The Boston Children’s Foundation (BCF), founded by Robert Macy and Dicki Johnson Macy, is committed to ending the trauma that perpetuates a culture of fear, maladaptation and violence by turning youth’s natural energy towards healing activities, social empathy and positive relationships.
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Remembrance & Anticipation |
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Dear community,
In light of the momentous 2020-2021 season we have experienced, we take this time to reflect on treasured memories, as a bright future lingers on the horizon. We continue to embrace those qualities of humanity that connect us all: shared movement, resonant song, and healing rhythmic rituals. We celebrate one another's diverse expressions and uniqueness. We seek to nurture our creative minds, bodies, and souls with shared experiences of joy and connection.
The virtual world of classes, trainings, interventions, and workshops has presented many challenges. Through it all we've adapted and kept dancing, continuing our mission as bearers of light in the dark. We plan to gently return toward live, in-person engagement this fall season, and we look forward to seeing one another again soon.
-Dicki, Rachel, Erin, Robert & the BCF Team
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Congratulations to Hope Perrine on her High School graduation! On Sunday, June 6, the Duncan dance community honored Hope as she transitions to college life. |
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Hope Perrine has lived in Cambridge for her whole life and will be graduating from Cambridge Rindge and Latin School in June. At school she is active in Student Government, and plays Soccer and Ice Hockey. One of her favorite school activities was participating in the Glocal Challenge in which she and a small team developed an online game for 5th graders which taught them about the importance of climate change. This earned the team an educational trip to Panama, and an internship with Cambridge’s Community Development Department. Outside of school, she has enjoyed participating in Duncan Dance since first grade. She loves how it gives her an outlet for both physical activity and creativity. In the fall she will be attending Bates College in Lewiston, Maine and intends to study Political Science and Economics. |
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Remembrance
Reflecting on cherished moments...
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Dancing at Singing Beach: October 2020
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2021 Virtual Duncan Dance Celebration Recital |
Dances of Renewal & Abundance
Click HERE to watch a celebration of our virtual year!
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Voices from Our Community |
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Leila Walker, a dancer in the Guardians of Isadora troupe, has studied the Duncan technique since she was a toddler in a Rainbowdance class, which she attended with her mother Vicki. To this day, mother and daughter continue to share the joys of dancing together.
Please enjoy Leila's reflection of a Duncan dance performance years ago, at the Arnold Arboretum's Lilac Festival, which so eloquently expresses the freedom and splendor of dancing in nature:
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Lilac Sunday
by: Leila Walker
The Arnold Arboretum on Lilac Sunday is a place where I am a woman and a child, a dancer and a daughter, a petal and a tree. It’s sunny but there is a chill in the air. Massachusetts is still thawing, even in early May. A general glow of warmth from the sun quietly hovers above gusts of cool wind that leave behind goose bumps. For years, the Arboretum brought in dancers on Mother’s Day to celebrate the blooming of the lilacs and arrival of spring in New England. That was where I performed the Art and Technique of Isadora Duncan, a program I have been involved in since I was two years old.
The audience was composed of grandparents in lawn chairs, moms with Tupperware picnics, siblings snapping photos, and strangers stopping on their way to the lilacs. Backstage was a tree, and the stage was a meadow. There is something about dancing outside in your bare feet in the middle of a natural sanctuary that fills you with something you can’t find anywhere else. The purity of the scene was breathtaking. As you pass through the gates of the Arboretum, cars and concrete get left behind and are replaced with colors and crisp fresh air. I had been in the wilderness before, but I was always equipped with shoes, jeans, and headphones. The Arboretum was alive with light and air and color. Whenever I hear the words “idealistic” or “pure,” this is what I think of.
As I extended my arms, I lifted my heart forward and let myself fall into a run. The wind rushed through my costume and I reached toward the other dancers, toward the lilacs, toward my family in the audience, and toward the world outside this slice of serenity. I was wearing flowing silk, my hair was loose on my back, and my bare feet balanced on damp grass. The sun dappled my shoulders as I spun, leapt, and swayed to soaring violins. The dance of Isadora Duncan is not about straightening your lines or pointing your toes; it’s about being a part of something greater. I am learning the dance of a woman who dared to defy, and I am making it my own. As I watched the younger girls dance, I can see what I once was; as I watched the older women, I could see what I could be. Generations of Duncan dancers spun, leaped, and swayed together. We were moving as one, but each dancer was giving something unique.
I reached out and she reached up, but we were all still reaching. The natural and expressive movements of Isadora fit in the Arboretum. The dance of the Cherubim belonged in that festival of springtime. I danced my first solo on the greenest grass I have ever seen, in front of both halves of my one, loving family. I danced my first duet in the fresh spring air with a girl with whom I had danced since I was a baby. I danced in a group in front of majestic trees with the dance teacher who watched me grow from a toddler to a young adult.
I am most content at the Arboretum because that is where I realized that I was a part of a history and a tradition as well as on my way to making my own history. I was surrounded by people who have known me my entire life. The older generations of my family watched me, the younger generations of Duncan girls learned from me. My Lebanese grandmother touched my hair and said “Mabrouk!” which means “wonderful.” My American-as-apple-pie grandparents gave me hugs and smiles. I took it all in, filled with a sense of belonging and purpose.
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To Ashlyn, Goni, & Edward:
Thank you for your dedication and fortitude this year. Our BCF community is enriched with your contributions and dedication. We know that the future holds endless wonderful opportunities for you!
Hello from our 3 Graduate Interns, Ashlyn, Goni, & Edward:
As we reflect on our year with Boston Children’s Foundation, we find that all three of us value and cherish the connections we’ve made and the routines we’ve created together as a community. We feel overcome with a wealth of lessons and memories. Although the virtual space presented us with unique challenges, it also granted us with so many unique opportunities. We loved seeing the ways the children and their families created comfort and creativity in their own homes and in the virtual setting. We witnessed and experienced the feeling of togetherness while connecting across the world. We are forever grateful to have worked together with such a valuable and supportive team that has made us feel part of the community and brought us so much joy. As we take our next steps into the professional world, we hold with us the creativity, adaptability, and resiliency we found within the virtual space. From the children, we have learned that our own spaces can be transformed into anything we would like it to be. We carry forth with us the happiness that came out of singing and dancing with the children every day, uplifting our spirits now and always. We have so much love and appreciation for the family we’ve found at Boston Children’s Foundation and thank them for inviting us into their world for this very special year.
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Anticipation
The bright future unfolding...
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Welcome to our future 2021-2022 Interns
Heather and Yuliana join our team as Graduate level Dance/Movement Therapy students from Lesley University. In June, they attended our first live Rainbowdance training since the COVID-19 pandemic. Singing and moving together in person once again was magical.
We look forward to sharing an exciting year together!
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Community Classes
Rainbowdance / The Art & Technique of Isadora Duncan
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We are offering a mini virtual Summer Session in our youth Duncan Dance Program, and a 6-week virtual session for Duncan teens/adults. Please join us!
Click HERE to Register for Duncan Youth Classes
Tuesdays: July 20 & 27
3:30pm - 5-7 year olds
4:30pm - 8-11 year olds
Click HERE to Register for Duncan Teen/Adult Classes
Tuesdays: June 29-August 3
5:30PM - Duncan teen/adult
Individual Therapeutic Sessions are available upon request, and may be conducted virtually or in-person on a case-by-case basis. Please contact Dicki or Rachel to learn more.
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Upcoming Trainings & Workshops |
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Endorsed Practitioner Group Forum |
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We'd love to keep in touch with you, and hear about your Rainbowdance adventures through the Rainbowdance Endorsed Practitioner Group Forum. This forum will be a wonderful way to stay connected, ask questions, and share news whether you are local or outside of the Boston area.
If you are an Endorsed Practitioner and would like access to the Forum please contact Rachel.
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Ways to Support our Mission |
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Make a Difference While You Shop |
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The Amazon Smile link will take you to smile.amazon.com, and Amazon will donate 0.5% of the item's price to BCF, at no cost to you!
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Giving assistant has partnered with BCF to save you money while you shop! You will receive cash back for purchased items; you can choose to keep the money or donate it. Follow the link to learn more and start saving!
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Thank you for supporting our mission of protecting children, women and families as we work to create and sustain violence-free communities. We live in a time when now, more than ever, at-risk populations are in vital need of preventative and compassionate care. Every life-changing dollar you donate helps us keep children and their caretakers safe and thriving, even in the face of trauma and violence.
Make a secure donation through PayPal Giving Fund or by sending a check payable to Boston Children’s Foundation and mail to:
Boston Children’s Foundation
850 Summer Street, Suite 206
South Boston, MA 02127
Boston Children’s Foundation, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) organization. Gifts are tax deductible to the full extent allowable under IRS regulations.
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Dr. Robert Macy, Executive Director
Dicki Johnson Macy, Director
Rachel Assaf, Assistant Director
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Boston Children's Foundation
850 Summer St, #206
South Boston, MA 02127
Phone 617-453-8984
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