{"id":5,"date":"2009-03-13T16:37:07","date_gmt":"2009-03-13T20:37:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ryanscircleofgiving.com\/blog\/?p=5"},"modified":"2009-03-14T15:44:24","modified_gmt":"2009-03-14T19:44:24","slug":"beginners-blogmarch-12-2009","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.ryanscircleofgiving.com\/blog\/?p=5","title":{"rendered":"Our First Blog…March 13, 2009"},"content":{"rendered":"
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This blog is where we will\u00a0<\/strong> keep you posted<\/strong> on events and news regarding Ryan\u2019s Circle of Giving (RCG), and we hope you will come back\u00a0to it with some regularity. \u00a0We also hope that you will\u00a0share your thoughts about what you see on the website or on this blog;\u00a0and in\u00a0particular,\u00a0we\u00a0would love to read anything you might want to share about Ryan. \u00a0Just click on the\u00a0blue comment link above.\u00a0 Your comments are welcome and greatly appreciated.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

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RCG would not have been possible without the\u00a0assistance and friendship of Cynthia Clegg<\/strong>, CEO of the Middlesex County Community Foundation.\u00a0 Cynthia\u2019s unwavering support of our efforts, and her guidance through the setting up of the RCG fund, have truly enabled us to reach this day.\u00a0 We are grateful for\u00a0the\u00a0many hours she spent walking us through the process, for her consistent \u2018we can do anything for you\u2019 message,\u00a0 and for\u00a0her wonderful staff at MCCF.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

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This website is the creation\u00a0of Sean Lobdell<\/strong>, CEO of Stainless Communications, and his wonderful team of professionals.\u00a0 For a variety of reasons, this was not an easy project\u2026and it was done with style, grace and much kindness.\u00a0 We know they put in more\u00a0time and effort than\u00a0they bargained for, and\u00a0their patience in dealing with an emotional and totally unobjective mom is more appreciated than they can imagine!<\/p>\n

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And a huge thank you to Adrienne Simpson<\/strong>, who designed our wonderful RCG logo.\u00a0 Adrienne grew up next door to our\u00a0dear\u00a0friends, the Balayans,\u00a0 and knew Ryan throughout much of his life.\u00a0 We’re glad to be able to showcase her work.<\/p>\n

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OUR FIRST BITS OF RCG NEWS TO SHARE:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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First recipient of Kingswood-Oxford\u2019s Ryan Gordon Endowment Fund named!<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n

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January 22nd, 2009<\/strong>:\u00a0\u00a0The Hartford Courant ran an article titled, \u201cK-O Student Receives Grant To Go To Paraguay\u201d.\u00a0 It reports that\u00a0K-O junior Melody Rosas-Grande (whose parents are Peruvian)\u00a0was awarded this year\u2019s Ryan Gordon\u00a0Endowment Fund, a grant\u00a0that will cover expenses for her participation in the school\u2019s Team Tobati trip in March.\u00a0\u00a0Melody was honored at the school\u2019s Ryan Gordon Team Tobati Hockey Night Fundraiser on January 9th.<\/p>\n

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Spanish teacher and founder<\/strong> of Team Tobati, Ron Garcia, said that Melody was chosen for several reasons, including her outgoing, generous and kind personality, her Spanish skills and her South American heritage.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Melody expressed her gratitude<\/strong> in receiving the award, and said,\u201d\u2026Without this grant, I knew I would not be going to Tobati.\u00a0 I want to go because it will be the closest I will be to Peru.\u00a0 I have the opportunity to see where my parents came from and all that they went through to get my brother and me to the place we are today.\u00a0 Now I can go down there and help their society improve so that hopefully one day, they can stand in my place.<\/p>\n

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In a letter to us,\u00a0Melody wrote<\/strong>, \u201cThere are no words to express my gratitude.\u00a0 <\/span>This is a wonderful community where everyone we meet is so genuine, honest, caring for one another, as I know Ryan had been.\u00a0 <\/span>That is something one definitely does not see everyday.\u00a0 <\/span>My life, and the life of my family, has been changed thanks to people like you.\u00a0 <\/span>Thank you from the bottom of my heart, and I look forward to meeting you very soon.\u00a0 <\/span>I am proud to be the recipient of the Ryan Gordon award for Tobat\u00ed. I understand that it was his idea to give back to those places that helped him. \u00a0It is an honor for me to give back in his\u201d<\/p>\n

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Like Ron Garcia said<\/strong>, \u201cShe is just perfect for what Team Tobati is trying to do\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

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First recipients of\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>Trinity<\/strong><\/em> <\/strong><\/em>College<\/strong><\/em>\u2019s\u00a0Ryan Gordon\/Hartford Wolf Pack Scholars Fund Honored!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

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April 1st, 2009<\/strong>:\u00a0 <\/strong>During this Hartford Wolf Pack\u00a0home game at the Hartford Excel Center, the first 3 recipients of this special scholarship will be honored on the ice.\u00a0 The three Hartford students, in grades 6, 7 & 8, will be presented during one of the game\u2019s intermissions.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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The program at Trinity will enable<\/strong> the kids to play hockey year-round, they will be taught by Trinity\u2019s men and women\u2019s hockey teams, and the Wolf Pack will be involved in special training sessions with them. If you\u2019re free on the 1st, come and show your support – both to the wonderful Pack\u2026and these great kids!<\/p>\n

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We are so\u00a0glad that this fund <\/strong>will be able to provide such deserving\u00a0children the opportunity to learn to play a game they love – and a game that brought Ryan such joy.<\/p>\n

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We could not (almost)\u00a0end this first submission<\/strong> without saying a word of thanks to\u00a0Ryan’s grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins.\u00a0 This wonderful, incredible\u00a0family of ours\u00a0never waivered in their amazing, unbelievable support throughout Ryan’s life. \u00a0They showered us with their\u00a0love, which\u00a0fortified us\u00a0through the\u00a0hard times,\u00a0and the good.\u00a0 We will be forever\u00a0 grateful.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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From the time he was 7,<\/strong> Ryan was finding\u00a0ways to give that also\u00a0fulfilled \u00a0his\u00a0desire\u00a0to be on stage (not to mention his love of being\u00a0the center of attention!).\u00a0 From the\u00a0sales of the books he wrote, to the\u00a0Disney movies he produced\u00a0as one-man-stage-shows\u00a0for sold-out crowds in our garage, to the backyard fair, Ryan did philanthropy with a flair.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0He discovered early on that\u00a0the act of\u00a0giving\u00a0could be a\u00a0wonderful balm for soothing the scary times.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0No matter what the venue, his motivation\u00a0remained consistent…to have fun and to give\u00a0 to others.\u00a0 What a lesson for us all.<\/p>\n

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Thank you again for visiting…and we hope you do so often!<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Phyllis & Barry<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u00a0 This blog is where we will\u00a0 keep you posted on events and news regarding Ryan\u2019s Circle of Giving (RCG), and we hope you will come back\u00a0to it with some regularity. \u00a0We also hope that you will\u00a0share your thoughts about what you see on the website or on this blog;\u00a0and in\u00a0particular,\u00a0we\u00a0would love to read anything […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.ryanscircleofgiving.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.ryanscircleofgiving.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.ryanscircleofgiving.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ryanscircleofgiving.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ryanscircleofgiving.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5"}],"version-history":[{"count":93,"href":"http:\/\/www.ryanscircleofgiving.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":81,"href":"http:\/\/www.ryanscircleofgiving.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5\/revisions\/81"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.ryanscircleofgiving.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ryanscircleofgiving.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ryanscircleofgiving.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}