Bree Wants to be on Broadway
My name is Bree McDonough. i am a local youth musician in Merrick, NY. I am in my junior year and am getting ready for college. I am a child performer and hope to become a music teacher and professional musician one day. I am a gifted and talented student with an IEP for a Learning Disorder, mixed race, and openly LGBT. I also am a survivor of aggressive bullying and of two category 4 to 5 natural disasters.
You may have seen me on GoFundMe before, when I raised funds for antibullying initiatives in my area in the name of a fellow musician who we lost to bullying related suicide. If you check my website, you will see that every time I perform I use my time in the spotlight to call attention to those in greater need than myself, bringing assistance to charities that address -- antibullying, autism awareness, lgbt issues, pediatric cancer, helping kids in foster care, hurricane and natural disaster relief. I am always there helping other people who struggle so much, to give them hope and to encourage others to donate funds or to help them in their time of need:
https://breemcdonough228.wixsite.com/justcrazybree/news
One of the colleges I hope to attend, NYU Tisch School of the Arts, has accepted me into its precollege summer program for high school students. It is not an easy program to be accepted into and it is an honor to be accepted and have the chance to study directly under Broadway's best. However, I was not issued a scholarship. The committee only took into account my families tax return for 2016. It did not look at my current situation, which is not very good at all.
My mother and I are Hurricane Maria Survivors and my family has had to go back and forth to Puerto Rico to bury our dead (all of whom are veterans and their families), handle legal issues, clean up the family property, and help family members, friends and neighbors who are still in dire crisis. My father had to take a lot of time off from work to care for my disabled brothers while mom has gone back and forth to deal with family issues that only she has the legal ability to handle as she is next of kin. This has caused financial problems to our family. We are really struggling and often depend on donations ourselves. We do not talk or complain about it but keep helping others while trying to also get on our feet too. I am applying for a job to try to help my family make ends meet and to try to save up for college but it is hard to find work in my area. My family is also trying to help but we could use assistance from others. I am glad to take paid work to help pay for my participation in the program and can be reached at [email redacted] if you have a job for me.
Attending the NYU Tisch Summer program would allow me not only to train to do this professionally and allow me to help others even more, but it would also allow me to earn 6 college credits towards an undergraduate dual degree in Liberal Arts and Fine Arts. This could help me reach my goal of becoming a performer and a music teacher, sooner. If you understand the importance of the arts in healing hurts, and thatIIt would cut a lot of costs and college loan debts, and it would allow me to et the training I need to get a job in my field of study, faster. I always use my talent, which is all I have as I am not from a family of means, to assist others and I hope that doing this professionally will give me a chance to helpe even more people. I hope you will consider helping me and my family to pay for the program at NYU Tisch by issuing a donation towards my goal.
Should I exceed my goal, I am giving the overage to Sing For Hope NYC a program that keeps the arts accessible to all by donating pianos etc to schools and community centers that need them.
Any small donation you can reasonably give would be appreciated.
Thank you, and #Just Keep Singing,
Bree
