by River Ellis Foundation | Sep 28, 2020 | Sunrise Story, Who We Help
A rising 2nd grader in Virginia Beach passed away suddenly and unexpectedly, leaving behind a grieving family. His mother was unable to pay for his funeral service as a single parent who was already experiencing financial difficulties. The River Ellis Foundation was...
by River Ellis Foundation | Aug 27, 2020 | Giving Back
Trish Gill is from Virginia Beach and serves as the HR Benefits Manager at TowneBank. She lives with her husband, Tom, and daughter Darby (age 9). They also have a 9-year-old yellow lab named Arleigh and a 20-year-old cat named Kitty. Trish loves to spend her time...
by River Ellis Foundation | Aug 12, 2020 | Announcements
In honor of River’s birthday each September, we hold a Paddle Out to celebrate the love that she continues to spread through The River Ellis Foundation. Due to COVID-19, we are unable to hold our paddle out in person this year, but we want YOU to have a DIY...
by River Ellis Foundation | Aug 3, 2020 | General
Doug and Rachel Ellis co-founded The River Ellis Foundation in 2018 when their daughter, River, passed away. Along with the Foundation, Doug is involved in a range of different community organizations. He is Past President/Current Board Member of the...
by River Ellis Foundation | Jul 23, 2020 | Sunrise Story, Who We Help
When her car was totaled in a car accident, a mother found herself in the middle of a difficult situation. She relied on this vehicle to transport her 17 year old son with cerebral palsy to all of his medical appointments. Still making payments on her previous car,...
by River Ellis Foundation | Jul 1, 2020 | Sunrise Story, Who We Help
At 22 weeks pregnant, a Newport News mother learned that her baby had Down Syndrome along with heart failure so severe that there was no way he would survive. The mother went on to carry him until 28 weeks and 4 days when she gave birth to her baby boy weighing 1lb...
by River Ellis Foundation | Jun 29, 2020 | General
When approached by Doug and Rachel about helping with the River Ellis Foundation, the answer was an easy ‘yes’ for Blair. She helps out with development, and comes up with ideas on how to both fundraise and promote the organization. Blair is a...
by River Ellis Foundation | May 14, 2020 | Giving Back
Names: Stephen and Cara Cupka City of Residence: Virginia Beach Job Titles/Companies: Stephen – Project Manager (ET Gresham) Cara- Scheduling Engineer (VDOT) How did you first hear about The River Ellis Foundation? When we got the tragic news about River we were...
by River Ellis Foundation | May 12, 2020 | General
Annabelle Stiffler focuses on helping to find funding for the River Ellis Foundation through a combination of Donor Gifts, Grants, and Public Engagement. She has been involved with the Foundation since its beginning and has long been a friend of the Ellis Family. In...
by River Ellis Foundation | May 5, 2020 | Who We Help
A five-year-old boy ended up in the ICU after he was shot outside of his Portsmouth home. After being recently furloughed due to the COVID-19 crisis, his mother needed help purchasing a cell phone to communicate with family about the child’s condition as only...
by River Ellis Foundation | Apr 28, 2020 | General, Giving Back
REF Volunteers have been hard at work making PPE for our local healthcare workers. We also provided masks for the moms and dads at Sentara Princess Anne Hospital in order to protect their new babies from COVID-19. These times are difficult for all of us, and we are...
by River Ellis Foundation | Apr 7, 2020 | Who We Help
When a Chesapeake mother passed away suddenly and unexpectedly in her sleep, her six year old son went to live with his grandparents. With very limited income, the grandparents required immediate, short-term assistance to cover the costs of caring for their grandson....
