Our Ireland Project, the Frank McCourt Museum, which we only began partnering with a few months ago, was recently given a stellar write up in Ireland’s Limerick Post. After a recent group of disadvantaged Irish youth attended a three-week workshop, the response was overwhelming. The students delved into literature, working together to write a play and perform it. For many, their attendance at the program at Frank McCourt was their first introduction to both literature and performing.

When the workshop was over, more than half of the students said it enabled them to become more confident, over 80% said that it helped them become more creative and tap into their imaginations, and over 90% said that the course had helped them to make decisions, express themselves, and share opinions. 100% of the young students stated that the workshop helped them to work better in a team.

The successful workshop caught the interest of the Limerick Post – which garnered some much-needed attention for this wonderful foundation which strives to engage youth in need with culture and education.

Fiona Quinn, the program’s director, stated that the workshop was an overwhelmingly positive experience for all those involved. She was very impressed with both the enthusiasm of the students and the excellent support that they received from their Youthreach teachers. The students far exceeded Fiona’s expectations to such an extent that she was able to take the class to a far higher level than she had originally thought possible.

She was also very happy with the Museum as a location for the Workshop – the ambience of the Museum, the inspirational nature of Frank McCourt’s life and writings, and the friendly nature of the staff and their welcoming attitude, all contributed to making the pilot project a success and provided the ideal venue for a non-formal learning experience.

The workshop tremendously enhanced the confidence of all participants and she noted that several students who had been initially shy and withdrawn at the beginning of the course had become fully engaged and animated by the end.

Fiona believed that the workshop had fully met its targets for it had given the students a sense of self-worth, a sense of achievement and they had become creatively empowered. The project had given the young people an opportunity to develop a ‘voice’ to express themselves; they had learnt about working co-operatively together  in a group for a creative purpose and as a result they had developed a storyline and created their own drama script.

Now, the foundation looks to a bright future. The Pilot project ‘performed’ wonderfully — gained the foundation some positive attention from local media and audiences — and impacted the lives of some children already. We are so excited to continue working with our partner in Ireland to take this project to the next level.

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 *This is a guest post from Customer Quality Assurance Supervisor, Laura Schmeltz and Product Coordinator, Jennifer Hesford at Collette Vacations!*

Team Britain is excited to report the first group of students sponsored by the Collette Foundation visited Shakespeare’s Birthplace on November 30, 2012!  The class traveled from Nuneaton, a town less than 30 miles from Shakespeare’s birthplace.  They participated in a hands-on workshop, “Willingly to School”, allowing the children the opportunity to travel back in time and spend the day as a child in Tudor Stratford. 

 When the class arrived, they were helped into Tudor costumes by their teachers.  The teachers saw how much fun the children were having and did not want to be left out; they decided to dress up in Tudor attire as well!  Our contact at Shakespeare’s Birthplace tells us, “(The teachers) found the biggest children’s costumes they could and put them on!  Although the skirts were a little short, they still looked lovely and everyone has given us such positive feedback.”   

Currently, there are three sponsored classes scheduled to visit. Shakespeare’s Birthplace is in the process of scheduling additional students for the remainder of the school year.  We are thrilled that this project is off and running and we look forward to receiving feedback from the students and teachers who will soon visit. 

The Collette Foundation continues to expand its philanthropic hand to disadvantaged children throughout the world; their next stop, Ireland. Collette Vacations passengers who travel on the Countryside of the Emerald Isle will have the opportunity to participate in the betterment of local youths via education.

**This is a guest post from Patricia Grady, Operations and Customer Service Specialist at Collette Vacations!**

I am pleased to announce that we will be visiting the Frank McCourt Museum, a new project for our Ireland Foundation!

This is the second site in Ireland and we felt strongly that this museum, where the famed author Frank McCourt went to school, will be an inspiration to local youth in the Limerick area. Sponsored by the Collette Foundation, disadvantaged youth will learn various skills linked to literature such as the music of language and the art of storytelling.

Students will see that there are opportunities for everyone despite socio-economic background and will be encouraged to follow their aspirations. Students will understand their local heritage and its importance in their personal development.  The curator of the museum is passionate about developing the scope of the museum’s potential by partnering with the Collette Foundation.  In the words of the museum’s curator and artist, Una Heaton, “If we get the right funding, we could turn the large rooms downstairs into permanent class rooms; it will be a dream come true. I know Frank would love to be here to see his old school used again, to educate young kids.”

The theme of the Frank McCourt Museum relates to one of Limerick’s most disadvantaged groups who reached the heights of literature in winning the much coveted Pulitzer Prize and translates into a major attraction for Irish communities and tourists, particularly those with a literary bent.  A significant choice of building, here Frank and one of his siblings attended Leamy School as children.  This particular area is recognized as the “Georgian Quarter” and is being promoted as such by state agencies and City Hall.  The district itself is one of Limerick’s finest with the advantage of having well-kept buildings in this environmentally friendly zone.  Leamy House (formerly Leamy School) was established in 1843 as a dedicated school for poor boys.  It remained so for over 100 years, when it was purchased by the Heaton family to set up a factory manufacturing men’s clothing.  In the 1990’s, the Leamy House occupancy switched to office rentals until July 2011, when finally and appropriately, its curator, Una Heaton, set up the museum which also serves as an educational resource centre and works on projects in conjunction with second level schools, the  Paul Partnership (People Against Unemployment Ltd.) and the Limerick Youth Service, all of which have well established track records.

As an educational resource, the Frank McCourt Museum will identify 15 young people from marginalized areas in Limerick who will be given the opportunity of participating in workshops designed to encourage them to develop additional skills of a cultural nature. Frank McCourt’s inspiring story of survival coupled with his meteoric rise in the world of literature is a testament to the strength and tenacity of the human spirit.  Part of this will touch those involved in “A Limerick Project”, sponsored by the Collette Foundation.

The Collette Foundation is so excited to work with the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust to enable disadvantaged local school children to take part in its education courses free of charge. Our support will provide children their very first experience with Shakespeare and hopefully inspire them for a lifetime. Children who have been exposed to the works of this amazing foundation have remarked that it was the “best field trip ever”.

As seen in the picture above, the children dress in authentic Tudor costumes and truly live for a day in Shakespeare’s time. Also pictured, the kids play Tudor games and make tallow candles.

We officially launched our partnership last month, and now we are pleased to announce that the first five school groups are all booked and ready to attend the educational program. The first group arrives Friday, November 9th… it’s almost time!

The Collette Foundation is proud to add a new project to its global roster in beautiful Ireland as part of its cultural enrichment initiative. All of our Cultural Connections projects provide educational opportunities to local children, focusing on preservation of culture, the arts and language with the goal of engaging children in their culture and heritage.

In Ireland, we are pleased to partner with the wonderful Cliffs of Moher Visitors’ Centre. We will be funding a pre-visit downloadable video and information pack for the centre – making the visit that we already include on our ‘Shades of Ireland’ tour much more accessible to families of children with intellectual disabilities and sensory impairment and to school and respite centres. The centre has consulted with the Brothers of Charity Children’s services and Inclusion Ireland, to identify ways to make a visit to the Cliffs of Moher more welcoming for all families, schools and respite centres catering to children with these special needs, particularly those with autism spectrum disorders or Downs syndrome. This project will help over 470 children in Co. Clare, Ireland between the ages of 4 and 17.

Passengers visiting the centre on our tour will be introduced to our work with the Collette Foundation with a brief welcome talk at the centre, before their visit. In addition to helping children in Co. Clare, we will also be funding a training program for frontline staff at the Cliffs of Moher Visitors Centre that will provide disability training, autism awareness and child protection training for those coming into contact with children of special needs and intellectual disabilities.

We look forward to this exciting new partnership — and to helping children in Ireland, especially those with special needs, understand and connect with their cultural heritage.

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The Collette Foundation’s Cultural Connections program is excited to announce a new partnership with Shakespeare’s Birthplace in Stratford-Upon-Avon, United Kingdom. This partnership marks the launch of our first official project in England!

We were so excited to find Shakespeare’s Birthplace — a remarkable program. The children’s programming is outstanding and really touched on a major aspect of the Collette Foundation’s mission – to improve the lives of children. We were looking to partner with a nonprofit organization that allows children to really immerse themselves in a cultural activity that gives them an understanding of their traditions and heritage.  Shakespeare’s Birthplace offers award-winning Heritage Education Programs that allow local primary school classes to visit the property and engage in Shakespeare’s times in a truly authentic setting.

Children who attend the programs spend the school day immersed in Tudor life. They dress in replica Tudor clothing, partake in tasks that Tudor children would have been expected to do (such as making bread and spinning wool), play Tudor games,  attend school lessons as Tudor students would, and more.  There are many testimonials from children indicating that they really enjoy their experiences, with one of the only complaints being the “itchy replica clothing”. On that topic, our partners at the Shakespeare’s Birthplace Trust simply have said, “the experiences here are definitely authentic!”

The Collette Foundation has funded the attendance of 400 students, who would not otherwise be able to afford to participate. These children will participate in the Heritage Education programs beginning in September and running throughout the school year.

As the Collette Foundation rolls our sleeves up in this newest addition to our project roster, we welcome you to learn more when you click here.

Let the Tudor games begin!

According to the Lynda Jackson Macmillan Centre, the UK Office Foundation Site, “Fundraising starts with F-U-N” and that is exactly what our team of volunteers has had for Easter! Lots of F-U-N, fundraising by selling chocolate filled chicks and Easter raffle tickets to raise money for the cancer support centre. Some of our staff donated gifts for the raffle prizes. It was a really nice way to celebrate the holiday and the beginning of Spring!

-Patricia

Members from the Collette UK Office presented the Lynda Jackson Macmillan Cancer support centre with a cheque for £1,300 last week. The LJMC  works to improve the lives of people affected by cancer. The money will help to pay for much needed equipment at the patient iPoint desk, where we volunteer on a weekly basis.

With the donation from the Collette Foundation, the cheque will go towards installing a new phone line, storage cabinets for patient information and necessary equipment to run the iPoint. When a patient walks through the door and sees the iPoint, they know they can get help or find directions to where they need to go. Due to government cutbacks and the poor economy, centres such as the Lynda Jackson Centre rely heavily on funding from grants, voluntary donations and fundraising activities. Our support its much needed and gives patients the information they need – supporting them in this journey.

Just in time for Valentine’s Day, the UK office volunteers decided to invite a local vendor of high quality handbags and accessories, to come to our offices for a fundraising  handbag sale, to benefit our local charity – the Lynda Jackson Macmillan Cancer Centre, at the Mount Vernon Hospital located in Northwood, a few miles from the UK office. The entire office had the opportunity to purchase great gifts at lower than high street prices for the special people in our lives.  We even had men visiting to purchase beautiful gifts for their wives! The ladies in the U.K. office couldn’t resist splurging of course.

The best thing about this lunch time shopping extravaganza was not only the gorgeous items on sale but that 10% of all sales were donated to our local charity – the Lynda Jackson Macmillan Cancer Centre – to help to improve the lives of both patients and family and friends of people with cancer. Overall, it was a success and just a really fun way to get everyone involved and do something different in our mission to help this wonderful cancer centre where we volunteer on a weekly basis.

One of my colleagues in the UK office, Paul, recently enjoyed his time at the Lynda Jackson Macmillan Centre, based at Mount Vernon Hospital, near our office, that supports people affected by cancer — if “enjoyed” can really be the right word when describing spending time faced with such a harsh reality as people suffering from such an awful illness. He wrote to me after his volunteer time:

I visited LJMC yesterday morning and spent my time helping out in the office working on administrative tasks. There are a lot of workers involved in the Centre as many of the staff are part time or volunteers. It’s always interesting to meet up with new people there as they all have different experiences of working with people affected by cancer. It’s quite an eye-opener to realize how cancer affects so many people and how indiscriminate it really is. Being able to provide support to such a wide range of people is incredibly rewarding.

– Paul

In the UK office, we are all so committed to helping at the centre — to make each day more bearable for the patients there, to give them something to smile about, to alleviate some of their fear, to give them an ear or a shoulder… it’s not always easy and to Paul’s point, it is an eye-opener. And that is why we do it.