eConnection June 2004 Vol. IV

In this Issue

eConnection June 2004 Vol. IV

Upcoming Events
Star Wars Fans Raise $ for Rainbow Days - Buy Your Raffle Ticket before May 18th!
It’s hard to believe that the latest and last Star Wars film, The Revenge of the Sith, will be released Wednesday, May 18th at Midnight. Thanks to the generosity, hard work and dedication of several area Star Wars fans from the DFW Fan Force, Rainbow Days has been selected as the benefiting charity of their efforts.

The DFW FanForce has been hard at work at the Cinemark Legacy Theatre in Plano raising money for Rainbow days. In April, they had a special visit from Peter Meyhew, the original Chewbacca, and on Monday, May 9th they had a visit from the Why Guy on WFAA. The Force is selling raffle tickets to win one of the following outstanding prizes: A Life Size Yoda & Waddo; Peter Mayhew Autographs, Talking Vader, Obi Wan Saber; Plush Yoda Toys; Cool Star Wars Puzzles, Figures, Posters Books and much, much more!!
Tickets are just $1 and will be on sale until the show begins on Wednesday, May 18th. You may purchase your tickets in person at the Cinemark Legacy Theater in Plano or over the phone or email by contacting Tiffany Beaudine at tiffanyb@rdikids.org or 214-217-3807. All proceeds benefit Rainbow Days, so hurry for your chance to win a life size Yoda or other cool prizes!
Our Children's Future Luncheon - Thursday, May 19, 2005
Would you like to learn more about Rainbow Days? Please join us for the next Our Children's Future Lunch on Thursday, May 19th from 12-1pm at Rainbow Days offices. These lunches are designed to be a quick and easy way to introduce potential volunteers and supporters to Rainbow Days. Lunch will be generously provided by Matitto’s Tex-Mex Restaurant. If you would like to attend, please RSVP to Tiffany Beaudine at tiffanyb@rdikids.org by Tuesday, May 17th.

eConnection June 2004 Vol. IV

Supporter News
Pot of Gold Luncheon Soars to New Heights
A huge expression of gratitude goes to all of the generous sponsors, supporters and guests of this year’s 2005 Pot of Gold Luncheon presented by The SBC Foundation. We had a record year by meeting and exceeding our goal of raising over $130,000 for Rainbow Days and having over 500 guests in attendance! Guests
enjoyed a delightful address by luncheon speaker, Don Williams, Chairman Emeritus of the Trammel Crow Company and Founder and Chairman of the Foundation for Community Empowerment and warmly gave apprecation and recognition to honoree, Citigroup, and to Citigroup Vice President, Debbie Taylor, on behalf of their generous support of Rainbow Days and other children’s charities in the Dallas community.
Despite a few challenges, like eating by candlelight for 30 minutes, the luncheon was a grand success. Thank you to all the individuals who made this year’s event such a significant success. Special gratitude to the following key individuals featured in the picture on the left: David Arbuckle, Vice President of External Affairs for SBC; Sheila Rice, Honorary co-Chair; Cathey Brown, Executive Director; Virginia Cook, Honorary Co-Chair; Melissa Frankel & Blanca H. Davis, Co-Chairs; and Todd Whitthorne, Luncheon Emcee.
Giant Garage Sale a Success
Rainbow Days wishes to thank Jeff Blandford and Renee Shreeves at TIC TOC for all of their hard work and support in putting on a giant garage sale benefiting Rainbow Days and The Bridge Youth & Family Services. The event raised nearly $1,700 for both charities this past month. Thanks to the wonderful and faithful volunteers who helped make this event possible.

Homeless Children benefit from the Roy and Christine Strugis Charitable & Educational Trust’s Support

Rainbow Days is a proud recipient of a generous grant in the amount of $22,000 made by the Roy and Christine Strugis Charitable & Educational Trust to support our Family Connection program. The Sturgis Trust’s support will be vital to a successful implementation of our programs this summer! Thank you to the Roy and Christine Strugis Charitable & Educational Trust for your gift.

ExxonMobil Community Summer Jobs Program

Rainbow Days is proud to have Sarah McKellar join us as an intern this summer as a part of the ExxonMobil Community Summer Jobs Program. The ExxonMobil Community Summer Jobs Program generously grants financial support to over 75 metroplex agencies for them to hire paid interns for the summer. The program provides valuable experience to college students and helps the agencies that they work for significantly with extra assistance during busy times. Thanks ExxonMobil for your continued generous support of Rainbow Days and welcome Sarah to the Rainbow Days team!

eConnection June 2004 Vol. IV

Volunteer Opportunities
We need your help to make our programs a success this summer! Please check out the following volunteer opportunities below and contact Lynette Smith at lynettes@rdikids.org to sign up today!

Support Group Co-Facilitator Training: Help co-facilitate a small group of 6-12 children using our Curriculum-Based Support Group curricula, which incorporates guided discussions, art, games and creative activities. Groups are held at one of 60 sites throughout the Dallas area at partnering shelters, recreation centers and schools at various times throughout the week. An 8-hour training session is required prior to serving as a group co-facilitator. Groups meet weekly at a set time in approximately 2 hours shifts (including preparation time) in either day and/or evening commitments.
Training Dates: Wed. June 1 & Thurs. June 2 from 6:00pm - 9:00pm (both days)
Summer Camp Volunteers: We will have two week-long day camps this summer, Kids' University, June 6-9, 2005, and Camp Broadway, August 2-6, 2005, which will serve about 150 homeless children this summer. We need a number of volunteers to help make these week's a success!

Lunch Volunteers - Sign up your coworkers or neighbors as a group to bring lunch, drinks and dessert for about 100 children & volunteers on one or more days during Camp Broadway, August 2nd - 5th.

Camp Helpers - We also need 6 individuals with a heart for children who could commit to helping us for the entire week of either camp, 8:30 am - 4:30 pm to help chaperone children through groups, classes and activities.

Prep Helpers - Join us in the office the week preceding camp (May31st - June 3rd or July 25th - July 29th) to help gather and prepare supplies & materials for activities at the camps.

Back-to-School Celebration & Fall Harvest - August 10, 2005- Each summer, through the generosity of hundreds of individual and corporate donors, Rainbow Days distributes new backpacks filled with school supplies and new school outfits to over 350 homeless children. Please help us help a child to succeed again this school year! The cost of supplies for the backpacks is approximately $25 and the cost of a new school outfit ranges from $30 to $60. We would welcome your in-kind donation of school supplies or new clothing and/or your cash donation so that we can purchase the supplies for a child this fall. The Fall Harvest Clothing Drive will begin in mid-July 2005 - MORE DETAILS SOON!

Office Projects: We need help around the office. Please schedule a time to come in with Lynette Smith and schedule your volunteer project any time Monday through Friday, 9am to 5pm.

eConnection June 2004 Vol. IV
Parent Tip: Be Prepared & Know the Facts
Teens who learn anti-drug messages at home
are 42 percent less likely to use drugs.

Parents, you are the first line of defense when it comes to your teen’s drug use or drinking. And you do make a difference! Nearly two-thirds of teenagers see great risk of upsetting their parents or losing the respect of family and friends if they smoke marijuana or use other drugs. (Get more facts here)

You can influence your teenager’s behavior, particularly if you are armed with the facts about drugs. Having a clear understanding about the risks of illicit drugs and knowing the signs to watch for in your teenager is a critical first step.

Know how marijuana interferes with concentrating on schoolwork and their ability to play sports. If they don’t hear about drugs and alcohol from you, it’s a sure thing that they’ll hear about them from someone else. Also make certain that they understand the legal trouble and health consequences that they may encounter if they use drugs.

Among the most common drug-related questions asked of parents is: Did you ever use drugs? Unless the answer is no, it’s difficult to know what to say because nearly all parents who used drugs don’t want their children to do the same thing. Is this hypocritical?

No. We all want the best for our children. Today we have more information and we understand the hazards of drug use better than we did when we were their age and thought we were invincible. To guide our children’s decisions about drugs, we can now draw on credible real-life examples of friends who had trouble as a result of their drug use: the neighbor who caused a fatal car crash while high; the family member who got addicted; the teen who used marijuana for years, lost interest in school, and never really learned how to deal with adult life and its stresses.

This discussion provides a good opportunity for parents to speak frankly about what attracted them to drugs, why drugs are dangerous, what they know now that they didn’t know then, and why they want their children to avoid making the same mistake.

Source: The National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign's Behavior Change Expert Panel