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Jan
24

Aspiring Musician Donates Portion of Proceeds to CURE

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Aspiring singer Scott Mannis, who suffers from a rare form of epilepsy, is donating a portion of proceeds for his first album to the Citizens United for Research in Epilepsy, which he has worked with before as the organization works to find a cure for the debilitating disorder. Constance Milstein serves on the CURE Board of Directors and is committed not only to finding a cure for the disease but erasing the stigma of epilepsy.

When Mannis was 17 years old, he began having spells during which he would lose feeling on the left side of his body. It was not until he was 20 years old that doctors diagnosed him with a rare type of epilepsy whose symptoms can be minimized, but for which there is no cure. Soon after, Mannis discovered a link between music and his disease.

“By 2008, the seizures got bad enough that I wasn’t able to walk without falling,” he said in an interview with Billboard. “The only time I didn’t have them was when I was singing.”

Susan Collins, a music industry veteran, was introduced to Mannis through a friend of his mother. After hearing a few of the young musician’s tracks, she signed on as Mannis’ vocal coach a mentor. In 2009 she took Mannis into the studio of Art Labriola, a Grammy Award-winning producer, to record a demo. Over the next two years, the trio continued to work together (while Mannis attended classes at Columbia University) and eventually realized they had enough recorded for a full album. The album was released Dec. 20 and Mannis has already donated $500 raised during the album release party to CURE and plans to continue to donate as he sells more albums and performs at various benefits. The album is available for purchase on iTunes, Amazon and CD Baby.

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Dec
22

Ford’s Theatre Society Announces Opening of Center for Education and Leadership

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The new Ford’s Theatre Center for Education and Leadership will open in February 2012, according to a recent announcement by the director of the Ford’s Theatre Society, Paul R. Tetreault. Constance Milstein serves on the theatre’s Board of Trustees.

To celebrate the Center’s opening, the Ford’s Theatre Society will host a series of events honoring Abraham Lincoln’s legacy and leadership, including the world premiere of Necessary Sacrifices, a newly-commissioned play about Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln; two free public open houses featuring tours, author discussion and performances of the Soceity’s Tales of the Lincoln, One Destiny and Papa Day; and more.

The Center for Education and Leadership is located directly across the street from Ford’s Theatre and was acquired by the Ford’s Theatre Society in 2007. Renovations began in July 2010 and will be completed for the February opening. The building houses two floors of permanent exhibits; a Leadership Gallery for rotating exhibits; education studios to be used for workshops, after-school programs and teacher development; and a state-of-the-art distance-learning lab.

“With the addition of the Center for Education and Leadership,” Tetreault said, “learners of all ages can delve deeper into our compelling American history through new exhibits, engaging videos and creative programming offered by the Ford’s Theatre Society Education Department. We are thrilled to usher in this new chapter in the history of Ford’s Theatre and to showcase how Lincoln’s leadership and legacy resonates in our world today.”

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Nov
15

Blue Star Families Supports Military Through Veterans Day Outreach, Annual Survey

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November is a big month for military families and organizations like Blue Star Families, which Connie Milstein serves as a Board Director. On Veterans Day especially, many groups and nonprofits plan events or outreach programs to assist veterans and military families. This year, with the support of Bank of America, Habitat for Humanity of Washington, DC, Blue Star Families partnered with ServiceNation to host a service project in the northeast quadrant of the district. General Stanley McChrystal joined 50 volunteers from Blue Star Families and Bank of America to help build four Habitat for Humanity homes in the low-income neighborhood of Ivy City.

“It’s wonderful to watch the country coming together in honor of Veterans Day,” said Mark Smith, Executive Director of Blue Star Families. “I can’t think of a better way to thank our veterans and military families for their service than to honor them by serving in our communities.”

On a broader scale, Facebook participated in several events and even created a new app to honor U.S. veterans. Named the “A Nation Gives Thanks,” the app gives Facebook users an opportunity to thank active service members, veterans and their families for their service to the United States. Facebook created the app to focus on personal connections, making it easier for people to send messages to their friends and family members who are part of the military community. Blue Star Families both supported and endorsed this app, along with the USO, the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, the American GI Forum, Disabled Veterans, CNN.com, HLN, BranchOut and Military.com. Facebook and BSF also partnered to create a comprehensive guide on how troops and military families can use social media to stay connected.

Throughout the month of November, Blue Star Families is conducting its annual survey of military families, service members and veterans. The survey is designed to expose the truth of what it’s like to maintain home, family, careers and healthy relationships when living with the military absence of a family member.  Last year’s survey showed that military families experience a higher-than-normal level of stress, but tend to cope well. Families reported that they experience more support from civilian neighbors than they did in 2009, but 92 percent reported that the general public didn’t understand or appreciate their challenges as military families. The survey runs through November 30.

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Oct
14

HDI Projects in Sri Lanka Have Lasting Impact

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Following the tsunami that ravaged India and Sri Lanka in 2004, the Humpty Dumpty Institute, which was co-founded by Connie Milstein, Ralph Cwerman, William Rouhana Jr. and Michael Sonnenfeldt, began several programs in the area that continue to help the area’s inhabitants today.

In 2009, the HDI received funding from the Red Cross Society of the Republic of China and was able to start a series of health education and medical care programs that assisted 10,000 women and children living in 14 remote villages. These programs were very important to the people in the Batticaloa and Jaffna districts of Sri Lanka as recovery and rebuilding efforts normally took precedence over healthcare and education.

To best help the residents of these regions, the HDI relied on its signature holistic approach to development and built two permanent medical clinics that would support 36 mobile medical units. Held at the permanent medical centers were training sessions focusing on vaccinations against disease, psychological treatment for post-tsunami stress disorder, pre- and post-natal health and much more.

“We greatly value our humanitarian work done in Sri Lanka which has impacted the lives of those caught in the tsunami,” said Cwerman, co-founder and current president of HDI. “The many programs that we have carried out have offered these communities and its people a chance to better lifestyles and life changes for their futures.”

Since its start, there have been 4,694 visits to the mobile medical clinics and ear, nose and throat clinics. Sixty-seven health training sessions have been held in six villages and have been attended by 4,380 individuals. HDI has also overseen literacy programs, built wells and water catchment systems, constructed latrines for local schools, provided playground equipment and delivered educational materials to schools.

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Sep
06

Blue Star Families Helps California Families Return to School

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It’s fall again and Blue Star Families is working to ensure that military families are ready to head back to school. The non-profit organization, where Connie Milstein is on the Board of Directors, oversaw the distribution of free school supplies to military families in the Murrieta (California) Unified School District last week.

Students in military families can require special needs or attention when attending off-base schools, especially when dealing with enrollment, attendance and graduation requirements. In Murrieta, Blue Star Families works with the school district and officials at the Camp Pendleton base to confront these issues that can arise during the school year.

The director of the local chapter of Blue Star Families is no stranger to these problems. Reyna is married to a Marine and has weathered 16 deployments while raising her children. She has become an advocate for the increasing military population in the area because of her experience as a military spouse. The local high school, Murrieta Mesa, recently created a Military Liaison position to help support and counsel military families.

Reyna, who gets several calls a week from military families that are new to the area, says she often hears frustration from families that can’t find support in the school system.

“Their children are in a new school. They just left their old friends and now have no friends. Their mom or dad may be deployed or soon will be deploying. All these events affect a child’s ability to learn,” Reyna said. “Military families can help by speaking up and letting the schools know they are there even if they are only going to be stationed here for a short time.”

Blue Star Families is a national non-profit organization founded in 2008 that currently has chapters on 70 military bases and National Guard sites around the United States. The group works to raise awareness about the challenges affecting military families in schools, communities and the government.

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Aug
02

Blue Star Families Celebrates 1500th Museum

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Blue Star Museums, a national partnership between the National Endowment for the Arts and Blue Star Families, brought its number of participating museums to 1,500 on Friday, July 29. The Sheridan County Museum in Sheridan, Wyoming, was the 1,500th museum to join the program. The Blue Star Museums partnership offers free museum admission to active duty military members and their families between Memorial Day and Labor Day of this year. Since its launch in May, the program has grown from 1,300 participating museums to 1,500.

Connie Milstein, a member of the Blue Star Families Board of Directors and a philanthropist active in both New York City and Washington, DC, has dedicated herself to helping not only military families but expanding access to the arts and sciences to everyone. In 2007, Connie launched the Collegiate Seminar Program, an exclusive program for NYU freshmen entering the College of Arts and Science. The faculty leading the Collegiate Seminar Program not only educates the university’s youngest minds but serve as mentors to the students throughout their time as undergraduates. Connie was presented with the College of Arts and Science Distinguished Service award in 2009 by the school.

Connie currently resides in Washington, DC, where there are nearly 30 museums participating in the Blue Star Museums program, including the Smithsonian Museums, the National Zoological Park, the Phillips Collection, the Woodrow Wilson House and more.

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Jun
21

Blue Star Families Partners with the Military Channel to Promote Suicide Prevention

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Connie Milstein serves Blue Star Families as a member of the Board of Directors. She was drawn to the organization by her concern for military families and she continues to support veterans and means of empowerment as a way to better people’s lives.

This week, in a partnership with Blue Star Families and The Creative Coalition, Discovery Communication’s Military Channel will begin airing a series of PSAs promoting a toll-free suicide prevention help line. With support from the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) and Health Net, Inc. the PSAs will be directed by actor and President of The Creative Coalition Tim Daly and will feature a multitude of celebrities and actors. Football star Terell Owens, “Private Practice” actor Taye Diggs, Academy Award-winner Melissa Leo, Cher and others will lend their star power to the series of PSAs.

The PSAs will air on the Lifetime network’s mylifetime.com, MakingOf.com and Elle.com beginning this month, in addition to the Military Channel. They will also appear on taxi cab screens in Boston, Chicago, Miami and New York City.

Each year, about 20 percent of the 30,000 to 32,000 U.S. deaths from suicide are attributed to veterans, according to national statistics. Suicides among military family members are also increasing.

Kathy Roth-Dougeuet, Blue Star Families Chief Executive Officer, thanked the Military Channel for their assistance in reaching out to military members, families and veterans. She added, “while our military families are resilient, we want them to know that asking for help is a sign of strength, not weakness.”

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Jun
01

Guide Dog School Wins PepsiCo Award for Diversity, Inclusion

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Guiding Eyes for the Blind, one of the charitable partners of Constance Milstein’s bakery and general store, recently received the most prestigious recognition PepsiCo offers, the 2011 Harvey C. Russell Global Diversity & Inclusion Award. The nonprofit guide dog school is headquartered in Yorktown Heights, N.Y., and is dedicated to providing visually impaired people with the freedom, independence and dignity by allowing them the opportunity to travel safely with a trained guide dog.

The award was created to honor exceptional advances in diversity and inclusion, and is usually bestowed upon PepsiCo employees, but Guiding Eyes for the Blind’s positive impact on the deaf community was recognized by the company as being worthy of the honor. Since 1954, the organization has graduated more than 7,000 guide dog teams from its accredited school, and also provides professional training and follow-up support services to students. PepsiCo and Guiding Eyes for the Blind have a unique partnership and are involved in several of the same functions and programs.

Connie Milstein’s involvement with Guiding Eyes for the Blind is through the Foundation Sweet Success, which distributes 100 percent of the after-tax profits from Connie’s Bakery and General Store to needy organizations.

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Apr
24

The Axelrod Milstein Challenge Grant from Connie Milstein

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Recently, the Citizens United for Research in Epilepsy (CURE) received a much appreciated gift from Board Member Connie Milstein.  During a beautiful reception for CURE that was co-hosted by CURE chair and founding member Susan Axelrod and Connie Milstein, Milstein announced the Axelrod Milstein Challenge Grant.  This is a $500,000 two-year grant intended to aid in the research to find a cure for epilepsy.

The evening, held at the Newseum in Washington, D.C. also honored the 2010 Friend of CURE Awardee, television producer and WHC Insider’s Tammy Haddad.

Hundreds of people were on hand to enjoy the pomegranate martini ice luge and the ice cream sundae bar, among other favorites.  Among those who came for the celebration were: Rima al Sabah, the Kuwaiti Ambassador’s wife; British Ambassador to the US Nigel and Julia Sheinwald; Mary Louise Oates; Kevin Sheekey; Joel and Lisa Benenson; Stephanie Cutter; Jen Psaki; Wolf Blitzer and many others.

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Apr
09

Making Music with Connie’s Bakery and General Store

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With help from Connie Milstein and Connie’s Bakery and General Store, more people are being touched each day by music. That’s because The Music Conservatory of Westchester is one of the recipients of the charitable contributions made by Connie’s Bakery and General Store this year.  Distributed through the Foundation Sweet Success, all after-tax profits from Connie Milstein’s store help those in need.

One such group that receives assistance is The Music Conservatory of Westchester.  This amazing resource, now in its 80th year offers music lessons, musical theater, music therapy and much more.  It is a location where, as the Conservatory explains, “students of all ages and abilities develop their talents in ways that support their individual goals and interests, guided by dedicated, excellent faculty.”

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