Letter of July 1, 2005

Dear Willowbrook Family,

Althea was reminiscing a couple days ago and told us this story:

A mother was thinking of sending her young child to Willowbrook. She had watched a young neighbor returning from camp for several years and decided to ask her what she liked about the place. One afternoon she posed the question: "What is Willowbrook like?" The girl replied: "It's like having a birthday party everyday!"

You no doubt have heard similar stories from your camper or their friends. Willowbrook touches all of us in that playful, child-like part of ourselves.

The last year at Willowbrook has seen enormous support. We erased our debt through our first concerted fund-raising drive, raising $19,000. We also received our first grant, one from the Spirit Mountain Foundation for assistance in long-range planning. Willowbrook is going to be here well into the future!

Of course, Willowbrook like all arts programs and educational institutions cannot function robustly, solely relying on tuition. Our camp fees are only about half as much as many other day camps in the Portland area, and we keep those fees low with a lot of volunteer effort and through contributions from family, friends and alumni. We also urgently need to replace tents, upgrade our facilities, and begin to build a reserve fund. To do this we will need to raise $30,000 this year. We ask you to continue to support our sustainability. As we go out into the community to ask for more grants and other forms of financial assistance, we want to be able to say that 90% of Willowbrook families were willing to contribute to this campaign. We count on you to help us with that $1,000, $500, $100, $50, or whatever you can afford, knowing that your contribution will be put to good use and that our chidlren will continue to experience a birthday everyday at Willowbrook.

Thank you,

The Willowbrook Board

Althea Pratt-Broome
Melissa Stephens
Shawn Brannan
Chritie Galen
Aaron Hilsen
Donna Kleinman
Peter Thacker
Bruce Townsend

p.s. We're looking forward to seeing you at our performances this summer and having a chance to thank you in person p.p.s. Willowbrook is a non-profit organization, so your contributions are tax deductible.