1G For Good 2011 Finalists
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A friend and myself have filmed this video and wrote an original song to nominate the Race For Adam Foundation in the 1G for Good Contest. It's a great cause, and is named in honor of Adam Recke. Adam is the son of one of our school's middle school teachers. At age seven, Adam was diagnosed with Niemann-Pick Type C, a rare neurodegenerative disorder that has no known cure. Immediately, the community came together to help the Reckes. In 2005, The Race For Adam Foundation was formed. The Foundation is committed to "helping all families who suffer from this rare disease and promoting awareness of Niemann-Pick Type C disease." The Race For Adam now partakes in many fundraising efforts, such as annual Poker Rides and 5K Run/Walks. Even though Niemann-Pick is a terminal illness, Adam and his family always stay hopeful, adopting such slogans as "Persevere" or "I believe." The family's courage, strength, and determination is nothing short of extraordinary. Now as high school students, we wanted to show that we didn't forget about The Race For Adam. Thank you for the opportunity.
If Touchstone Theatre wins $1000 through First Generation's "$1G for Good" program, the theatre would utilize the funds to hire a local artist to paint an eye-catching, welcoming and creative mural on the back of the theatre building that is located on 321 East 4th Street. Touchstone is a not-for-profit producing and presenting organization, which fosters inter-cultural, international and community collaborations. 2011 marks the 30th anniversary of Touchstone Theatre's genesis in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
This small group of people work tirelessly to promote the importance of creating original work, supporting arts in education programs as well as offering a space in which other artists may express their own thoughts and ideas. After spending the past year at Touchstone as an apprentice, I never imagined how dramatically my perspective on art would evolve after this experience.
Touchstone has given me the opportunity as a recent college graduate, to find my own voice and inspired me to get involved and contribute to the town I grew up in. I've had to collaborate with other artists and community members, learn to teach in several of the theatre's educational outreach programs, write my own original piece as well as learn the inner workings of a theatre company that reaches far beyond what is revealed on its stage.
Although my time as an apprentice has ended, it is my sincerest hope that I may leave a little something with Touchstone as a thank you for the enormous gift they have given me. So much time and energy is put into maintaining the education programs, producing a full season of shows and working with other partners in the community, that the actual maintenance of Touchstone's facility is often put on the back burner.
In continuing efforts to revitalize the south side of town, the City of Bethlehem invested in construction of a "Greenway," which is a walking/bicycle path along the railroad tracks between Third and Fourth Streets. The section of the Greenway behind Touchstone is between Taylor and Polk Streets. The mural would contribute to the aesthetics of the path and community as well as be a marketing tool to create more visibility for Touchstone's indoor and outdoor performances and events. The addition of a mural to the back of our building would be a fantastic opportunity to brighten our neighborhood, attract more people to the area and give a little taste of what extraordinary things this company has to offer.
I would use the money to buy a ton of instant film. During our Relay For Life event, I would take a picture of each participant for them to take home as a reminder of the impact on cancer research they have made that day. The picture will act as a souvenir of inspiration, love, and commitment to wiping cancer off the face of this earth.
In memory of my dad.
It's Christmas morning. It's snowing, finally! The blue spruce in the corner of the living room is adorned with lights and ornaments, and beneath it, gifts galore. The smell of coffee brewing fills our warm home. The turkey is in the oven and apple pies are lined up on the buffet waiting for vanilla ice cream. The children will awaken soon. For what more could I ask?
Brrrrrr.it's freezing out here. Hope my fire doesn't go out. With all this snow, I sure am lucky that the church was handing out winter coats last month. Maybe I can get a couple of blankets too this year. I'm thankful they still allow us to sleep under this bridge. These big appliance boxes keep out a lot of the wind.
Oh look, it must be Christmas Day. Maybe that guy would like some help carrying those gifts to his car. I recall last year there was a group of folks who invited me and some of my friends to the Third Street Alliance on Christmas Day for a turkey dinner. There were about 50 helpers. They made salad, green beans, mashed potatoes and turkey. We had stuffing and gravy too. We could drink as much coffee as we wanted. It sure did warm my belly. They even served dessert! Everyone was just so nice. They brought everything to us at our tables, as though we were in a restaurant. They treated us like royalty. To top it all off, they gave each of us a gift bag filled with useful items like a blanket, hat, gloves, soap and wash cloth, toothbrush and toothpaste, snacks, and a bunch of other stuff. I think they called it Jacob's Christmas. I sure do hope they do it again this year. What more could I ask for?
Jacob's Christmas provides a Christmas Day meal on December 25th starting at 12 noon. The meal is served in the gym at the Third Street Alliance in Easton, PA, and the food is prepared in area restaurants and in the kitchen of Trinity Church. This is the only meal for the poor, the homeless and the unemployed in the Easton-Phillipsburg area on Christmas Day and it usually serves about 175 people, sometimes more
My husband and 2 adult sons were blessed to take part in Jacob's Christmas celebration at the Third Street Alliance on December 25, 2010. I heard about it through a friend at our church in Bethlehem, PA. It warmed my heart to see strangers come together to serve these less fortunate people in such a special way. It warmed my heart to be able to bless them with a listening ear as they shared stories of better days past. It would warm my heart to be able to tell the organization that they would have an extra $1,000 with which to celebrate this Christmas with these folks!
Monetary donations may be mailed to Jacob’s Christmas LLC, PO Box 878, Easton, PA 18042.