Soyla Salazar – “The Miracle Baby”…..

Virginia Vasquez Salazar called her husband, Jesus “Chuy” Salazar and told him it was “time”. Chuy remembers saying “time – for what…ohhhhh!” They lived in a mobile trailer in Hallsburg, Texas and he had started work early this day. He picked up Virginia and they made the trip from Hallsburg to Waco in record time; however, they arrived with little time to prepare Virginia for delivery.When Virginia was brought to the recovery room, she was asked if she would be breast or bottle-feeding the baby. Virginia responded that she would be breastfeeding Soyla. When the baby was given to Virginia, she noticed that the nose area was a distinct blue. She asked the doctors, “Why does my baby have blue around her nose area?” she said they initially responded, “The fast delivery may have caused some bruising.” When the baby would not “latch on” for breast-feeding they took the baby to another area.

Virginia and Chuy were talking about the name Soyla, which means “alone” in Spanish. “Soyla is the only girl on my side of extended family and the only one in our family; therefore, she is Soyla,” said Chuy, “the only girl.”

They both remembered the look on the doctor’s faces when they returned and both of them sensed something was wrong. “The baby is being prepared for flight to Cooks Memorial Hospital in Fort Worth,” Virginia remembered the doctor saying. They said they had some news.” The baby would be taken by helicopter to Cooks Memorial Hospital because she had pulmonary attrition – one of four of the heart valves was not opening and closing properly. The blueness in the nose area was caused by the lack of oxygen to the lungs,” Virginia remembers the doctors saying.
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So you think you want to dance…Getting Started

NOTE: To get a foundation grant you must have a non-profit status from the Internal Revenue Service (501(c)3).

(1) The Foundation Tables that follow have been categorized by concepts and may fund multiple concept categories – see the bottom of the table. The Foundation Tables are arranged by concepts in the “Categories” button to the right. For the most part I was looking for foundations that fund workforce and financial literacy concepts. Geographically, the Foundations listed in the Tables fund in every state – making the process more competitive – you really have to show demonstrated performance to get funded.(2) If you are looking for your non-profit’s first grant and have established a project plan with goals/objectives/measurable outcomes, I suggest you start with your area’s local foundations. Just do a google for “local foundations in your town”, and see what you get – then do your foundation research – go to their websites to “hear” clearly the foundation’s mission and purpose to see if your non-profit’s mission and purpose align.(3) Annual Reports usually indicate who was funded, if you cannot find one on the foundation website go to Guidestar.com they have a copy of the foundation’s IRS forms that indicate who, where and how much was funded, these are available to the public. This is good information to know for financial project planning. Go to the funded organization’s websites and see what you can learn about how they aligned concepts.(4) The foundation’s websites have guidelines for submission and most applications are done on-line. Most of the foundations that I have seen have very minor applications, some require a Letter of Inquiry first to determine if your concept really does fit their mission before inviting you to submit the full application – when you submit the application they will require a copy of your 501©3 non-profit certification and financial documentation; i.e. audit, tax returns….

If you have a grant question – just ask.