Aid recipient: Tresha Farris is a 25-year-old Colorado native who studied acting and writing at the University of Colorado Denver and at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts through its Education classes. She most recently played Cordelia in Fearless Theatre’s production of “King Lear” and was in the ensemble of an original play called “Anansi: The Itsy BiTSY Spider Stories,” based on the African trickster who is considered to be a spirit who possesses the knowledge of all stories. Other credits have included “Julius Caesar” for Fearless; “The Stone Coat Woman” and “The Stonemason’s Wish” for the BiTSY Stage; “Belleville” for Progressive Theatre; and “How Leaving Came to Me” for the Bolder Life Festival.
Her medical story: During the second week of “King Lear” performances, Tresha began experiencing abdominal pain. She immediately went to the E.R., where she was told she probably had food poisoning or a virus. Instead, her symptoms persisted and she went into the vortex that can be the journey toward medical diagnosis, which eventually landed on angioedema and lupus. (In the meantime, there were four more hospital admissions, numerous consults and tests.) Lupus is essentially an autoimmune disease that occurs when the body’s immune system attacks its own tissues and organs. Although Tresha has been fortunate to still be on her parents’ insurance, she was unable to work the restaurant job that pays her bills for two months. She also has accumulated 14 medical bills (and counting) that add up to $1,635.94 after insurance.
How we have helped: The Denver Actors Fund’s board of directors has voted to pay both the $1,635.94 to wipe out Tresha’s present medical bills, and $2,000 to help with lost wages while she was incapacitated for a total grant of $3,635.94. Additional targeted donations have brought the total amount of support for Tresha to date to $3,675.94.
How you can help us help Tresha more: Tresha still has new bills coming in, and a lifetime of medication to pay for. If you would like to direct a specific donation to help give her some breathing room as she adjusts to her new diagnosis, simply mail checks in any amount made out to Denver Actors Fund (with Tresha Farris’ name written in the topic field), to P.O. Box 11182, Denver, CO 80212. Or use this donation link. If you use the online option, be sure to designate that your donation is a targeted donation to Tresha Farris. (She will receive 100 percent of your donation.) Otherwise, your donation will be applied to the replenishment of the Denver Actors Fund’s general fund.
A message from Tresha: “First, I want to thank The Denver Actors Fund for their generous assistance. They have given so much relief after this hardship, and I can’t thank them enough. It’s nice to know there are heroes in the world. Now, thankfully, I am in recovery and getting stronger every day. This was one of the hardest and scariest journeys I’ve ever experienced. I was blessed and thankful to have my supportive family and my boyfriend, Sean, by my side every step of the way. However, it was easy to become overwhelmed and defeated by the amount of medical bills and living expenses that accrued during my illness. Fortunately for me, The Denver Actors Fund was the first place I went to for assistance. It’s truly a crowning gem of the Denver theatre community, and I am a firm supporter and believer in it. If it weren’t for the funds made available by the great talent and esteemed audiences of this city, I really don’t know what I would have done. I can now start putting the pieces of my life back together. I feel so honored and blessed to receive such a selfless gift from my Denver theatre family. It proves that this community is about much more than just excellent plays and performance – it’s about supporting the people who perform in it.”
The Denver Actors Fund has now made more than $241,000 available to Colorado artists in medical need. If you would to help us replenish our general fund, simply mail checks made out to The Denver Actors Fund to P.O. Box 11182, Denver, CO, 80212. Or use this donation link.
Read testimonials from other Denver Actors Fund beneficiaries here
Note: At the Denver Actors Fund, anonymity of aid recipients is presumed and fully protected, unless and until the recipient chooses to have his or her story told.
HOW YOU CAN HELP US REPLENISH:
To DONATE the Denver Actors Fund, please CLICK HERE (with our humble thanks)
ABOUT THE DENVER ACTORS FUND:
Video above: The Denver Actors Fund receives the Colorado Theatre Guild’s 2016 Community Impact Award.
The Denver Actors Fund is a modest source of immediate, situational relief when members of the local theater community find themselves in medical need. In addition to $241,000 in financial relief, a team of more than 60 Denver Actors Fund volunteers has offered good neighborly assistance to more than 100 beneficiaries including meal prep and delivery, child care, transportation, errands, construction, pet-sitting and more. For more information, visit our web site at DenverActorsFund.Org.
HOW TO APPLY FOR AID:
To apply for Denver Actors Fund aid: Fill out this brief online form here
MORE WAYS TO HELP:
DONATE BY MAIL:
Send checks made out to the Denver Actors Fund to:
P.O. Box 11182
Denver, CO 80212
VOLUNTEER:
Ever thought about taking a more active role in the Denver Actors Fund? Click here for more information
COME TO OUR EVENTS:
Denver Actors Fund Film Series: Our next Denver Actors Fund film screening at the Alamo Drafthouse Sloan’s Lake will be “Rock of Ages” at 6:30 p.m. Monday, June 18, with live entertainment from the Lake Dillon Theatre Company. Reserve your preferred seat here.
Miscast returns Sept. 17: “Miscast,” which is presented each year by Robert Michael Sanders as a benefit for The Denver Actors Fund, is an opportunity for local performers to sing songs and act out scenes they would never … ever! … get cast to perform on any legit stage. Think gender-bending, race-bending and age-bending. Odd couples and mixed groups. Wrong is oh so right. “Miscast” has evolved over the years into one of the biggest nights of the year in the Colorado theatre community – and it is a really good show. “Miscast 2018” will be held Sept. 17 at a new location: The Mizel Arts and Culture Center. Tickets onsale soon.
(Note: “Miscast” is a registered trademark of MCC Theater and is used with permission.)
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