Denver Actors Fund covers the bill after singer undergoes emergency surgery … on her honeymoon!
Financial aid recipient: Longtime singer, actor and 25-year vocal coach Traci J. Kern Piper has been a local performer going all the way back to 1999, when she played Crystal in the Town Hall Arts Center’s “Little Shop of Horrors.” She also has served as Music Director for shows from Denver to New York to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland. Just two performing highlights include singing “Seasons of Love” in Town Hall’s “Rent,” and playing the Narrator in “Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson” for Ben Dicke Productions at the Aurora Fox. Her company credits include Cherry Creek Theatre, Phamaly Theatre Company and Magic Moments, among many others. Traci is also active in local cabaret circles, most recently appearing in “From Vintage, With Love” for the Vintage Theatre and presenting her own cabaret at Denver Improv. Traci is a professional voice teacher who serves many singers from beginners through pros through her full-time voice studio in Denver. She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Vocal Performance from the University of South Dakota and her Master’s Degree in Vocal Performance from the University of Northern Colorado.
‘LIFESAVING EMERGENCY SURGERY ON VACATION AWAY FROM HOME IS TERRIFYING’
Her medical story: Back in 2014, Traci became just the seventh DAF aid recipient when a mass was discovered in her breast that turned out to be benign. After three mammograms and surgery, the brand-new DAF was thrilled to be able to defray her $5,500 in out-of pocket medical expenses by all of … $450! In 2017, Traci’s hand slipped as she was making dinner using a mandolin slicer, and she severed a large section of the tip of the ring finger on her right hand. Her out-of-pocket cost for that procedure came to $2,694, which the DAF covered in full. But life wasn’t done messing with Traci yet. On her honeymoon in May (her honeymoon!), Traci was rushed by ambulance to the hospital for an emergency surgery that came to another $3,790.
How we will help: The Denver Actors Fund Board of Directors again has voted to reimburse Traci for the full amount of her remaining medical bill, or $3,790. All told, including an additional targeted donation from one of you (!) wonderful people, our overall support for Traci to date is now $7,034.
A message from Traci: “Lifesaving, emergency surgery on vacation away from home is terrifying. Then you return home, and just when you should be focusing on healing, the bills from that surgery start to arrive, bringing with them another level of scary. There are no words to express my utter gratitude to the DAF for this generous gift. The financial and emotional burden they have relieved has allowed me to continue to focus on healing and staying well. The kindness and generosity exhibited by all the donors to the DAF is astonishing. What a beautiful community we have here in Colorado!”
(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:
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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 source of immediate, situational relief when members of the local theater community find themselves in medical need. To date, the Fund has allocated more than $1,000,000 to more than 500 artists facing medical need. In addition to financial relief, a team of more than 100 Denver Actors Fund volunteers offers good neighborly assistance 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 80211
VOLUNTEER:
Ever thought about taking a more active role in the Denver Actors Fund? Click here for more information
COME TO THE EVENTS THAT SUPPORT US:
MONDAY, OCTOBER 17: Our faithful friends at Firehouse Theatre Company have designated their Industry Night performance of “Blithe Spirit” as a benefit for the Denver Actors Fund, with 100 percent of proceeds going to The Denver Actors Fund. The is Noel Coward’s spooky society comedy about novelist Charles Condomine, who invites an eccentric medium to his home who summons back Charles’ dearly departed first wife.. 7:30 p.m. at the John Hand Theater at 7653 E. 1st Place, Denver, CO 80230. Tickets are only $15 (normally $25) on this night only. Order yours by clicking here at firehousetheatercompany.com and be sure to choose Oct. 17 if you can.
“Blithe Spirit” is directed by M Curtis Grittner and continues through Oct. 29, so go see it even if you can’t come on DAF Night. Thank you to all involved, including cast, crew, creatives, staff, Producing Artistic Director Helen Hand. Thank you for your steadfast commitment to help the DAF help Colorado theater artists.
ONGOING: “Quarantine Week by Weak” is a new photographic coffee-table book by Susannah McLeod and her wife, Chloe McLeod, who chronicled their home life during the COVID19 shutdown with a light-hearteded photo series documenting their lives during quarantine. They produced more than 35 sets of humorous photos comparing the beginning of quarantine to later in the “stay-at-home” period. Susannah pulled out her camera and we started to play,” said Chloe McLeod. As popularity for the series grew on Instagram and after a feature in Westword, the couple started exploring options to publish the series as a book to benefit The Denver Actors Fund. To order, visit mcleod9creative.com. This project is generously sponsored by: The Albritton Family; Natalie Bowen and Jim Corbett; Dave Dyer; Julie Dyer; and Denise Gentilini and Lynette Prisner. Additional support provided by Angie Flachman and Sandy Birkey at The Publishing House and Sandra Lee Stuart.
ONGOING: “Waiting for Obama,” the audio version of DAF Founder John Moore’s play that was an official selection at the 2016 New York International Fringe Festival, has been released as way of raising funds for The Denver Actors Fund. A Colorado Springs family is convinced that Barack Obama is coming for their guns in the final weeks of his presidency – and they’re right. Featuring Laurence Curry, Drew Horwitz, Chris Kendall, Leslie O’Carroll, Jenna Moll Reyes, Jessica Robblee, Luke Sorge and Mare Trevathan. It was recorded by the staff of Parker Arts at the PACE Center as an in-kind donation to The Denver Actors Fund. Listen for FREE on all major podcasting platforms including Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Podbean. Just by listening, you will be raising revenue for The DAF! Or, WATCH the recording as a pay-per-view video for $9.95 on Broadway on Demand. ‘Waiting for Obama’ was recorded by the staff of Parker Arts at the PACE Center and edited by Ray Bailey TV as in-kind donations to The Denver Actors Fund. The actors also donated their services.
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