Campers and counselors share summer fun at the JCC’s Camp Yachad, which also offers a Shadow Program for those with special needs. The Kids’ Fun Fest this Sunday will benefit the Shadow Program and the JCC’s financial assistance program.
Former NBA star Darryl Dawkins will be a featured attraction at the JCC’s Kids’ Fun Fest.
If you go
What: Kids’ Fun Fest
When: Sunday, March 15, 11 a.m.-3 p.m.
Where: JCC of Central New Jersey, Scotch Plains
Cost: Per child, $25 in advance; $28 on the day. Adults and kids under two free.
Contact: For more information or to register, contact Randi Zucker at 908-889-8800, ext. 253, or rzucker@jccnj.org or visit www.jccnj.org.
March 12, 2009
Barack Herman likes to shoot for the stars. Since he took over as executive director of the JCC of Central New Jersey 18 months ago, he has shared that vision with staff and members. This Sunday, March 15, he will have the stars delivered right to the JCC.
The Kids’ Fun Fest will be like a traditional Purim carnival on steroids. In addition to the usual array of activities — crafts, costumes, song and dance, and food — there will be the mobile Digital Skylab Planetarium provided by the Liberty Science Center in Jersey City. There will also be “moonwalk” bounces, a roving troupe of Disney characters from Powerhouse Studios, and a real live former NBA star — Darryl Dawkins.
Families will have a chance to do crafts — tie-dying halla covers, assembling hamantaschen to bake fresh at home, among others — and to get to know some slithery reptiles.
The festival will raise money for two areas of rapidly growing need: requests from members for financial assistance to cover their program fees and to fund the increasingly popular shadow program that each summer provides aides for children with special needs attending the JCC’s Camp Yachad.
The shadow program had around nine children four years ago; last year there were more than 35. This year, according to the organizers, applications are already up 25 percent. The cost per shadow is around $2,500 for the eight-week program, but their service is provided at no additional cost to the parents.
This is one of the JCC’s three major fund-raisers of the year, and given the serious rise in financial need, Herman said, he wanted the event to be as innovative and inviting as possible. “There’s no point in doing things on a small scale,” he said. “Thanks to our donors and corporate sponsors, the cost of the event has been totally covered.”
Sandra Kenoff, director of marketing and special events, pulled it all together. She said the participation of corporate sponsors and local business partners made it possible to offer much more than usual — and should in turn benefit from the connection. “They gain not just from their exposure on the day, but by an ongoing association with our members throughout the year,” she said.
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