St. Christopher's, Inc.

09/03/2024

05/24/2024

On this Memorial Day weekend, we pause to honor our service men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice for us. Let’s remember, reflect, and honor them.

05/15/2024

Last chance for tickets to watch NFL pros and veterans compete for a great cause!

Don’t miss your opportunity to see Dexter Lawrence and his New York Giants teammates take on two-time Super Bowl champ Brandon Jacobs and his team.

There will be dodgeball, a home run derby, and a softball game.

The event takes place at Clover Stadium in Pomona, New York, this coming Saturday, May 18.

100 percent of the proceeds benefit our mission at St. Christopher’s: to equip young people with special needs with the resources they need to thrive in society.

Have fun and benefit our mission at the same time! Grab your 🎟️ now!

Check out the latest community post from one of your neighbors. (The views expressed in this post are the author’s own.)

05/07/2024

In celebration of International Nurses Week, we want to take a moment to thank the amazing St. Christopher’s nursing team, led by Linda Herska, who selflessly support our organization. Their leadership, kindness, and commitment to patient care make a difference in the lives of the youth we serve. We appreciate you!

04/30/2024

Tickets are still available for the Dexter Lawrence Celebrity Softball Game on Saturday, May 18.

Join us at Clover Stadium in Pomona, New York as we watch Dexter and his current New York Giants teammates take on Brandon Jacobs and his Superbowl 42 and 46 winning teammates.

The matchup benefits St. Christopher’s, so get your tickets today.

Check out the latest community post from one of your neighbors. (The views expressed in this post are the author’s own.)

04/26/2024

Earlier this month we marked the 143rd anniversary of St. Christopher’s. As one of New York’s oldest nonprofit agencies serving children, we are proud of the rich history of hope that St. Christopher’s has brought to so many families over the years.

We celebrate the great work of our founder Etta Angel Wheeler and are grateful for the team we have in place today who help us live out her mission to serve and empower youth with special needs.

04/17/2024

We're excited to share that the Dexter Lawrence Celebrity Softball Game is back for the first time since 2019, and St. Christopher's is the beneficiary of this action-packed event.

Join us Saturday, May 18, at Clover Stadium in Pomona, New York, as Brandon Jacobs and his Superbowl 42 and 46 winning teammates take on Dexter Lawrence and the current New York Giants.

Click here for more information and to purchase tickets. St. Christopher's is grateful to be included!

Check out the latest community post from one of your neighbors. (The views expressed in this post are the author’s own.)

03/04/2024

Every family has a Patriarch or Matriarch—the Head of the Family. And our Matriarch is Etta Angell Wheeler, Founder of St. Christopher’s in 1881—and a history maker who, eight years earlier, became one of the first individuals to bravely step forward and shed light on child abuse in the United States and in doing so, helped spark a nationwide movement for child welfare.

During Women's History Month, we pay tribute to our own history-maker, Etta Wheeler. Learn more about her here: https://mystchristophers.org/about-us/our-founder-her-legacy/

Every family has a Patriarch or Matriarch—the Head of the Family. And our Matriarch is Etta Angell Wheeler, Founder of St. Christopher’s in 1881—and a history maker who, eight years earlier, became one of the first individuals to bravely step forward and shed light on child abuse in the United...

03/01/2024

02/29/2024

Today concludes St. Christopher’s commemoration of Black History Month, during which we have profiled remarkable people and momentous events in African-American history.

We conclude this series with a profile of ALVIN AILEY.

Alvin Ailey remains one of the most important choreographers in the history of modern dance. In 1958, at just 27 years old, he founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Ailey’s vision was of Black bodies unshackled and overflowing with feeling: Confidence…sorrow…joy…pride… beauty…possibility.

Raised by a single mother who struggled to provide, Ailey knew hardship growing up in Jim Crow Texas, but his life was rich with culture and love. His world was filled with blues and gospel, juke joints and church. Ailey’s story is one of sacrifice. Possessed by his ambitions, he dedicated himself to his company.

He endured racism and homophobia; addiction and mental illness; and the burden of being an iconic African American artist. In 1989, he tragically succumbed to the AIDS epidemic. But 35 years later, Ailey’s dream lives on. Where other modern dance companies were built to showcase their founders, Ailey saw his own as bigger than himself. Today, Ailey still comes alive for whole new generations: His faith in the transformative power of dance, his grand embrace, his expression of complete freedom.

Perhaps Ailey’s most beloved work is “Revelations.” Using African-American spirituals, song-sermons, gospel songs and holy blues, Revelations fervently explores the places of deepest grief and holiest joy in the soul. “Seeing Revelations for the first time or the hundredth can be a transcendent experience, with audiences cheering, singing along and dancing in their seats from the opening notes of the plaintive ‘I Been ’Buked’ to the rousing ‘Wade in the Water’ and the triumphant finale, ‘Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham.’

“Ailey said that one of America’s richest treasures was the African-American cultural heritage—'sometimes sorrowful, sometimes jubilant, but always hopeful.’ This enduring classic is a tribute to that tradition, born out of the choreographer’s ‘blood memories’ of his childhood in rural Texas and the Baptist Church. Since its premiere in 1960, more than 25 million people in 71 countries have seen Revelations, making it the most widely-viewed modern dance work in the world.” Following is an excerpt of this modern dance masterpiece.


https://youtu.be/BG1lg9GV9WY?si=PexYwN1OFXqNGPZC

Sources: PBS; Alvin Ailey Dance Company

Alvin Ailey said that one of America’s richest treasures was the cultural heritage of the African-American - ”sometimes sorrowful, sometimes jubilant, but al...

02/28/2024

CELEBRATING BLACK HISTORY MONTH...

The emergence of hundreds of black-owned newspapers and magazines around the country in the late 19th century and early 20th century became a concern for some Southern states. Why? Because, northern-based papers, most notably the Chicago Defender, were encouraging African Americans to leave the Jim Crow South and head north to places like Chicago and New York. And many did, becoming part of what is known as the Great Migration. To combat the migration, some southern towns and business owners banned the sale of black newspapers. But they underestimated the tight links within black networks. In particular, Chicago Defender founder and editor Robert Abbott saw a way around the bans. There was, hidden in plain sight, an underground distribution network connecting the north and the South—railroads—and
PULLMAN PORTERS had become a celebrated fixture on many railroad trains. These distinguished car attendants were exclusively African-American men. Abbott partnered with these men to have them distribute his papers along their routes. The porters hid stacks of the periodical on the train, then tossed them from the back at designated points in the South. Locals then retrieved the papers and distributed them. While some southern jurisdictions attempted to violate the first amendment, banning the black press, the Pullman Porters used their access to keep southern African-Americans informed.

But keeping African-Americans informed was only one part of the Pullman Porters’ legacy, as noted in this AARP video’s liner notes. “They made beds and cleaned toilets. They shined shoes, dusted jackets, cooked meals and washed dishes. Yet the Pullman porters created history in the face of adversity and racial prejudice. They helped form the foundation for the black middle class and became instrumental in the civil rights movement. Following is a profile of two former porters as they travel from their homes in Seattle to Oakland, Calif., where they were honored by Amtrak for their years of service.



https://youtu.be/6yoYSkoCp5M?si=wdq5GIWYxHf4pZM6

Source: VinceDixonPortfolio

They made beds and cleaned toilets. They shined shoes, dusted jackets, cooked meals and washed dishes. Yet the Pullman porters created history in the face of...