They say the first year is the hardest. I’m not sure hardest is the best word – maybe surreal. I can’t imagine it ever being easy that Chris isn’t with us to celebrate a birthday or to ask for nothing but hoodies on Christmas. If you’ve lost a loved one, if you’re part of that “club” that no one wants to be a part of, I think you understand.
Yes, while this year has been unthinkable and we, as a family, are adjusting to our new normal, it has been extremely cathartic working on this foundation. The kindness and generosity that we have seen firsthand from you has been astounding and the messages of encouragement have made our commitment to growing Unsung Siblings even stronger.
The foundation’s purpose is to support the special needs and veteran’s communities and we are committed to working every day to ensure your trust, loyalty and continued support.
Here are some of the things we have done and what’s to come…
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Unsung Siblings Young Professionals
Oh what a night! At one of NYC’s hottest clubs Avenue owned by Tao. This was an incredible night of food, drinks and dancing all for a great cause. It was such a great night.
We raised close to ten thousand dollars that night!!!
Huge shout out to DJ Nikolas James for donating his time and keeping the dance floor packed all night and to Michael Graziano who if you’ve been to an Unsung Siblings event, Mike is always there, behind the lens, snapping the most incredible pictures and capturing these important moments. He donates his time at every event and we are so thankful!
We are already planning THE SAME EVENT FOR next year!!!
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Evening of Enlightenment
Planning this event, we learned one thing; people LOVE psychics and receiving messages from our loved ones. We had the honor of getting a reading from the amazing Bobbi Allison and that is how this all came to fruition. Bobbi took the reins and got her incredible friends; Kim Russo, Gina Simone, Laura Lynne Jackson and Nancy D’Erasmo to donate their time along with News 12 Carol Silva as the MC for the evening.
We also had a separate room for private readings from psychics, mediums and tarot card readers.
The night was such a success and we couldn’t have asked for a better turnout. People are already asking about next year and we will make sure it’s even better. We raised close to ten thousand dollars for the evening.
We also had the pleasure of a very special guests. Paws of War founders Robert Misseri and Dori Scofield along with former Army Sergeant Dawn and her service dog Peaches. Peaches is the service dog that Unsung Siblings sponsored. It was not easy for Dawn to attend. She still struggles with large crowds but she pushed through. She said that she had to attend because “Peaches saved her life and she had to show her gratitude”. This is a woman that served our country and fought for our daily freedoms and she is thanking us. Please know that your support made this happen and will continue to help others like Dawn!
I am getting a vision….of a 2
nd
Evening of Enlightenment that will be even bigger and better.
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Special Shout Outs
There is so much behind the scenes work that has to be done for events like these to work and run smoothly. Since day one, Rosemarie Lanzetta has supported not only our family but this foundation. This is a woman who works full time, has 4 kids and if you know her keeps a very busy social calendar yet she is the person behind every event that is tirelessly keeping us organized and afloat. Thank you for all you have done and continue to do. Your mother is truly so proud of you and I look forward to running future events with you by my side.
While Roe and I are good we are not that good. It truly takes a village and these women stepped up and made the Evening of Enlightenment a success. Multiple meetings, wrapping of raffles and following that run of show. It couldn’t have been done without you. We raised a lot of money that night because of your hard work. Thank you so much – you ladies rock.
Christina Migliorelli, Marisa Moravec, Sandy Cialone, Larissa Martincic, Debra Miraglia, Danielle Mora and Gabrielle
(some not pictured).
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Glenn Fiocca
, a lifelong friend of Chris and the Ryan family has truly stepped up for our 1
st
Unsung Siblings Golf Outing. He not only scouted the location, Harbor Links, he also got sponsors and helped put this event together. He has been so supportive throughout it all and we are so thankful. Here is to a great outing…. FOUR!
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Chris Cassandro
, another lifelong friend of Chris and the family went over and above for this event and has been such an amazing source of support. Thank you for all of your hard work.
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Updates
Board of Directors – We would like to introduce you to our board of directors. We carefully chose a group of people that we know are committed and passionate about the Unsung Siblings.
· Daniel Ryan Jr – President
· Kimberly Ryan Levin – Vice President
· Daniel Ryan Sr – Treasurer
· Michael Ryan
· Daniel Thomas Ryan
· Ray Salamone
· John Cassandro
· Craig Hetherington
· Vincent Chiarucci
· Gerard Fiocca
· Steven Cucich
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First Annual Unsung Siblings Golf Outing
We are almost at capacity – only a few foursomes available so if interested please reach out ASAP. If you are not a golfer come have dinner with us. It is going to be such a great night of dinner, raffles and the amazing comedian John Pizzi.
DATE: Tuesday, July 9
th
LOCATION:
Harbor Links Golf Course.
Price: $300 per golfer / $1,300 4some
Includes, breakfast, lunch and dinner + Open bar.
Dinner Only: $100.00
SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES ARE STILL AVAILABLE
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Save the Date
TUNNEL TO TOWER 5K
The Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation honors the sacrifice of firefighter Stephen Siller who died on September 11
th
to save others. They honor our military and first responders who continue to make the supreme sacrifice of life and limb for our country.
DATE: Sunday, September 29
th
LOCATION: Starts in Red Hook Brooklyn ends at 9/11 Memorial.
TIME: 9:30am – 2:00pm
UNSUNG SIBLINGS TEAM INFO TO BE ANNOUNCED.
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Save the Date
NYC Marathon
Our very own board member and family friend, Raymond Salamone, will be running for the 3
rd
time in the NYC marathon. Ray has been with the NYPD for 25 years. This year he will be running in honor of his oldest and dearest friend, Chris and we are so grateful. He wants a portion of the money raised to go to sponsor another dog from Paws of War.
The Unsung Siblings will be there cheering him on. We will be sending out information and link shortly.
DATE: Sunday, November 3
rd
PICTURES OF RAY AND CHRIS AND RAY AT LAST MARATHON
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Save the Date
2
ND
ANNUAL GALA AND CASINO NIGHT
DATE: Monday, November 11
th
LOCATION: Crest Hollow Country Club
TIME: TBA
Bigger and Better than our first. An unforgettable night to gamble, win some raffles and dance the night away.
EVENT LINK TO BE POSTED SOON.
We decided, as a board, that we will be honoring someone each year at our annual Casino Night and Gala. The guidelines were simple. Someone that inspires and exemplifies the true spirit of giving back. The decision was easy and unanimous. Our dear friend, Caterina (Cathy) Cassandro. There is not a day that goes by that she is not missed and we know if she were here today she would be taking charge and heading up decorating the raffles baskets.
Caterina (Cathy) Cassandro was born in Alife, Italy and moved to the United States at the age of 9. Cathy grew up in Whitestone, NY with her husband John and their three children, John Jr., Christopher and Rosemarie. Cathy was a selfless individual who spent a lot of days donating her time for multiple causes. She was a member of the Maria Montessori Women's Society, she worked tirelessly for The Working Organization for Retarded Children (WORC) and raised money to support St. Mary's Children's Hospital. Cathy enjoyed fundraising and using her creative mind to organize amazing events that raised hundreds of thousands of dollars over the years.
Lastly, something that the family only found out after her passing was that Cathy, secretly, paid for a few people’s educations. How incredibly fitting. She did not want any credit or anyone knowing, in fact, she insisted on being anonymous. What a special individual. Knowing Cathy, we know there are probably countless others who she helped while not taking credit. That is why we are so thrilled that we will be honoring such a special individual that has truly touched so many lives. While we miss her dearly, we know our friend is proud of the work we are doing and will continue in her honor.
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How can you help?
We are so excited for all the upcoming events and hope you can join us. Your support is how we will continue to grow and help our Veterans and Special Needs families.
Some people have asked how, other than attending, they can help. Easy. We are always looking for volunteers for our events and new ways to spread the word; donating raffles
or volunteering at one of our events.
Also, if you work for a company or know of a company that offers
Corporate Sponsorships,
pass along our information. We have attached our request for corporate sponsorship form to make it super easy. Every bit helps!!!
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Till Next Time…
We hope this newsletter is something you read and makes you smile.
While i
t’s informative it’s
also
our way of showing you how much your support is needed and appreciated. We are really helping people and that is everything this foundation stands for.
Something worth sharing. At the psychic event, we felt that we received a message from our Chris. Whether you believe or not, his parting words were
“continue to make my name matter”.
To us, there is no better validation for what we are doing and it is a promise we proudly will oblige.
Thank you for your continued support!
Love to all.
Kimberly Ryan Levin
Vice President, Unsung Siblings Foundation
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