We are raising money to CRUSH this years donations in anticipation of our 10th ANNUAL toy drive next winter! Wanna help? DONATE HERE! THANKS THANKS THANKS!
Over 300 toys were donated to Foster Your Dream this year for children IN foster care, transitioning TO foster care (a super scary time) or working with highly at-risk families to help them keep their children from being TAKEN to foster care! It could never have been done with out all of your generous donations … FAR and WIDE. Strangers and friends! Special thanks to Sandra Garni and Mark Carson for hosting our toys!
It was out 9th Annual Toy Drive! Next year? I have a feeling with your help, we will break all our Toy Drive records. MANY THANKS TO ALL.
STAY TUNED FOR DROP OFF LOCATIONS FOR OUR 9TH ANNUAL 2023 TOY DRIVE!!!
Once again we rallied the toy-magical-givers and filled our toy boxes!
Thanks to Sandra Garni and Tim Dugger we were able to collect, inventory for ACS and deliver our bounty to kids who could use a smile ALL YEAR LONG.
We always collect during the Thanksgiving, Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanzaa and New Year’s holiday time because that’s when folks enjoy giving. But our mission is to provide a smile and a happy moment when a child gets pulled out of his or her or their homes and folded in to child protective services!
It’s often scary and sad for them. We let them chose something to have when they get moved to a foster home. So THANK YOU.
Won’t you give next year!
THANKS to all who help. Including the staff at 36 West 44th street, Klotz and Gould, Mark Carson Selman, Brikener Jean Gilles, Gwendolyn Carroll, Tim Dugger, Sandra Garni.
2021 is an exceptionally difficult time for our young foster population to enter the workforce. There is a lack of business suits … especially for our young men. But we will happily accept business suits for girls, too!
So. If you have any suits or know people who have any please help!!
The last day for Guilford Connecticut drop off is June 2nd.
BREAKWATER BOOKS 81 Whitfield Street, Guilford Ct 06437 (Thank you Richard Parent and Paul Listro!!!) OPEN 10-6 Monday through Saturdays and 11-5 Sundays closed on memorial day
PARK AND REC CENTER 32 Church Street, Guilford 06437 (Thank you Rick Maynard and Matt Hoey) OPEN 8:30 to 4:30 Monday through Fridays closed on memorial day
The last day for NYC drop off is June 6th. 15 West 72nd Street. Lobby.
The photo above is an artistic 22 year old young man still in the foster system. His joy at receiving these suits from us prompted our larger suit drive. I hope you get as enthused as I am about trying to rustle up business attire for this incredibly deserving population! đ
THANKS everyone! Sue Wolf PS our brand new website and 2 years of data was erased by godaddy (no we didn’t have a backup…yikes) so forgive our last posting being March 2019. At some point march 2019-May 2021 will be restored and our clunky site re-imagined. Meanwhile, enjoy our history. We are tiny but we have mighty dreams! Thanks for reading. đ
2 OF OUR PRE-TEEN BOYS WAIT FOR THE SHOW TO START WEARING SWAG! đ
When Jackie Bell fell in love with our kids, she made sure we got to visit the AMAZING MUSICAL EMOJILAND! We had the best time ever. She spoke with our group at the beginning and treated us to a VIP ending. The kids loved it so much! You know we canât show their faces but here is some audio during intermission when we asked a few of the boys how they liked the show:
LISTEN TO THE CHILDREN’S REVIEW OF EMOJILAND!
We get to go again next week! Jackie said the entire company felt honored to have our kids visit the show that they work so hard to perform!
The drummer of the show fell in love with one of our very bouncy boys and has given him a drum practice-kit to take to his new foster home. The drummer remembers being a bouncy, rhythmic child and wanted to encourage our little guy to try the drums. Can you believe it?
What an AMAZING outcome for all of us. Not only does a group of children get a bonding super-fun experience, but one of them will have a surprise gift sent to his new foster home. But also, a whole show-biz family now knows how special our children are and will most likely encourage more opportunities for foster children everywhere! How magical is that?
Thank you to Jackie Bell and all the folks at EMOJILAND! GO SEE THIS SHOW. Itâs a winner.
FOLLOWUP REPORT: One of our younger boys was jumping around excitedly TO the music the entire show. The drummer, who could see our little guy, stopped me and asked if he could give him a set of drum sticks because he related to the boy’s energy. Giancarlo De Trizio saw himself in our little boy and wrote him a note and gave it to our guy! (who btw is the one on the audio file above!) Here’s our hero:
DROP OFF POINT: 36 WEST 44TH STREET âtween 5TH AND 6TH NYC!
SCOTT LORELLO King Toy Man in lobby 36 W. 44th St. NYC
WELCOME TO OUR FOURTH ANNUAL TOY DRIVE IN NYC FOR KIDS IN FOSTER CARE!
Each Year we collect toys from Thanksgiving until the first week in January. Our aim is to scoop up the good feelings of âgivingâ and âtoysâ during this time of year and reach out for toy donations! But we give them to the children all year long! Hereâs why! When a child gets pulled out of his or hers or their home ⌠they often go to the childrenâs center while waiting for a foster family to be found for them. Mostly they are in crisis, scared and sad. We tell the child to choose a toy for themselves and often it provides a respite of a few minutes of happiness in what is often the worst day of their life. Our kids stay at the center sometimes just overnight but sometimes a family isnât found for them for weeks or months or even years.
There are two drop off locations and you have until January 2nd 2020! You can even go on Amazon or any department store and send toys to:
Foster Your Dream Toy Drive 36 West 44th Street New York, NY 10036
or: Signature Theatre att: Foster Your Dream Toy Drive 480 West 42nd Street New York NY 10036
We started humbly with an empty box!
Thanks to you, it grows daily. Almost hourly! When we first started we even got noticed by NYC Commissioner David A. Hansell! Thanks for your kind letter.
It is only Mid-December and we’ve already collected over 150 toys and! Thank you to Scott and Sandra and Janet and Angela and Mark and Ken and Burton and Colleen. You are the engine that drives this collection. Last year we were able to give toys out for HALF a year at the Childrenâs Center. Each year we strive to get a little bit bigger. Itâs so fun. Toys must be new and unwrapped. Super expensive toys are not the best idea. Also no clothing (ACS rules!) Something smile-provoking a child can take with them on their journey thru the foster care system and put a smile on their face ⌠that is the best kind of gift you can give us during this holiday season. THANKS TO ALL!Â
YOU SOUND LIKE A GIRL started by our dear friend from the Signature Theatre Days, Colleen Hughes, brought her amazing show to the ACS Theatre! There was a cast of 5 amazing she/her/hers identifying actors who shared very personal stories for an hour at the Childrenâs Center.
Thanks to all the amazing performers.
YOU SOUND LIKE A GIRL CAST!
You Sound Like a Girl Created and directed by: Colleen E. Hughes Written and performed by: Sara Jane Munford, Alessandra Ruiz, Alexandria Smalls, and Rev. Yolanda Produced by: Emily Rose Prats Dramaturgy by: Rachel Levens
Colleen E. Hughes(she/her/hers) is a Brooklyn based director and arts administrator, and creator of You Sound Like a Girl. Her select directing credits include, What Screams I Hear are Mine by Annalise Cain (reading, The Tribe Theatre Company), The Shapes We Make With Our Bodies by Meg Whiteford (The Hive), Jelly Bean Junkyard by Sean Pollock (Under St. Marks), Chatroom by Enda Walsh (The Hive), Let Them Eat Cake by Ted Malawer (TinyRhino), and Disco Pigs by Enda Walsh (A.R.T.âs Oberon). Her assisting credits include 12th Night by William Shakespeare, directed by Shira Millikowsky (A.R.T. Institute) and Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, directed by Phil Soltanoff (Skidmore College). Colleen studied directing at the National Theatre Institute at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center and theater at Skidmore College. www.colleenehughes.com
Sara Jane Munford(she/her/hers) is a multimedia performance artist, designer and puppeteer based in Brooklyn, New York. She is the resident set designer and puppet captain of Little Did Productions. Currently, Sara Jane is working on birth/control/project, a community based art making process and art installation intended to create a space to empower female identifying participants in the pursuit of autonomy over their bodies. For more information please email [email protected].
Alessandra Ruiz(she/her/hers) is a NY Latina actress who moved from Los Angeles this January. She graduated from California State University, Fullerton with a B.A. in Theatre Arts with an emphasis in Devised/Physical Theatre. She begun her NYC debuts working with projects performed at the Gene Frankel Theatre and St. Paul’s Lutheran Church. She wants to use theatre to open up minds and hearts for a better understanding society. Alessandra believes theatre is a powerful art form that can truly help make a change. Alessandra is very excited to be creating with the “”You Sound Like a Girl”” cast and crew and hopes to empower women everywhere. www.alessandraruiz.com
Alexandria Joesica Smalls(she/her/hers) is an actor, writer and director who hails from Brooklyn, NY. She has an AS in theater from BMCC and a BA in Drama and Africana Studies with a focus on Prison Studies. She is an activist with a passion for social justice issues and uses her creative work to explore difficult conversations on topics such as race, economic inequality, and education.
Rev. Yolanda(she/her/hers) is a singer/songwriter/trans-femme genderqueer performance artist and interfaith minister, originally from Muscle Shoals Alabama- The Hit Recording Capital Of The World. Rev. Yolanda and husband Rev. Glen Ganaway are the founders of the monthly âspiritual happeningâ Church With A 2 Drink Minimum. Rev. Yolanda’s ministry and body of musical work has been captured on film by Avaiya Media with the movie “”Rev. Yolanda’s Old Time Gospel Hour”” (available on Amazon), and has been honored with induction into the The GLBT Hall Of Fame, the Blues Hall of Fame, and two MAC Awards. (MAC-Manhattan Association of Cabarets and Clubs). Rev. Yolanda is currently working on a full length, autobiographical musical theater piece entitled “The Church Of The Alien Love Child Presents: The Passion of Rev. Yolanda.â
Emily Rose Prats(she/her/hers) came to NY more than a decade ago to get her BFA in Drama from NYU/Tisch. Since then, she’s produced an EP, performed Shakespeare, voiced commercials, taught music to children, and now works in marketing for startups. She believes in theatre as a teaching tool and hopes You Sound Like a Girl can empower women and girls to stop internalizing misogyny and make themselves heard. Follow her adventures on insta @the_gremily and/or offer to publish her children’s book.Rachel Levens(she/her/hers) is a Brooklyn based new play director, dramaturg, and applied theater artist. Rachelâs directing has been seen at La MaMa, Edinburgh Fringe Festival, United Solo, The Tank, Dixon Place, Hudson Guild, and The International Human Rights Festival at The Wild Project. Her dramaturgy work has ranged from production dramaturgy, new play development, literature performance, and dance dramaturgy. She is the resident dramaturg for The Holding Project, a dance company based in Portland, Oregon. Rachel holds a BFA in Theater with an emphasis in Original Works from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, WA.
COLLEEN HUGHES PREPARES CAST TO PERFORM AT THE CHILDREN’S CENTER FOR ACS