So far Playing for Others teens have had two opportunities to meet with their buddies as a full group.
Rebecca Moore & Anna Boekelheide with buddy Kendall
Rachel Tate with buddy Gloria
Our first, "Meet Your Buddy event" was held at Veteran's Park on September 13th. A beautiful day outside, teens and buddies played tag, ran through the sprinkler park, sat on blankets to hang out and just enjoyed getting to know each other. Families stood by and watched as their child was treated like any other child. To be in the presence of such energy and love was a wonderful way to spend a Saturday morning.
Michael Greshko with buddy Brandon
John Crum gets down to play
Then on October 4th, everyone gathered again but this time at ImaginOn: The Joe & Joan Martin Center for "Storytelling & Theatre fun". Buddies made crafts, explored the building, played in the courtyard, participated in storytelling and gathered around the puppet theatre for a fun filled morning. But the day for the teens wasn't over yet!
Storytelling at ImaginOn
They then booked it over to Freedom Park to be a part of the "Buddy Walk" for our former partner, the Down Syndrome Association of Charlotte. Here they reconnected with old buddies, painted faces, played music & brought out the puppets. What a nice welcome back we had from all the familiar faces! Next up...Music Together!
Charlie Holt & Addy Allred walking for Down syndrome
PFO teens take the walk at Freedom Park |
Arts Festival Week!
March 23rd - 29th
This years show:
Honk!
The musical story of the ugly duckling
Monday through Friday:
10:00 a.m. School Shows
Know a school that would want to come? Contact Lisa Ramsey, School Show Coordinator 704.236.9033
the5ramzz@carolina.rr.com
Thursday, March 26th
7:30 p.m. Show
Friday, March 27th
6:30-8:00 p.m. Silent Auction
8:00 p.m. Show
Saturday, March 28th
11:00 a.m. Show
2:00 p.m. Show
Both shows are red carpet events for children
8:00 Concert & Songwriting competition
Sunday, March 29th
4:00 p.m. Show
Check presentation follows
All events take place at the Neighborhood Theatre in North Davidson
Charlotte, NC |
Silent Auction update
Know someone who might want to donate? Are you feeling generous?
Wish list:
Tickets and plane fare to Oprah
An Ipod with docking station
Cruise
Time Share
Vaction house
Laptop |
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Meet our 2008-2009 Teens & Advisors
* = Teens new to PFO
Tech Team
Advisor - Joanna Gerdy
Advisor - Jim Gloster
Chair - Nicole Ramsey
Secretary - Heidi Woodward
Kaitlin Wightman-Ausman
Amanda Roberge
Charlie Holt
Addy Allred
*Molly Smithson
*Aubrey McGrath
Material Advertising
Advisor - Tanya McClellan
Chair - Hayden Rockecharlie
Secretary - Issac Josepthal
Briann Messick
Mattie Kearse
Jura Davis
*Gabriella Hunt
*Hunter Lewis
*Shannon Elliot
*Max Boudman
Publicity
Advisor - Catherine Smith
Chair - Joe Ehrman-Dupre
Secretary - Erika Rasile
Rachel Tate
Morgan Grubbs
John Crum
*Melissa Lebet
*Maggie Barrows
*Calvin Gross
Group Sales
Advisor - Hope Johnston
Chair - Caroline Reid
Secretary - Savannah Devore
James Kennedy
Allison Whitmeyer
Christian Buffard
*Julia Hunt
*Clara Howell
*Anna Boekelheide
*Benjamin Elling
Silent Auction
Advisor - Lane Morris
Chair - Carrie Holt
Secretary - Burke Spivey
Meghan Neal
Emily Hudson
Camille Gross
*Talbot Hall
*Kelsey Getsinger
*Michael Rasile
*Michael Greshko
Special Events
Advisor - Beth Pierce
Chair - Stephen Friedrich
Secretary - Kate Schwab
Becca Moore
Jamie Marsicano
Izzy Francke
*Emily Moore
*Larkin Dodgen
*Syandene McCall
Advisor - Joe Rux
Chair - Daniel Morrice
Secretary - Kylie Nall
Abby Moore
Julianna Sosa
Savannah Jillani
*Ariel Blake
*Justin Ortlip
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Building our community
by Joe Rux
Joe Rux on the bottom of a Historian Committee pyramid
One of the elements of the work we do in Playing for Others is creating a vast network of support, not only among the teens and their parents, but in the community at large. It's an amazing thing to watch our PFO teens learn about effective communication and then take the next step and put that learning to use through their corporate sponsor pitches, speeches to potential donor organizations, and speaking to family and friends about who we are. I have witnessed teens display critical thinking to find solutions to challenges and speak eloquently about our mission. But it doesn't stop there. Our teens learn the importance of following up. After they tell people about PFO and their story, they send notes and make follow up calls. It's exciting for me to see, and even more exciting to know our teens will take these new skills as they move on to college and beyond.
So how can we inspire our dedicated teens to get our story out there? We can encourage our teens to continue their communication growth by nudging them to talk about PFO with family and friends. We can also follow their lead and do the same. The holidays are upon us and there is no better time to make sure everyone we know hears about PFO and the great work we do. Additionally, we can all follow up with our supporters after the holidays and make sure they know about the exciting events coming up in the months ahead.
Our overall mission is constant: To create change, by kids, for others, with the community, through a passionate journey. The immediate mission? Make sure everyone knows our mission
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Welcome!
by Jen Band, Founder/Executive Director
PFO Teens with Jen Band
Welcome to our first mid-month online newsletter! Playing for Others is growing and growing as we move into year three. What a journey it's been and continues to be. In an effort to stay in touch with our extended PFO family, friends and supporters, we are beginning a mid-month online newsletter. Each issue will feature teens, buddy relationships, parent perspectives and many other exciting stories. Playing for Others is a nationally unique program and we are trying to get our story out there as much as possible. For all of you reading this right now, feel free to forward it on to other people in your life that you believe would love to hear the story of a group of 60 teens putting passion into action. After all, that's what Playing for Others is all about! Here's to the first of many newsletters to come...let's spread the love and spread the word!!! |
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Introducing our new Teen Board President
 Hello Everyone! My name is Hayden Rockecharlie and I am extremely honored and excited to be named the Teen Board President of Playing for Others for the 2008-2009 year. Just to share a little bit about myself, I am sixteen years old and a junior at Charlotte Catholic High School. I have been a member of PFO since that very first meeting in August 2006, and it has been amazing to witness the changes that PFO had undergone since then.
There is no doubt in the world that ever since I began this journey alongside PFO that it has changed my life. In the two and a half years since it began, we have worked together to accomplish leaps and bounds to make Playing for Others as successful as it can be. That is what is so incredible about PFO. As a teenager, I can actually say that I have helped change the life of a child. It makes me so proud that I can surround myself with 60 amazing teens that have the initiative and drive to transform the way people view the world. We are defying the "lazy teen" stereotype and putting forth all that we have to serve others. As Gandhi once said, "You may never know what results come of your action, but if you do nothing there will be no result".
Even though this year has just begun, I can already tell that we are going to accomplish great things. Within several months we have formed new relationships with many wonderful people. Not only have we shared lots of smiles, laughs, and good times with the amazing children from Easter Seals UCP, but we have also been able to embrace the new members of Playing for Others and realize how much we have grown as an organization. As the third year of Playing for Others comes upon us, full of changes and challenges, one of the best things to look forward to and realize is that the best is yet to come.
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Parent perspective
by Susan Ehrman
 Commitment. Joy. Love. Laughter. Intensity. Passion. Trust. Patience. Acceptance.
I have watched Joe experience and learn about all of these and more during his three years with PFO. Sometimes in a single weekend! Sometimes, he does not even have words to describe "it". But his face gives him away.
PFO is a place where Joe can be Joe - where he can try on new hats, make mistakes, and succeed spectacularly. He has learned that it's all in the details when you are a committee chair and that leading takes on many forms; that frustration can be replaced with creatively communicating in a different way to reach your goal.
When I send him off to a PFO buddy event, a meeting, a rehearsal or a retreat, I know that Joe will come away with new observations about himself and the world around him. These events take him outside of his regular daily life and show him what he can do to make a difference. What a tremendous gift!
Being the parent of a PFO teen is a commitment, especially when that teen doesn't drive. Is it worth it? Absolutely. PFO provides some of the best character-building experiences I have ever seen. When combined with the work done by our teens in the community, this is a truly powerful and unforgettable experience.
So, this leads me to the obvious question: Where is PFO for adults? Sign me up!
Susan's son Joe, with his buddy De'Vante |
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Spotlight on the Publicity Committee
Committee Advisor Catherine Smith with the Publicity committee
The Publicity Committee is charged with getting the word out about Playing for Others and its activities - particularly the Arts Festival Weekend. The committee is unique because we have a parallel committee on the adult Board of Directors with similar responsibilities. The two groups work together to develop and execute a game plan for publicizing our efforts and organization.
Marketing and Public Relations is what we are all about. The two terms mean different things. You may find that people use them interchangeably, because they work hand in hand. Marketing refers those things a company may spend money on, like TV commercials, print ads, or bumper stickers. Public Relations - or PR - refers to coverage in the media that can be obtained for free, including articles, photos and Public Service Announcements or interviews on TV or radio stations.
Typically, the Publicity Committee spends most of its time on PR efforts, because the organization has limited marketing funds. We write the season and Arts Festival Weekend press releases and develop the PFO Media Kit. We research print, radio and TV media outlets to determine whether they are a good fit for our organization. Then, each committee member is responsible for pitching the PFO story to an assigned list, in the hope that those media sources will share our story with their audience.
As always, we have lofty goals - including getting the attention of Oprah (more about that later)! And just because you're not on the Publicity Committee doesn't mean we don't need your help. What can you do? Tell us if you know someone creative who might donate his or her talent to create a TV or radio commercial for us. Know a celebrity who thinks our cause is the coolest and would serve as our celebrity spokesperson? Pass it on!!! Maybe your mom or dad works for a big company who spends a lot of money on advertising that would donate a billboard or print ad space to us - that's AWESOME!
Also be thinking of easy and cheap ways to publicize PFO yourself. Here's a fun suggestion from Publicity Committee Secretary, Erika Rasile: "A lot of kids are going to New York to look at colleges. It would be cool to go to one of the morning shows and hold a sign up in the window with our website "PlayingForOthers.org" on it."
That's the way we like our publicity: cheap, easy and HIGH IMPACT!
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A dress rehearsal for life
by Lane Morris
Lane with PFO mascot Izzy
For many teenagers, their fundraising experience is an annual sale of cookies, magazines or wrapping paper. They hand a friend or family member a catalog or order form and have them fill it out and write a check, and are responsible for the collection of money and delivery of goods. A valid experience, but PFO teens enter the corporate world, securing sponsors!
The Securing of corporate sponsors is one of the most important elements of PFO fundraising. The money raised from corporate sponsors allows PFO to function. From that money, we pay for the show rights, sets, space rental, salaries, materials, buddy events and everything that keeps us a thriving non-profit.
It's a big circle. We need corporate sponsors to go through this amazing journey, in which teens learn how to run a non-profit and create change as artists of life. And part of their journey is to secure a corporate sponsor.
Recently, I had the pleasure of accompanying Camille Gross on a corporate sponsor meeting. Camille met with Dr. Stephen Spiegler, DDS. I was so impressed by her grace and professionalism, but what really struck me was the fact that this was a teen. She called him, set up the appointment, and came prepared and dressed professionally. I was awestruck, as she climbed out of her Mom's car. She was a young woman on a mission.
It was clear, upon their meeting, that Dr. Spiegler was impressed. He listened and asked questions. She was armed! She had her handouts, her DVD, and my business card with her information on the back. She handled herself with pride and conviction, eloquently answering each question with confidence. He told her he would probably be interested but that he'd let her know. She thanked him for his time, shook his hand, smiled and walked out with her head held high. I was so proud of her.
A week later, she had her first corporate sponsor for the 2008-2009 PFO year!
I was thinking about what effect the experience of meeting with a corporate sponsor would have on Camille and her future. She, as a teen, has now been through what equates to a business interview or cold call.
In my professional life, I have had to do my share of proposals, public speaking and cold calls. It's always hard the first time. Imagine the advantage PFO teens will have as they embark on their careers, with an arsenal of skills, experience and confidence.
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Do you know a company that would be interested in corporate sponsorship?
Does your company do matching gifts?
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Defining a new "cool"
by Izzy Francke
Izzy with buddy Sha'Quay
Sha'Quay's inviting smile is the only greeting she needs, because she radiates exuberance and warmth. Technically, she is considered "non-verbal" but her communication skills seem far from lacking. In time, her smiles, sounds and gestures make perfect sense. Sha'Quay and I know that her disability definitely doesn't define her; it merely makes up the smallest part of her enormous personality. Unfortunately people and society label her, with or without intention. It's not so much that people are scared of disabilities but that people are scared of themselves around people with disabilities. They think looking will be deemed "staring", and that playing or talking will seem condescending or be met with anger and misunderstanding. It is much easier to just ignore.
I admit to being apprehensive before meeting Sha'Quay. I was worried that I wouldn't be acting "the right way." Sha'Quay shows me that of course there is no "right way". How can there be a correct way to laugh, dance and play? The only thing she is in need of is what we all yearn for; inclusion and acceptance. In many ways, Sha'Quay is freer than a lot of people, because she doesn't live by the restrictions of society's filter; she is always herself. Through playing with Sha'Quay I'm learning just how much power and responsibility we have over and for one another, and that it's important to always be considerate of others. It's equally important not to worry or over-analyze oneself or situations, but to remember that cool is not a concrete definition. Sha'Quay has taught me; you can make your own cool.
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Excited by what you read? Pass it on to a friend...help us spread the PFO word!
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