October-December 2016 SUFC News--Great Growth, Great Festiva #4, Great Prospects for the Coming Year

Sticking Up For Children has gained great supporters, partners, and prospects since September of this year. We look forward to doing much more in 2017.

We had our fifth Music & Arts Day of 2015 on October 17 in the Ashé Cultural Arts Center's Big Room. Again our master drummer was Damas "Fanfan" Louis of Haiti.

Again young artists and musicians were awarded gifts, thanks to contributions from

the D'Addario Foundation. ProMark drumsticks, and Hudson Music.

In November we advanced with a building that may serve as a most positive base

in Haiti--the Balin / Déjean Digital Arts and Legal Training Center, destined for 99

Rue Canapé-Vert in along a major throughfare and at the geographical center of

Port-au-Prince. The Center will honor Maryse's parents and will host classes to

educate Haitians in capacities to empower their gifts in the present century.

You can read about the Balin / Déjean Digital Arts and Training Center here.

Much of November and all of December up till the 8th, we focused on SUFC's fourth annual Festiva. We were delighted by the superb musicians and providers of food and drink who participated with us this year. Thanks to support from the Jennifer Maxwell Foundation, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation, Frey Vineyards,

Strip-Ease of New Orleans, Café Rose Nicaud, Rick Wilkoff, Karen Buck and Mike Harris, and many more, we were able to engage the Rivers of Dreams band (Roger Lewis, Carl LeBlanc, Mario Abney, Julian Addison, and Julius McKee, working with and without Don Paul) and master drummers Alfred Roberts, Alexey Marti, and Damas "Fanfan" Louis.

We also had a wonderful band for our Dance, Cyril Neville and the Family Groove,

and a bevy of providers for our Dinner, the Little Gem Saloon, 1000 Figs, House of God Catering, Bayou Teche Brewing, and Second Vine Wines.

Performances were beyond even high expectations. The Rivers of Dreams band and the master drummers and guest Evan Christopher, one the world's supreme clarinetists, lifted everyone, and Cyril and his group then had dozens dancing. We'll soon have excerpts up online through the Dressed Like the Lilies channel.

Following the Festiva, we had the opportunity to provide toys to several youth-education partners in Haiti: the F.E.P.E. orphanage and the E.F.E. school and the Youpi Youpi School in Cayes Jacmel. Rosyln Nocentelli Flot of Breakthru Media connected us to Tracey Powell of Toys for Tots in coastal Mississippi.

You'll note the Raccoon coveting the Play Doh and the science-exploration kit. I believe said Raccoon may be a Guardian of the Galaxy. He can then make his getaway in the Lego Creator.

Firefighters in Gulfport, MS and U.S. Marines contributed to gathering the toys.

We can thus see, closing 2016 and looking to 2016, many new combinations emerging with Sticking Up For Children. We offer BIG THANKS to long-time supporters such as the D'Addario Foundation and new supporters such as Bonnie

Raitt.

We remain sure that the students we serve will be part of new and unexpected solutions in the coming year. We'll close this report with one you may remember,

Oliver, one gifted artist among many at the FEPE orphanage, now a mature adolescent, here, farthest right, with three peers in the EFE school.

Oliver and his schoolmates have faithfully attended EFE for four months despite

the school being without lights because its part of Port-au-Prince is without electricity. Imagine what these and other young people can do if provided with

more power and light!