Update: 6/1/09-The Do Something grant allowed me to purchase general supplies such as signs, markers, balloons, plates, utensils etc without having to tap into money allotted towards PNOLA's rebuilding efforts. Furthermore, it funded entertainment for the fair that ultimately would have been impossible otherwise: with the grant, we were able to use 250$ towards entertainment including a brass band performance and storytelling.

Additional hours volunteered: 200
Additional people impacted: 100
Additional people involved: 35

Allison Hahn
Number of people in the organization: 35-40
Number of people impacted: 100
Describe the impact the grant had: The Do Something grant allowed me to purchase general supplies such as signs, markers, balloons, plates, utensils etc without having to tap into money allotted towards PNOLA's rebuilding efforts. Furthermore, it funded entertainment for the fair that ultimately would have been impossible otherwise: with the grant, we were able to use 250$ towards entertainment including a brass band performance and storytelling. Now that we have planned one successful kids' fair, we will be able to spend much more time in the future soliciting for business sponsorships and fundraising on our own in order to fund the event. For the amount of activities and community service that was accomplished via the kids' fair, it is an extremely cost efficient event. Now with one successful event under PNOLA's belt, we know how to plan for it, we know the results and have seen how the community has benefited. We have learned from this round, we will be better equipped to continue and improve upon this program. Without the Do Something grant, the fair would not be nearly as successful.
Project highlights: One highlight of the kids' fair was definitely the drum circle! Adella Adella the Storyteller and the drum circle were both scheduled for 11am and it ended up that the leader of the drum circle, Luther, and Adella both know each other. For the first half hour of the drum circle, Adella and the drum circle combined forces in a great storytelling and beat driven activity. It was educational, cultural, historical and fun! You could hear the beats of the drum circle for blocks: people began to drive by in their cars to investigate. It was fun to participate and to watch. Another highlight of the fair was definitely the crafts lead by the Junior Zulu group with the Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club. The kids loved getting to participate in something that they recognize and also defines New Orleans' culture. They were able to learn about New Orleans culture and history while also getting to participate in a hands-on activity producing something that they can take home and look at and remember their experience with Zulu. Finally, the many free things at the fair was another highlight. We were so lucky to have collected so many books that we were able to give kids as many books as they wanted and still had so many extra that we had to distribute them among 4 other community centers. Furthermore, with all the food donations that I was able to collect, we provided free breakfast for all of our volunteers and community partners in addition to a free lunch and drinks for everyone who came out to the fair! I was afraid that we had too much food but there were no leftovers at all! We set up a nice outdoor seating area with tables, chairs and umbrellas; it was really a nice space and meal for many families and community partners alike.
How did the project unfold and develop? The entire planning process of the PNOLA Kids' Fair spanned approximately 3 months. After we had secured the location of the event at the Sojourner Truth Community Center, a partner organization in our same target area, I focused my efforts on getting other local organizations to commit to organizing an activity or game at the fair. This went well though not without some difficulties. With the date of the fair still fairly far in the future, some organizations had trouble committing until closer to the event date. Other organizations ended up ultimately bailing and other organizations forgot about the fair by the date of the fair and failed to show. Once we had enough organizations involved to make sure that the fair would be successful, we began to publicize the event. Some organizations that received the flyers through our promotions inquired about getting involved at the fair. I distributed flyers among approximately 10 elementary schools in the city, a number of local churches and nearly 20 other kid oriented organizations and non-profit groups around the city. At the same time I was publicizing the event, I was also soliciting for donations. We ended up getting enough food for the event to provide free bagels, cream cheese and coffee for our volunteers’ breakfast as well as free lunch for everyone who attended. Lunch consisted of bananas, oranges, apples, pizza (30 pizzas total from two different pizzerias), hamburgers, potato salad, fried cauliflower, cookies, a cake, fruit punch and pink lemonade. Needless to say, there were no leftovers! In addition, I solicited for book donations and soil/plant donations for the community service project of replanting the planter boxes at the community center. I received lots of help collecting books and ended up gathering so many books from around the city that we had too many! The leftover books were donated to two community centers as well as a literacy-oriented group that participated at the fair and a thrift store. We gathered enough soil and plants to completely revitalize the entranceway of the center! In the end, the fair consisted of 3 different arts and crafts activities, one of which was painting a mural and another that was painting Zulu coconuts with Junior Zulu. There were 4 different information booths, 2 groups that organized interactive games and activities, 3 people who volunteered to read books aloud, a drum circle, a story teller, free book give-away, flower planting, face painting and a brass band performance to close out the day. Over the course of the day, approximately 100 kids and their parents attended the fair. This doesn't include the numerous volunteers that generously gave of their time to assist in the day and those representing the participating organizations, accounting for nearly 45 people. At the fair, a huge amount of information about local resources was easily distributed to families and between organizations and community groups. In addition, throughout the publicity and organizing process, PNOLA met with and made contact with numerous community members and organizations that would likely be involved in the next kids' fair and distributed information about its available services. The fair was a means to contribute to community in other ways such as economic development: Adella Adella the Storyteller lives in Mid-City, the target neighborhood, and the We Are One Brass Band got free publicity at the fair. Two groups at the fair got the band’s contact information in hopes of having them perform for various events in the future! Furthermore, the fair was able to highlight some things that are culturally significant in New Orleans. The drum circle provided by the Ashe Cultural Arts Center was not only a great means of getting out the word about their available resources, but also a way to celebrate New Orleans' African and Caribbean cultural heritage. The activity lead by Junior Zulu is another example of this: the Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club is of huge importance in New Orleans, particularly among the African American community as Zulu is one of the oldest African American organizations. The fact that Zulu was able to bring their Junior Zulu group, a group of teenagers who do community service projects, and lead the painting of coconuts, which is the prized throw at the Zulu Mardi Gras Day parade, is of huge significance and the kids had a blast doing it! They felt a part of something that so strongly defines, and has defined, New Orleanian culture. Beyond the number of connections made, the number of attendees and the amount information distributed at the fair, a huge benefit came out of the fair for the Sojourner Truth Community Center. The center reopened this last January after Hurricane Katrina. This event, if nothing else, was able to put the spotlight on this center including the programs and the space that it has available for the community. A large amount of books were contributed to the center to help expand their collection (this is in addition to the books that were distributed to a local literacy center, another community center and a thrift store). The mural painted, which incorporates hands prints of the children who attended with a beautiful quote by Sojourner Truth, will be hung at the center and will brighten the currently stark white walls. The planter boxes that frame front entrance used to be filled with grass but they were weeded, tilled, filled with fresh soil and sprinkled with wildflower seeds. Vegetable plants were donated for the space but were not appropriate for the space and have been donated to neighbors. The fair was the perfect venue in which to connect people, distribute information, do community service at the community center and have day full of free fun!