makeover

Check out UPMC’s Steel City Spirit contest and use these hashtags. The neighborhood with the most tweets wins. (Kudos to the UPMC team for designing a really great website for this contest.)
Related articles
- Port Authority prepares for Pittsburgh marathon, detouring bus routes (wtae.com)
- Doctors to patrol Pittsburgh Marathon course for quick response to emergencies (post-gazette.com)
May 1, 2016
Happy Hour This Wednesday to Support the Women’s Center & Shelter

The Women’s Center & Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh in a constant Catch-22. It needs to promote itself and its services to people in the community, but also needs to be discreet and protect the privacy of clients.

Last year WC&S answered more than 5,000 hotline calls, provided legal advocacy for nearly 4,000 clients, and sheltered more than 500 women and children.

But the WC&S also had to turn away 755 women and children last year. They consider turning away victims of intimate partner violence unacceptable. When their beds are full, they always try and find alternate arrangements. However, that’s not always possible.

WC&S is in the middle of a capital campaign to renovate and expand its facilities. The campaign is called Shelter From The Storm, and it needs your support. The goal of expanding their facilities is to ensure they provide sanctuary for those here in the Pittsburgh area who need it.

To get the word out, the WC&S is hosting a happy hour this Wednesday, March 30, at Olive or Twist. The goal is to inform new Pittsburghers and young professionals about what they do and what services they provide to women and children in the area. You can buy tickets at the door or in advance here.

What: Happy Hour to Benefit Women’s Center & Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh

When: Wednesday, March 30, 2016 | 5:30-7:30pm

Where: Olive or Twist

Tickets: $25 online or at the door

Follow: @WCSPittsburgh

March 28, 2016
Startup Weekend Pittsburgh is back Nov. 20-22– get 20% off tickets!
I’ll keep this short since it’s no secret that I love Startup Weekend– if you’re interested in entrepreneurship and the tech scene at all, there’s no better way to get involved than jumping right in! Use code SWheartsPGH for 20% off.

The most recent Startup Weekend, hosted by Work Hard Pittsburgh, was a Civic-themed event held in September that focused on making impacts in our community.

We were due for a general-themed event open to all ideas, regardless of vertical or sector, so Startup Weekend Pittsburgh is coming this weekend!

For a quick recap, here’s what you can expect over the course of a Startup Weekend:
- Pitch your brilliant idea, form a team, and work together to build something great
- Meet some really smart, really motivated people and make valuable long-term connections
- Learn from seasoned mentors who have built their own companies and know what it takes
- Develop new skills and expand your talent set
- Actually build the foundations of company. Market validation, business modeling, prototyping, development– it all happens over the course of 54 hours
- Have all your meals covered, and plenty of celebration beer on Sunday
If you can’t make it for the whole weekend, we also have tickets for just the Friday and/or Sunday night pitches. It’s a perfect way to get a feel for what a Startup Weekend is like, without committing for the whole weekend.

Go here for more info and here for tickets. Don’t forget to use code SWheartsPGH for 20% off all tickets!
November 19, 2015
Startup Weekend is back! Join us Sept. 18-20 for Startup Weekend Civic

A 54-hour hackathon cultivating impact and entrepreneurship

Do you know what’s great?

We are living through an interesting time in the history of technology, where everyday people can choose to have a real impact. It’s not a matter of waiting for large institutions to fix what we know can be fixed. You and me, me and you, we can just choose to engage each other and build solutions.

That’s why Startup Weekend Civic Pittsburgh is happening at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, September 18th in the neighborhood of Allentown. It is a chance for us to come together and build solutions. These weekends are a global movement, but it’s nothing new to our region; there have been about a dozen in the area over the past few years.

If you’re not familiar, a Startup Weekend is typically a 54-hour hackathon where folks from different backgrounds come together to pitch ideas, form teams, and start new companies. They have a great track record of launching some of the hottest new companies in town that often go on to Alpha Lab and Thrill Mill.

Although, our event is a Startup Weekend with a twist.

Instead of creating solutions on a national or global level, we’ll be helping to launch new companies and nonprofits that seek to be impactful in our neighborhoods, city, and region. For some people, that might mean starting a company that solves a problem affecting communities. Others may choose to focus on leveraging the City of Pittsburgh’s new Open Data Forum. Either way, this weekend offers participants a unique opportunity to move their great idea along fast.

It all starts next Friday night when participants will pitch their ideas for solutions to problems associated with communities, government, big data, and economic development.

Teams of strangers from diverse backgrounds will form around the best ideas, and then over the next two days, solutions will be born. Sometimes the solution is an app or website, sometimes it is a new company like Project Playground. No idea is too big or small to explore.

Then Sunday night, an esteemed panel of judges sourced from local foundations, city government, and startups will choose the winners. That’s right, we’re putting your solutions directly in front of organizations that can move it even further forward.

It doesn’t matter what your background is, everyone is welcome. You can contribute if you’re a designer, business person, idea girl/guy, software engineer, social media guru, videographer, large squirrel, government official, someone in economic development, or just a normal everyday person that cares.

So what are you waiting for?

You’ve got ideas. You’ve got passion. You want to help make the region better, stronger, and more livable.

It’s time to register. Use code SWHeartsPGH for an extra discount. Tickets for the weekend include all your meals (plus the best networking and professional development you could ever ask for).

Startup Weekend Civic Pittsburgh
When: Friday, September 18 at 6:30pm through Sunday, September 20 at 9pm
Where: RE360 Building in Allentown
829 Industry St.
Pittsburgh, PA 15210
Tickets

September 11, 2015