There is Still Time
to Buy a Smile
 

Even though summer camp is in session it’s not too late to help give a child an unforgettable summer. Donations are still needed to cover supplies, trips, snacks, costumes and make-up, and all the little extras that enhance the camp experience. 

Making a contribution is easy. Just use the form at the end of the newsletter to submit your donation. You’ll make a child’s summer camp experience memorable.

End of Camp Performance
Dates Announced

July 1, 2008 – The end-of-camp performances are a tradition that parents and campers alike look forward to. Campers work hard all summer perfecting their skills, and the performances are their chance to show their friends, relatives, and the community at large their accomplishments. Tickets for the Neighborhood Studios performance may be purchased in advance from any NS camper, or at the door. All other events are free. Come join us as we celebrate the end of summer.

Save the Date

July 11, 2008-Have you had a chance to sample pizza or one of the delicious entrees from Bridgeport’s newest restaurant, Two Boots? If you have, then you’ll welcome the opportunity to do so again. If you haven’t , why not make it a point to join MACH’s friends and supporters at Two Boots on Wednesday, August 20^th from 6 to 10 PM for MACH Night at Two Boots? Either way, bring the family and enjoy a delicious dinner, and then dance to the rhythms of Son 7, Bridgeport’s hottest salsa band. It’s all for a good cause.  

Well known to New York City pizza aficionados, Two Boots’ signature Cajun-Italian cuisine is a hit with Bridgeport restaurant goers. Phil Hartman, who co-owns both restaurants with his brother Jesse, has generously agreed to donate a portion of the night’s profits to MACH.

“We are thrilled that Two Boots is hosting this evening to benefit MACH,” said Executive Director/CEO Dr. Donald Rainone. “This is a terrific opportunity for MACH’s friends and supporters to get together, enjoy a nice meal, listen to some good music, and help MACH in the process. I’m looking forward to a wonderful evening and I hope everyone will come join in the fun.” 

Cover charge: $10 per person, tax deductible

MACH Camps Go Green

Special Challenge Raises Funds for 3 Campers

Summer Camp Visiting
Days a Great Success

July 7, 2008 – The environment is this year’s theme for MACH’s summer camps. For example, did you know that:

• Americans use more than 67 million tons of paper each year?

• 200 million gallons of used motor oil is illegally dumped each year in the U.S.?

• A disposable diaper takes 550 years to decompose?

• Styrofoam and plastic containers take a million years to decompose?

• That one-third of all garbage thrown away in the U.S. is packaging (shopping bags, containers, etc.)?

• That the average American throws away 3.5 pounds of trash each day?

These and other environmental issues are being discussed by campers. The program focuses on using the arts to raise public awareness and proposing lifestyle changes that will have a positive effect on the environment. As a result campers now realize that what they do has an impact on the world around them, and that changing what they do can make a difference. MACH campers are committing themselves to “reuse, recycle, and protect the environment.” They don’t have to wait until they are adults – they can do something right now!

July 10, 2008 - Three Bridgeport campers are saying an extra-special “Thank You” to an anonymous donor and some generous benefactors who went out of their way to make sure that the children had a happy summer. Cutbacks in Bridgeport Public School funding resulted in these three individuals losing school system sponsorship for summer camp at MACH. Determined that these children must have the summer camp experience that they had been promised, MACH Executive Director/CEO Dr. Donald Rainone took action. 

Seeking funds for these three campers, Dr. Rainone spoke with a number of MACH supporters. One donor, who wishes to remain anonymous, pledged to cover half of the three student’s scholarships provided MACH could raise the remaining half.

Rising to the challenge, Dr. Rainone has doubled his efforts and is nearing the goal. “We are so sure that Dr. Rainone will succeed in raising the additional funds we have scheduled the children to begin camp on Monday [July 14^th],” said Program Director Frank Derico.

July 25, 2008 – MACH Campers and Staff want to say a big “Thank You!” to everyone who stopped in to visit during MACH’s Summer Camp Visiting Days (July 14^th through 17^th). Many of our funders and parents took the opportunity to come in and see MACH’s award-winning camps in action. Several also made it a point to join us at the Meet the Camper reception where board members, funders, and local dignitaries were given an opportunity to meet and chat with campers on a one-to-one basis.   

Generosity is Good for You

Did you know that helping others is good for you? According to the July 2008 issue of Consumer Reports’ On Health magazine, a recent study shows that people who spend money on others report a greater degree of happiness than if they had spent the money on themselves. The study found that employees who allocate their bonuses, regardless of the amount, towards charity were happier. Findings show that spending as little as $5 on others can make a difference.
 

May 23, 2008- Jean Awer, Bookkeeper and Registrar, retired today after almost five years of dedicated service to MACH. Ms. Awer joined MACH in September 2003 as a part-time Bookkeeper, but rapidly became a key member of the staff and a favorite with everyone. 

“When I first came here, almost three long years ago, Jean helped me get acclimated and avoid the major pitfalls a new CEO was bound to encounter,” said Executive Director/CEO Dr. Donald Rainone. “She was a loyal employee and a friend. I will miss her,” he concluded.

Staff helped Jean celebrate this new phase of her life with a small coffee and cake reception.

Photos: At left, Jean Awer reads a note from Board Chairman, Joan Rosenbaum. At right, Jean and staff celebrated with cake and coffee.

In the seven or eight years that I have been a member of the Board of MACH much has changed. We moved from the Bridgeport University campus. We greatly expanded the number of youngsters we help learn the arts. We have built a strong organization of managers and instructors. And we have added great new programs. Bridgeport must very proud of its’ inner-city art school!

And I am proud to be Vice-Chairman of Finance. We are always in need of funds, but somehow we find a way to continue offering great programs. My job is to make sure that we keep an accurate and orderly “back office”!

Most important in my pride at being a member of the MACH organization is that I am helping to bring the arts to the children of Greater Bridgeport. I collect art (fine prints) and am a very active chamber music player. My instrument is the viola. So helping others to gain an appreciation the art world, which I love and has so enriched my life, gives me the greatest of pleasures.

Before I retired I had a long career as a business man: a career I also loved. So you can see that MACH brings together the Arts and Business: my two passions. And helping teach others is yet a third great passion.

The Long Hot Summer is still here. The relief we receive from a cool glass of water, the soft humming of a distant window air conditioner, a friendly smile on the faces of MACH campers and teachers, and the pursuit of an arts experience to break up the hot and humid days—priceless!

This is my third summer camp season and we are excited, as everyone is engaged. Our staff, board members, and of course all of our donors have helped to make all things MACH run smoothly.  

I have spent many hot summers in Arizona and Florida, and although much shorter, summer in the Northeast can be brutal. Therefore, it is even more important for all of us to realize that what we are doing here at MACH is creating an alternative for  Bridgeport youth—rather than children simply   enduring the heat and just hanging around— we challenge them to think, and encourage them to create, dance, perform, problem solve, and oh yes—Have Fun!

"Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life." - Pablo Picasso

Music and
Arts Center
for Humanity
 

We Need Your Help!

 510 Barnum Ave.
 3rd Floor
 Bridgeport, CT 06608

 Phone:
 203.366.3300

 Fax:
 203.368.2847

 Email:   info@musicandartscenter.org

MACH
Making Arts Matter!

About Our Organization

The Music and Arts Center for Humanity (MACH) is a nonprofit school of the arts founded in 1977 to enhance the lives of children and adults, particularly special needs students, the economically disadvantaged and those artistically gifted.  MACH is an accredited member of the National Guild of Community Schools of the Arts and the winner of a 2005 Coming Up Taller award.

Mrs. Laura Bush recognized MACH as one of the 17 top Arts and Humanities programs. “As a former public school teacher, I have a firsthand understanding of what young people can accomplish when they truly strive to realize their dreams, and I wholeheartedly embrace the arts and humanities as vehicles for helping them find their way,” said Laura Bush, Honorary Chair of the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities.

We at MACH believe in the power of the arts to change lives. The arts provide a means of communication and self-expression that teaches tolerance, self-discipline, and a sense of community. Exposure to the arts benefits both the individual and the community at large. While MACH may teach drawing, sculpture, dance and music, what we really deliver is personal achievement and accomplishment via the arts.

Programs are offered at MACH headquarters at 510 Barnum Avenue, Bridgeport, as well as various Public Schools in the Bridgeport area.  MACH offers 12 different programs in music, dance, visual arts, theater, creative writing, and design throughout the school year. Additional summer programs are offered from June through August. For more information contact the Program Director at 366-3300 ext. 224.

Interested in Volunteering?

Let us put your
 talents to work.

Contact us at

203.366.3300

www.musicandartscenter.org