TCP [The Community Players, New Hamburg, ON] supports Sleeping Children Around the World through show proceeds.
Providing financial assistance and making a difference within the community is an important part of what TCP is all about. With each production, the leadership team deliberates at length what organization(s) they feel they would like to support with a portion of the show proceeds.
In 2011, with TCP’s production of Elton John and Tim Rice’s Aida, it became evident that we were telling a story about countries (Egypt and ancient Nubia) where power struggles affected the lives of everyone, often displacing whole societies, and leaving those afflicted by war, with nothing. We were launching our production at a time when that part of the world, modern day Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, and others, was experiencing intense political turmoil. With that turmoil in mind, and the effect it could have on the average person, particularly children, we felt that we wanted to reach further afield with our donations.
In looking for an organization to donate to, we came upon Sleeping Children Around the World (SCAW). SCAW provides bedkits to children of any race and/or religion who will benefit the most, typically being located in underdeveloped and developing countries. No portion of a bedkit donation is spent on administration – 100% of it reaches a needy child. Dedicated to the concept of “freewill giving”, SCAW strives to provide hope and always aims to preserve the dignity of the child.
In an ancient world, such as that depicted in Aida, and in our modern day world, where the needs and dignity of the most vulnerable are often forgotten, we felt that providing some of TCP’s annual donations in the form of bedkits for children in underdeveloped or developing countries was a good place to put our support.
We were pleased to receive a picture of the five children that our funds assisted, in Nicaragua.
SCAW groups have traveled to a number of other locations since May 2011 and TCP’s production of Aida, including Uganda, Tanzania, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Honduras. For more information on Sleeping Children Around the World, and how they are helping those most in need, visit their website at www.scaw.org.
