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What is the Ladder of Smiles?

LADDER OF SMILES

W. MICHAEL HARTUP, CHAIRMAN

At some oriental band meetings, you may see a fez passed for donations to the Ladder of Smiles.  At regional meetings or competitions you may see the same and hear me, or an A.S.O.B. officer or past president, ask for donations.  Most of the time the plea is for donations without explaining just what the Ladder of Smiles is and what it does.  Some of you are hearing and reading about the Ladder of Smiles for the first time and I hope any questions you have are answered in this article and the articles to come.

In Shrinedom there are two organizations that benefit our Shriners Hospitals for Children and our kids receiving treatment, the Clowns Sneaker Fund and the A.S.O.B. Ladder of Smiles. I don’t know much about the Sneaker Fund but I do know about the Ladder of Smiles. and I assume they are similar.

All the funds, (100%), donated to the Ladder of Smiles do directly benefit our hospitals and our kids.  There are no expenses deducted from your donations.  We are registered as a charitable organization as a 501 (c) 3 corporation and our fiscal year runs from Imperial Session to Imperial Session each year.

This is just a brief overview of just what is the Ladder of Smiles.  The next article will be about the history of the Ladder and how we are doing today.  But…President Harry has announced a goal of raising $70,000.00 during his year so please give generously and make Harry smile.

I bid you peace

Mike

ASOB and Ladder of Smiles Presentation for TASOB

This presentation I happened onto while doing some web surfing, I felt it was important to share with everyone. I am sure that some have seen it or may have been in the audience at the time. It is a presentation that was presented at the TASOB mid-winter meeting about six years ago in Tyler Texas. It was delivered by ASOB Past President Joe Brewton and the material presented was based on ASOB Past President Jim Whitehouse’s talking points. To give credit where it is due, the video was recorded/produced by a JB Squared Texas Productions and uploaded to a Vimeo channel for a Johnnie Wallace.

The following is directly from the page where found with no corrections made.

-Darren

Monday, June 25, 2012, at 11:53 AM EST

This presentation of the American Society of Oriental Bands (A.S.O.B.) and the Ladder of Smiles program benefitting the Shriners Hospitals, was made at the 2012 Texas Association of Shrine Oriental Bands (TASOB) annual mid-winter meeting which was held in Tyler, Texas. The work is a result of the collaborate of J. R. Batesole, Moslah Bedouins, (Moslah Shrine, Fort Worth, Texas) and Past President of the American Society of Oriental Bands (ASOB) Joe Brewton, Khiva Oriental Band (Khiva Shrine, Amarillo, Texas).

The presentation outlines the function of the ASOB Ladder of Smiles program.

Support the Ladder of Smiles

SUPPORT THE LADDER OF SMILES!

As an Oriental Bandsmen, it is our obligation to financially help our children and our hospital. It is up to each bandsman, band, and regional association to provide, in their own way, funds to treat the children that need our help.  Some bandsmen do this by way of a memorial donation or honorarium, a bequest or just a donation.  Some bands pass the fez at their meetings, hold a raffle, or have a fundraising event.  Some associations contribute as well.  The T.A.S.O.B. Mid-Winter Meeting, March 23 – 25, 2018, in Tyler TX, is having a raffle to benefit the LADDER OF SMILES.  At one T.A.S.O.B. Mid-Winter meeting a wagon was auctioned off not once but TWICE, bringing in over $1400.00 (in addition to other treasures in the auction) to help our kids.

What can you do as an individual bandsman, member of a band, or member of an association?

SUPPORT THE LADDER OF SMILES!

The smiles of children DO make it all worthwhile.

See you at the Jamboree in Kansas City, May 4 – 6. 2018!