Message from Dr. Newman: It’s All About RESPECT and Community Collaboration

Dear Friends,

WE DID IT! Another successful fundraiser!

Part of RESPECT’s mission is to “use community collaboration” and I am happy to share that RESPECT’s annual STAND UP AGAINST BULLYING fundraiser was a great success (significantly more sponsors, more dollars raised, more silent auction donors, more participants than we had hoped for!!) AND just as importantly, a fabulous reflection of community collaborators who made it all possible!

Board members shared time, ideas, friends, connections, creativity, and funds to create the event (Lindsay Farrell, Morgan Keen Hecht, Jermaine Jones, Amy Keller, Gretchen Mack, Robin Spindler, and Beth Wilderman worked as committee members!)

Susan and Jim Koesters, our Honorary Chairs, shared their family, time and funds to help us succeed AND many of our new sponsors came from the introductions they made on our behalf. Having Sam and Bodie (their children) join our event was very special!

Staff members spent many hours beyond expectations to set a colorful and beautiful setting for our guests (Cara brought her son Nate (who brought his friend Mary!) as well as her husband, Dr. Santo, to provide greetings, beverages, and auction bids! Kathie and Paige did everything from vacuuming to working on program details – whatever was needed to provide an evening full of information and inspiration – with many, many details underlying the sparkling balloons and colorful flowers!

Our partners at St. Tim’s provided a full and comfortable space for us to share the work we spend so much time rehearsing in their very location – St. Timothy’s social hall was the perfect place to tell people about what we do! Thank you to Pastor Kathy and the entire congregation that supports us throughout the year. We met new friends who joined us for the event and shared their skills as photographers with us! Many thanks to: Nick and Monica Holle.

Aiden Poling and Michele Philips, RESPECT’s Artistic Directors, created a presentation that shared many of our most poignant scenes – and Quinn, Christina and Jared brought them to life in a way that was joyful and moving!

Our honorees: Kathie McGee, Diana Waggoner, and Dr. Heidi Rueda provided us all with examples of the powerful difference that individual determination, sharing, and caring can make to an organization like us. Because of these women RESPECT is a better organization.

Dr. Chatters inspired us all to think about a new focus that RESPECT is integrating into our programming: HOPE. He shared his personal story of growing through strength and hope – beyond many challenges and hard moments – and how he shares and helps others to grow hope into their own lives. He is a real inspiration for our organization – and all of us.

To all our sponsors and donors (view here) – every single gift, purchase, donation, minute shared, helped make the night a success! The result is that RESPECT has additional dollars that will allow us to provide more needed programs to schools and other child-serving sites that might otherwise be unable to request programs needed to help their students. 

MANY THANKS TO A SPECTACULAR COMMUNITY COLLABORATION! WELL DONE!!!!

RESPECTfully, 

Dr. Newman

• Top Photo: Board member MaryAnn Borgeson and Past Board member Carol Russell.

• Second Photo: Past RESPECT Board Chair, Beth Wilderman and her mother

• Third Photo: The Koester family (Jim, Susan, Samantha, Bodie)

• Fourth and Fifth Photo: Program remarks with Dr. Newman and presentations by Actor Educators

• Bottom Photo: Donna Houston and Current Board Chair Robin Spindler