Happy Holidays – It’s been a great year!
Dear Friends, Family and Supporters of Super Project Lab Improv:
On a warm Sunday evening last June at the intersection of Broadway and West Burnside in downtown Portland, two women from a nearby shelter peeked from the sidewalk into a dimly lit theatre to see an audience on its feet, cheering in support. Inside, fifteen students hug, high-five and bow clearly filled with the rush of adrenaline that is unique to a live stage-performance. For the past 25 minutes, these young performers suspended their fear of judgment, put the success of the group above their own survivalist mentality, and forgot that they are homeless. These confident, creative youth are students of Super Project Lab Outreach.
To us, this story represents the remarkable impact we’ve had in the last year and the potential for even greater impact in the upcoming one. On so many levels 2010 has been a hugely successful year for us. Here’s how it all unfolded:
Over the course of the year we piloted five new programs serving over one hundred and fifty at risk youth. Additionally, we produced six performances to provide those youth with an opportunity to be up on stage putting their skills to the test in front of a live audience. Our 2010 partners included; Boys and Girls Aid-Pettygrove Residential Program, Boys and Girls Aid-the Annex, Outside In-Guerilla Theater, OYA’s Hillcrest Youth Correctional Facility, The Pathfinder Academy and Portland’s Sexual Minority Youth Resource Center.
In May we gained a part-time Education Director, Nicholas Kessler, who has taken our curricula to a new level. His experience as a teacher is invaluable, and his strategies for impacting the lives of our participants are not only innovative they’re proving highly successful! We are lucky to have found Nicholas, a partner that shares our organization’s passion and extends its reach.
In September we were awarded our first grant from the Multnomah County Cultural Coalition to complete our pilot program with Outside In. This grant is evidence of our community’s need for this work and we’re proud that MCCC has shown their willingness to foster an underserved community of young new artists.
Perhaps now more than ever, Super Project Lab is dedicated to its mission: to use performance, outreach and strategic partnerships to connect within and educate throughout our community using the methods of improvisational theater. Our goals for 2011 include doubling the number of youth we serve and continuing to offer classes at zero cost to our partnering social service agencies.
The holiday giving season is upon us and while we know that there are many deserving causes in our community that you will consider supporting, we would like to ask that you consider Super Project Lab Outreach among them.
If you are able to make a tax-deductible donation to our organization, please send a check made payable to:
Super Project Lab
1001 SE Water Ave, #255
Portland, OR 97214
Or if you’d like more information about the work we are doing or how you can get involved, please visit our website at www.superprojectlab.org
Happy Holidays!
Shelley Darcy
Executive Director, Super Project Lab
(503) 750-5247
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