FALL FUNDRAISER!
Drag Story Hour NYC provides a range of fun and fabulous educational experiences for children and teens in libraries, schools, museums, and community spaces in all five boroughs of New York City. Through storytelling and creativity, our programs affirm LGBTQ+ youth and help kids as young as three to embrace all forms of difference and grow into empathetic adults.
Since the beginning of 2021, we have:
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Produced 208 person programs, including 141 virtual programs, 40 outdoor programs, and 51 programs for NYC public schools in all five boroughs of the city.
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Served 863 kids in person and thousands more virtually.
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Formed a Curriculum Committee and developed DSH Middle Grade and YA Book Club programs for older kids and teens
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Expanded our bilingual programming to include Cantonese/English and French/English programs, in addition to Spanish/English
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Produced a series of DSH programs designed for kids with autism and other special needs
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Trained five new storytellers, including four drag kings, and hired a program director to streamline our program coordinating process and develop our curriculum.
In 2021, we received invitations to bring our programs to students in more than 15 NYC public schools that don’t have the funds to pay for our programs. It will cost DSH NYC $9,000 to provide programming free of charge to 15 of these public schools.
What Your Donation Will Fund
It costs DSH NYC $600 to produce one in-person Drag Story Hour program for a public school, including the cost of paying the storyteller and event facilitator, transportation, supplies, and administrative costs of coordinating the program. With a capacity to serve up to 60 students per event, this means we can help public schools build confidence and celebrate differences for $10 per student.
A donation of just $10 allows us to reach one child, and a donation of $600 helps us reach a whole class of students. If we can reach our goal of $9,000, we will be able to bring our program to at least 15 public schools this school year.
Fund Drag Story Hour Programs in Public Schools!
If you’ve been spending time with kids recently, you know how much our children have missed out on due to the pandemic. One thing they have not missed out on is Drag Story Hour. Our storytellers have been here for NYC children since the beginning of the pandemic, telling stories and doing crafts virtually for over a year, and more recently outdoors at the city’s many Open Streets programs. This school year, we’re excited to finally be able to visit kids in their classrooms again!
Despite a return to in-person learning and programming, our kids still require immense support when it comes to social emotional development. That’s where Drag Story Hour NYC’s expanding public school programming comes in!
How You Can Help
1. Share this campaign with your networks on Instagram, Facebook, and email!
2. Make a donation in any amount. You can also opt to support our work year-round with a recurring donation!
3. Make a donation of $600 or more to sponsor a DSH program at a public school and join our Supporting Authors and Publishers section below!
SUPPORTING AUTHORS & PUBLISHERS
Raakhee Mirchandani is a journalist, children’s book author, activist and mom. She is the author of Super Satya Saves the Day and Hair Twins and the host of Brown Mom podcast. Previously a feature writer and columnist for the New York Post, a managing editor at the New York Daily News and associate editor at the Boston Herald, Raakhee’s work has also appeared in Elle, Glamour, the Wall Street Journal, Redbook and HuffPo, and she was the editor-in-chief of Moneyish, published by Dow Jones.
A local drag queen will read an excerpt from one of our favorite queer YA books and lead a discussion about the book. Participants are encouraged to read the book before attending the program. (This program must be booked a month in advance so that we can plan and announce the book selection and give participants a chance to read the book.)
Dottir Press is a woman-owned, queer-identified independent publisher that works to fill the absences in both our history and present culture through storytelling in all forms and for all ages. Dottir Press titles like IntersectionAllies: We Make Room for All and Tell Me About Sex, Grandma are widely adopted in classrooms across the country (including NYC DoE), endorsed by experts in child psychology and education, and beloved by librarians and, more to the point, kids.
Hummingbird Humanity works to build bridges of trust in spaces that historically have not worked for everyone. We actively champion environments where all humans thrive, and believe this is how organizations can truly succeed. We are committed to expanding awareness of individual lived experiences and are committed to sharing stories so that every voice is heard. We are thought partners to expand your thinking and we deeply believe that every employee, and person, should feel safe to be their authentic selves. We partner to foster human-centered, highly engaged workplace cultures where representation matters, diverse voices are celebrated, and everyone knows they belong.
Hummingbird Humanity is the publisher of My Grown-Ups, by Kate Costigan.
In this neighborhood, no two families look the same, and everyone is celebrated for being who they are. My Grown-Ups, written by Kate Costigan, explores the variety of families that exist today. Kate knows what it means to have different grown-ups from everyone else. After the death of her mother, seven-year-old Kate was raised by her grandmother and father. She hopes that this book makes it easier for readers to feel safe and comfortable sharing who the grown-ups in their lives are.
Ellen Lindner (she/her) is the author of Ignatz-nominated graphic novel The Black Feather falls, as well as The Cranklet's Chronicle, a history of women, baseball, and social change in America. Her comics have appeared in The Lily, Spiralbound, World War 3 Illustrated, and a variety of other publications. Ellen is also an editor and educator and her activist art has been acquired by the Smithsonian Institution.
Sara Varon is an illustrator & children’s book author living in Chicago, Illinois. You can find her on Instagram or visit her Etsy shop for things like pins and printed items. She is also available for school visits!
Michael Genhart, PhD is a licensed clinical psychologist working in San Francisco and the author of numerous picture books for kids. Some of his LGBTQ-themed titles include: LOVE IS LOVE; RAINBOW: A FIRST BOOK OF PRIDE; and THEY'RE SO FLAMBOYANT. He is the proud parent of an elementary school teacher (in training). Michael lives with his rainbow family in Marin County, CA.
Samantha Berger is the award-winning author of over 80 books for young readers. Sam's also a thrice Emmy nominated television write, for spots with both Nickelodeon and Sesame Street. She lives in sunny Santa Monica with her Dingo Chihuahua rescue-dog Polly Pocket, who is a daily reminder of resilience and the power of love.
Thank you Jessica Ralli and Megan Madison, authors of Being You: A First Conversation about Gender, for sponsoring a DQSH/DKSH in one NYC public school this year!