Wonders & Worries Newsletter - April 2016
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The Baskin Family Story
“I hope you never need their services, but if you do, you could not ask for more knowledgeable, sensitive, and steadfast support.” In spring 2014, life as the Baskin family knew it, changed forever when JJ Baskin was diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer. Fortunately, they knew of Wonders & Worries through a friend and they were able to seek help for their two young boys to understand their father’s illness and passing.
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Donor Highlight:
Gabbi Family
“There are exciting times ahead for Wonders & Worries and the support of our donors can help us achieve an even brighter future.”
Alex Gabbi understands the importance of giving back to Wonders & Worries because his own kids have benefitted from our support. He throws a Celebration of Life party every year to celebrate the memory of his wife, Heather, and to raise funds for an organization that has been such a big part of his family.
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| Host a Third Party Event for Wonders & Worries!
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Third party events are a great way to get friends and family involved with supporting Wonders & Worries. From lemonade stands and selling pink shoelaces to backyard barbeques and big parties in costume, all of these events help with raising funds and awareness. No idea is too small to be successful!
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| Upcoming Events Unmasked
February 24, 2017
from 7:00 p.m. - Midnight
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Howard Backyard BBQ Remission Party!
Our family and friends were there for us throughout my treatment. They prayed for and with us, brought us food, took care of the kids, and were always there lending a helping hand. We don’t believe remission is a small thing. We believe it’s worth celebrating and what better way to celebrate than with those who lifted you up and carried you throughout the journey! We thanked our family and friends by inviting them to our house for a backyard BBQ remission party. As part of the event we had a raffle to raise money for Wonders & Worries. This was our way of saying “thank you” to Wonders & Worries for their support. We wanted to raise awareness and pay it forward so other children can benefit from the amazing services Wonders & Worries has to offer. My goal was to have six baskets to raffle off and through the generosity of our community we were able to have eleven baskets plus a cool “money tree”. There was also an opportunity to vote on my first drink in eight months! One hundred percent of the proceeds went to Wonders & Worries. Through this event, we were able to give more than $2,300 to Wonders & Worries!
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Consider making an investment in the mission of Wonders & Worries so we can provide more professional support for children through a parent's illness.
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String of Hearts
The February Wonders & Worries group read The Invisible String book and combined it with the activity - "String of Hearts". They labeled each heart with a name of someone important in their life and how they feel about them. The children could include themselves, a person in their family, and other meaningful people such as friends who are important either because they feel close with them or because they have hurt or upset them in the past. The children then used the following "key" to label the people in their world. • Happy face stickers on anyone who makes them feel happy and explain why they feel happy.
• Red dot stickers on anyone who makes them feel angry and explain why they feel angry.
• Black dot stickers on anyone who they feel is mean and explain why they are mean.
• Star stickers on anyone who helps them and explain what they do to help. The stickers are used to engage children and to help them express thoughts and feelings regarding family and community relationships.
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Monthly Therapeutic Tip Fun With Drawing
There are so many apps for phones and tablets these days that can keep people connected in a playful way. One of those apps is an ongoing Pictionary game where you send the person a drawing and they have to guess it and then send you a drawing. What a fun way to connect with your child or entire family even if you are away from each other. You can also use paper or a dry erase board to leave your family a picture that they have all day to guess on. Maybe use dinner time to solve it together or the end of the day. Then your child can leave you a picture to guess the next day. These small opportunities of play build great bridges between you and your child, can be very telling, and are just plain fun!
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| Gabbi Celebration of Life Party
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Join us for the Round Rock Express Chase Community Partnership Night
with Wonders & Worries!
Tuesday, May 10, 2016 at 7:05 p.m.
Round Rock Express vs. Oklahoma City Dodgers
Use this link to purchase tickets:
www.RoundRockExpress.com/may10
Enter “wonders” in the Special Offer box and select Infield Reserved from the dropdown menu. $3 from every ticket sold using the discount code will go back to Wonders & Worries!
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Teen Council
Dodgeball Tournament!
WHO: High School Students
(current 9th – 12th grade)
WHEN: Saturday, May 14, 2016 10:00am - 2:00pm (registration at 9:30)
WHERE: St. Andrew’s Episcopal School Upper School Campus
5901 Southwest Parkway
Austin, TX 78735
PRICE: $40 per team
(6 players plus 2 relief players)
Concessions will be available for sale.
Two gift card baskets will be raffled.
All proceeds benefit Wonders & Worries.
Register Your Team!
What is the Teen Council?
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The Teen Council is a partnership between Wonders & Worries and local teens in 9th–12th grade for a year-long commitment, rooted in the idea of training the next generation of leaders, volunteers, and philanthropists. For more information on the Teen Council or the Dodgeball Tournament, contact Lindsey Boyd, Development Director, at 512-329-5757 or lindsey@wondersandworries.org.
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