WE LOVE NEW YORK!

May 5, 2007

We've been having a blast in the Big Apple, especially Darius. And we've been going nonstop. So much going on; here's a quick summary of what we've been up to...

Yesterday, Robert DeNiro (he's a cofounder of the Tribeca Film Festival) sent a wheelchair accessible van and a car to pick us all up and take us out to Brooklyn to his kids' school, Brooklyn Friends. Every year, DeNiro and his ex-wife and model Toukie Smith pick one film to show at Tribeca at their children's school, and DGW was chosen this year! The screening occurred the night before (just prior to the Carnegie Hall screening), and many of the kids at Brooklyn Friends wanted to meet Darius and crew. So, we went to Brooklyn, had lunch at the school, and got to hang with Toukie and meet many of the kids. We had a great time, and Toukie has promised to help us launch our DGW-in-the-schools program next fall.

While in New York, we were interviewed for a local NBC news show, and the reporter liked our story and cause so much that she arranged for us all to go on the Circle Line boat tour. Last night, we took a sunset cruise, where we were able to see the Statue of Liberty up close from the water just as it got dark. We had a blast and learned so much about the history of Manhattan. Thank you, Perri Peltz of NBC News, for treating us to this special tour!

After the boat tour, we had a reunion dinner with Will White(formerly with United Cerebral Palsy). Many who were at our send-off in July of 2005 will remember Will when he spoike on the courthouse steps. He was our knight in shining armor, delivering a sizable grant from UCP (in exchange for handing out "Who Will Care" bracelets on our trip) when we were short on budget just days before departure. Will is also hosting Daniel and Tbarn while they are in NYC, and it was great to see him again. Tracy and Benjy Seckler also joined us for dinner.

After dinner, we all walked around Times Square (D's favorite place), where Darius got into another rap "battle" with a local. He can really get into the zone when he's freestyling, and the two of them attracted quite a crowd (including a couple of cops who made them move down to a side street because they were blocking traffic).

At the Carnegie Hall screening, some friends of Tracy and Benjy Seckler were so impressed with Darius and the rest of us that they handed us their business cards and told us to plan something fun to do in the city...on them. Darius said he wanted to go to a Yankees game, so that's what we did today...in style! Early this afternoon, two cars arrived to pick us all up, and we were given 12 VIP box seats right behind home plate. It was an incredible game--almost a no-hitter. The Yankees won 7-1, and the stadium and crowd were amazing. A huge thanks to Candace Jarkow (Empire Entertainment) and Randy Reiff for this incredible treat!!!

From Yankee Stadium, we were taken to the Apple Store in Soho, where there was a Tribeca-sponsored screening of DGW to a group of high school students who are studying filmmaking. They loved the movie and asked great questions.

Tomorrow is our final screening at Tribeca, and we hear that it may be sold out! Maria Sandor and her family are expectied to attend, so it will be nice to see her and son Owen again (they appear in the film, and Maria and Owen attended our Athens showing at the Morton Theatre). It will also be great to meet the rest of Maria's family: Tom, Ethan, and Aidan.

Before all that, however, there is a possibility (fingers crossed) that ROBERT DENIRO will stop by our hotel to say hello and to meet Darius!

Know about it!