‘Thanks to The Denver Actors Fund, I will be able to hear my director, my fellow actors and the band’
Aid recipient: Kathleen Traylor of Littleton is one of the founding members of Phamaly Theatre Company, which she helped to create in 1989 when she and four other students from the Boettcher School in Denver grew frustrated with the lack of theatrical opportunities for people living with disabilities. Kathleen has been a regular performer with the now internationally acclaimed theatre company over the years, notably playing Penelope Pennywise in Urinetown and Golde in Fiddler on the Roof. After several years off due to with medical complications, Kathleen will returning to the stage this spring in Phamaly’s 30th anniversary gala concert, to be presented at three locations from May 24-June 6, and she has been cast in Phamaly’s upcoming summer production of a not-yet-publicly named Broadway musical. Kathleen went to Thomas Jefferson High School and is the mother of noted local actor Daniel Traylor.
Her medical story: Kathleen was born with multiple disabilities resulting from a condition known as Amniotic Band Syndrome. But the reason we are helping her out now is that she was recently diagnosed with severe hearing loss and nerve damage in both ears. But with the proper hearing aids, Kathleen can return to performing because Phamaly has a system by which technicians can feed the sound directly into her hearing aids. Kathleen has Medicaid insurance, but that does not cover hearing aids for adult patients.
How we have helped: The Denver Actors Fund board has unanimously voted to reimburse Kathleen Traylor for the full $1,380 cost of her new hearing aids.
A message from Kathleen: “Thanks to The Denver Actors Fund, I will be able to hear my director’s instructions, as well as my fellow actors on the stage and the band during performances! I don’t know how I could have purchased my hearing aids without the help of The Denver Actors Fund. This is a wonderful program Denver is fortunate to have!”
The Denver Actors Fund has now made more than $326,000 available to Colorado artists in medical need.
How you can help us help us replenish: If you would like to help us replenish by donating to the Denver Actors Fund, simply mail checks in any amount made out to Denver Actors Fund to P.O. Box 11182, Denver, CO 80212. Or use this donation link, with our humble thanks.
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 to the Denver Actors Fund, please CLICK HERE (with our humble thanks)
ABOUT THE DENVER ACTORS FUND:
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 $326,000 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:
Friends, we at The Denver Actors Fund believe in building community while building funds. Most of our events are performative in nature so that you have a good time while helping a good cause. Here are some of the events that are currently being planned on our behalf.
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 20: Local actor (and former DAF aid recipient) Emma Rebecca Maxfield (Performance Now’s The Wedding Singer) and actor Andy Seracuse (Vintage Theatre’s A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder) present an evening of songs at the Vintage Theatre with special guest Brandon Bill. Maxfield and Seracuse plan to independently stage an upcoming production of The Last Five Years in September with a “large portion of our proceeds going to The Denver Actors Fund every step of the way,” Maxfield says. So attend the fundraising event at Vintage on March 20 and enjoy an evening of cabaret. A portion of the ticket sales will go to Vintage; of what remains, a portion will go toward The Last Five Years, and an equal portion to the DAF. 7:30 p.m. at 1468 Dayton St., Aurora, 303-839-1361 or vintagetheatre.com.FRIDAY AND SATURDAY, MARCH 22-23: Darrow Klein, star of the Arvada Center’s new production of “The Diary of Anne Frank,” is also one of the youngest and oldest (as in longest) supporters of The Denver Actors Fund. She is arranging to take collections for the Denver Actors Fund following the March 22-23 performances. This effort is being initiated entirely by Darrow, who is also donating one week of her own acting stipend. If you plan to see this important and acclaimed show about the 13-year-old Jewish girl who chronicled the horrors of being trapped in Nazi-occupied Amsterdam, why not plan to attend on one of our special DAF nights? Performances take place at 6901 Wadsworth Blvd. For ticket information, call 720-898-7200 or go to arvadacenter.org
VISIT OUR ONLINE MERCH STORE:
Click here to see how you can buy DAF products such as T-shirts, key chains, puzzles and much more
