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Dreams for Kids DC
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This Saturday, Dream For Kids hosted Extreme Recess tennis at the Legg Mason Tennis Classic. The event hosted 60 DC area youth with disabilities to showcase all their incredible talents and abilities.
Professional tennis player and Legg Mason competitor, Nikolay Davydenko, made a surprise appearance at the clinic. Davydenko made a point to sign autographs, take lots of pictures and interact with all the participants.
Incoming DFK Executive Director and college tennis star, Glenda Fu, led the clinic conducting basic drills and offering her expertise. Project Manager, Brenna Gingrich, spent her whole summer planning the event and felt great relief when the day went so well. "After all our hard work, it was so fantastic to have the day run so smoothly and prove such a great success," Gingrich said.
All participants and their parents received complimentary tickets to matches at the Classic, a well earned treat after all their hard work on the court. With beautiful weather and amazing volunteers, all the participants had an incredible time.
View picture from the event here.
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Potomac, MD native and founder of Savvy Media, Alexis Levine, currently serves Dreams For Kid's as an Executive Board member.
Levine serves DFK by working to gain sponsors and develop partnerships. Levine does this by bringing mutually beneficial marketing programs to local and national partners. "This past holiday season, we were able to secure Michael and Son Services as DFK's largest fiscal sponsor to date," Levine said.
More recently, this May Levine negotiated our largest sports league sponsorship with the National Volleyball League and had an incredibly successful Extreme Recess volleyball clinic.
Levine first became involved with DFK after meeting Andrew Horn in 2009. "I was instantly enthusiastic about leveraging my work experience and relationships in DC Sports to help Andrew with his mission of taking Dreams For Kids to the next level," Levine said. "The Dreams For Kids team energy is contagious and I was excited to be a part of the mission instantly."
Levine feels DFK's mission is a small step toward breaking down the barriers of segregation and empowering youth to do great things. Community, and the opportunity to come together, means everything to Levine. The organization's home in DC makes it all the more meaningful to her.
The more the organization succeeds, the more Levine's excitement grows. "I cannot imagine how emotional my answer to this question will be in three to five years when we have accomplished some of the things we are aiming to do," Levine said.
With board members like Alexis Levine, the future of Dreams For Kids surely looks bright.
| Intern With Dreams For Kids |
On June 1, eight new Dreams For Kids interns walked in the door from all over the country. A DFK internship is often described as the anti-internship. Students serving the organization arrive on day one managing big projects and effect the organization in a real way.
"I was excited and ready to have an amazing summer coming into Dreams For Kids. After I left the office the first day, I realized that the phrase, 'amazing summer,' would not do the next few months justice,"
Extreme Recess Project Manager, Brenna Gingrich, said. Gingrich recently graduated from Western Illinois University and plans to attend The University of Phoenix Law School after the summer ends. DFK summer interns work 10 am to 5 pm Monday through Friday and staff all Extreme Recess events. In addition, DFK interns host a number of fundraisers and special events. Interns never fetch coffee or complete busy work. Each team member immediately receives a specific role in the organization and serves as an integral part in DFK's success.
"My summer at DFK has really allowed me to take ownership of my internship. I not only feel that DFK has helped me in my educational path, but I know I have helped DFK in its maturity as an organization," Public Relations Manager, Julia Robertson said. Robertson attends Auburn University and will begin her junior year in August.
The positive office culture serves as a great work environment. "We are not all business all the time. We break up the week in cool ways with Theme Thursdays and a DJ Off on Fridays," Holiday For Hope Project Manager, Dustin Donnell said. Donnell came to DC on a NCAA scholarship after playing baseball at California State University, Stanislaus.
The intern experience at DFK expands much further than the office itself. Interns enjoy all their hard work by actually interacting with the children the organization serves at events such as Extreme Recess. "My internship experience was great this summer. I got to lead a project that will take place in the future, and I got to experience helping the kids in the here and now," Street Dreams Project Manager, Amanda Weigle said. Weigle lives in Schwenksville, Pennsylvania and will begin her senior year at Kutztown University of Pennsylvania.
The short summer has been an incredible experience for all DFK interns alike. If you are interested in interning with Dreams For Kids, please contact our office.
Watch this video here to learn more about this summer's intern experience.
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*UPCOMING DATES* | |
Extreme Recess
Adventure Camp
Details to come
Extreme Recess Golf
with The First Tee!
August 27th, 10am-1pm
Extreme Recess Soccer
Postponed until further notice
Date TBA- in the Fall
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Testimonial: Sam Massa | |
Water ski professional and Dreams For Kids volunteer, Sam Massa, shared his story of how he came to love the sport in this letter to Andrew Horn after his experience at Extreme Recess water skiing on July 15.
Dear Andrew,
You guys rock. The Extreme Recess water skiing event is the highlight of my water ski year every time I get to participate. I have worked with thousands of kids and athletes who don't appreciate for a second the time they get on the water. Many of them jump in the lake and start barking orders at the crew before we even get a chance to coach them. Seeing the reaction and and hearing the kids excitement this weekend is such a motivator for me and the rest of my team. For every one of the kids that skied this weekend, I could tell it was an accomplishment for them.
I have a bit of an untold personal connection to this event that makes it even that much more meaningful to participate in. When I got into water skiing, I was in elementary school, right around 11 years old. I have some learning disabilities that made school the absolute last place on earth I ever wanted to be. I wrote in a mirror image and couldn't read a book to save my life. I tried as hard as I could, but needed a fair bit of help along the way. My parents were very supportive and encouraged me to look for hobbies and things to keep my motivation up. At some point during school my dad bought a place on a lake. He taught me the basics of how to ride two skis. As time went on, I found myself thinking about skiing all day every day. During the summer I would spend every second I had trying to find someone to pull me around the lake. Eventually I got aligned with a waterski club on the lake and started actually learning new tricks and progressing in the community. I met April Coble (the owner of Coble Ski School) as a summer camper at her ski school. Something I realized was that the reason I loved water skiing so much was that when you are behind a boat, absolutely nothing else matters. The engine covers up your connection to the boat crew, the ski removes you from the confines of the water, and the wind blowing in your face makes it feel like you are flying. When I was skiing, I got a break from thinking about all the things I hated about school. When the summer came to an end, I made it my mission to figure out a way to pay for a ski school on the weekends or find a way to get back on the water. So, while I may never know what it is like to have a severe physical or cognitive disability, I do know what water skiing can do for someone with a learning disability. It is a powerful tool, and I am so excited to get to share it with the kids you guys work with.
Best,
Sam
Thank you Sam for your service and passion for Dreams For Kids. Volunteers like Sam make our Extreme Recess clinics one of a kind.
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Mid Summer Night For Dreams | |
Dreams For Kids will host a Mid Summer Night For Dreams fundraiser on August 6 from 9 pm to 1 am at Stroga.
The event will bring together 400 of DC's best and brightest to raise funds for Dreams For Kids DC.
Founder and outgoing Executive Director, Andrew Horn, will be using the event as a platform to welcome the organization's new Executive Director, Glenda Fu. Fu comes to DFK from the non-profit, Women For Women International and DISTRICT: Restaurant, Lounge, Nightclub. Horn will be moving to Chicago to take over national operations for Dreams For Kids.
"The event will not only raise funds to support our variety of programs, but will also be a very fun and special evening as Andrew introduces Glenda as the new Executive Director," Project Manager, Caitlyn Yuschak said.
Guests will be treated to light hors d'oeuvres, premium open bar, and live bands, as well as several sets from two of DC's prominent DJ's.The event will also boast a silent auction and other surprises.
View last year's event here.
Buy a ticket here.
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