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Jester Jingles
A JESTER JINGLE TO. . .
Whittier Elementary School, Royal Oak, MI

"JINGLES FOR THE JESTER" IN MICHIGAN

Students at Whittier Elementary Collect Coins to Bring Cheer to 200 Children in Detroit-Area Hospitals

Kids helping other kids.

That's what Whittier Elementary School's "Jingles for The Jester" holiday fund-raising campaign in Royal Oak, MI, was all about.

It was so successful that the community-wide grass-roots effort raised enough funds to purchase 200 Jester & Pharley Gift Sets during the holidays to give to children in Detroit Children's Hospital, William Beaumont Hospital, Gilda's Club, Michigan Cancer Center, St. Joseph Mercy Hospital in Pontiac and The Haven for abused women and children.

"We want to help children with cancer find their smiles, and that's what David Saltzman's book does," said Amanda Andreski, a third grader at Whittier. "The Jester and his pal Pharley look for laughter everywhere and finally discover that it's hiding inside everyone," added third grader Matt Reaume. "The Jester book and doll will let kids with cancer know we care about them."

"The biggest thing we want kids to get is 'being in need' doesn't always mean you need clothing or food," said Beth Reaume, Matt's mom. "In this case, it meant they need support and to know they're being thought of."

Added Amanda's mother, Patti Andreski, "It's gone beyond our school now. It's just snowballed."

Borders Books & Music in Troy, MI, sold the gift sets at cost to the Whittier PTA, which oversaw the "Jingles for The Jester" campaign. Borders also helped bring David's parents to Royal Oak to talk with students about David's story and support fund-raising efforts with a book-signing at Borders.


"I was thrilled to participate in a community effort that is helping so many children," Ms. Saltzman said. "It was an honor to visit the school and meet so many children with such big, caring hearts. Joe and I will never forget the families we met in Royal Oak. We feel that they're now part of our Jester family."

  A JESTER JINGLE TO. . .
JFK Middle School, Cupertino, CA




AND EVERYBODY GIGGLED - Barbara Saltzman, The Jester's Mom, joins JFK Middle School teacher Heidi Bletchman for the premiere performance of The Jester Has Lost His Jingle in Cupertino.
THE JESTER COMES ALIVE IN CUPERTINO
Hats Off to JFK Middle School Students for Bringing Jester Cheer to Local Hospitals

Students at John F. Kennedy Middle School in Cupertino, CA., performed The Jester Has Lost His Jingle before a sold-out audience in the Silicon Valley. They then brought more than 100 copies of the book and 20 Jester & Pharley Dolls to young patients at the Packard Foundation for Children and the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center in San Jose.

The books and dolls were donated as part of the Jester & Pharley Buddy Program. For every book and doll sold at the JFK Middle School during their presentation of The Jester Has Lost His Jingle, another book and doll was given by The Jester & Pharley Buddy Program to local hospitals they selected - the Packard Foundation for Children and the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center.

"We're so pleased to see this level of caring and commitment by the students at JFK Middle School," noted The Jester's Mom, Barbara Saltzman, who came to Cupertino with David's father, Joe Saltzman, to see the school's presentation of The Jester.

"It was an outstanding performance," Ms. Saltzman said, "with just the kind of enthusiasm and exuberance that David would have loved."

JFK Middle School students also have performed The Jester for a Senior Care Center in Cupertino as well as for students at local elementary schools, including Regnart, MacAuliffe and Lincoln schools.

"We're very excited to see what the students at JFK are doing with The Jester and so pleased at their total involvement in the project, from designing the program and sets to working on costumes, to bringing its message of joy and laughter to other children and members of the community," said David's mom.

Teacher Heidi Bletchman, who discovered The Jester shortly after its publication, directed the play, with special permission from The Jester Co.

"I noticed the book three years ago when I was going through teacher credential courses at National University," Mrs. Bletchman said. "My professor required that I find a book that could be used in a classroom in more than just a language arts format. When I found The Jester, I was so inspired by its message and the story behind the story that I was able to incorporate it into lessons for everything from history to math."

When she decided to involve her middle school students in its performance, Mrs. Bletchman "was a bit worried that my middle school students would think that The Jester was too childish for them, but that wasn't the case. In fact, they liked it so much that I had to choose between 16 students that all wanted to play the part of The Jester."

She has found incredible enthusiasm not only among the students but also among their parents. "They loved the book too! The Jester has given my students and their parents a chance to work together on a project - something that these parents said doesn't happen very often once the children are out of the elementary school environment."

"The Jester and all that we are doing is a perfect way to show the students how they can take an active part in making a difference in their community and enjoy doing it. Theater is not just about receiving applause at the end of the show, it encourages teamwork, creativity and in this case, the desire to make a difference," said Mrs. Bletchman.

A JESTER JINGLE TO. . .
Sigma Nu Fraternity, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC

Fraternity, Jester & Pharley Buddy Program Benefit Hospitals
and Brian Piccolo Cancer Fund

Members of Sigma Nu fraternity at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, NC, successfully enlisted The Jester & Pharley to help them raise funds in support of the Brian Piccolo Cancer Fund.

The fraternity annually holds a Dance-A-Thon to help fund cancer research supported by the fund named for the late Chicago Bears football player. The Wake Forest alumnus' valiant struggle with cancer was immortalized in the memorable 1970 TV movie "Brian's Song" featuring Billy Dee Williams and James Caan.

The Jester's Mom gave the Wake Forest fraternity permission to sell T-shirts sporting a picture of The Jester & Pharley to assist the fund-raising. Sigma Nu had its most successful event ever, raising more than $2,000 to support the Brian Piccolo Fund.

In addition, Sigma Nu sold The Jester Has Lost His Jingle as part of The Jester & Pharley Buddy Program in support of their commitment to the fight against cancer. For every copy of The Jester sold by the fraternity, a corresponding copy was given to the Brenner Children's Wing of the Wake Forest University Medical Center. Fraternity brothers read young patients David Saltzman's story about the laughter hiding inside us and personally presented 47 copies of The Jester to children treated there.

Special Events Chairs Peter Wolf and Jason Asbell called their involvement an "amazing experience," and were especially touched by the enormous support they received from other fraternities and sororities on campus as well as from faculty and the general student body itself.

A JESTER JINGLE TO. . .
Elmhurst School, Portsmouth, RI.

A PENNY A PAGE BRINGS 'JINGLES' TO HASBRO CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL

Elmhurst Students in Portsmouth, RI, Read Up a Storm

Students at Elmhurst School in Portsmouth, RI, love to read and they definitely proved it in the spring of 1999. As part of a week-long Reading Week, they were paid a penny a page for all the reading they completed.

They read an amazing 13,978 pages.

And it was up to them to decide what to do with the pennies they raised. They decided they would like to use the $139.78 they earned to purchase copies of The Jester Has Lost His Jingle and Jester & Pharley Dolls for children with cancer.

As a result of Elmhurst students' efforts and caring, patients at Hasbro Children's Hospital in Providence, RI, received smiles from Jester & Pharley books and dolls.

"The efforts of Elmhurst's students are exceptional," said Barbara Saltzman, The Jester's Mom. "Their commitment to reading and to caring for others is exemplary. I know from my visit to Hasbro Children's Hospital how much the patients at Hasbro will benefit from their dedication."

  A JESTER JINGLE TO. . .
The Jewish Center Nursery School, Princeton, N.J.



JINGLING JESTERS - Members of the Nursery School at the Jewish Center in Princeton, NJ, and their families join in bringing Jester cheer to families served by the Jewish Family and Children's Services of Greater Mercer County, NJ.
Nursery School and Jester & Pharley Buddy Program Bring Smiles to Mercer Children

The staff, family and children of the Nursery School of the Jewish Center in Princeton, NJ, are helping children served by the Jewish Family and Children's Services of Greater Mercer County find the laughter hiding inside them.

Through The Jester & Pharley Buddy Program, more than 90 The Jester Has Lost His Jingle books and Jester & Pharley Dolls brought smiles to children serviced by the Jewish Family and Children's Services over the holidays.

"I am so pleased that we had the opportunity to contribute and look forward to future participation," said Julie Brenner-Newman, who spearheaded the effort.

"We were so pleased to support this wonderful community project, which will make an important difference in the lives of the children benefiting from the Jester & Pharley's message to never give up," said Barbara Saltzman, The Jester's Mom.

A JESTER JINGLE TO. . .
Greystone Elementary School in Birmingham, AL



MORAL MASCOTS — The Jester & Pharley have become yearlong moral mascots for students at Greystone Elementary School in Birmingham, AL, inspiring the students' ongoing charitable activities for their community.

Under the guidance of Brenda Ferrell, "The Jester's Journey" bulletin board has been keeping track of the multi-faceted community projects involving The Jester & Pharley.

In October, students performed The Jester Has Lost His Jingle for the student body, giving a reprise holiday performance at the Birmingham Civic Center to an invited group of youngsters from Camp Smile-A-Mile and other organizations that help local children cope with cancer.

During the holidays, Greystone students sang "Jester Jollies" at Children's Hospital and decorated a tree with Jester & Pharley Bookmarks for children.

In November, they helped create Thanksgiving baskets for Ronald McDonald House and Hope Lodge, which also provides free lodging and support for families being treated at Birmingham Hospital. Greystone students also planted a garden of love for Hope Lodge residents, filled with blooming fall mums.

What was left for Valentine's Day? Plenty, reflecting The Jester Has Lost His Jingle's love of life and laughter. Students delivered more than 1,000 Valentine's flowers entwined with "Jester Jingles" that expressed a variety of caring sentiments.

And activities for the rest of the year included A Relay for Life with colorful money-raising pinwheels.

"David's book ties in to our curriculum focus for both reading and character education as well as providing the springboard to launch our charitable emphasis on the American Cancer Society," says Mrs. Ferrell. "Our vision is to use the book, The Jester Has Lost His Jingle, the Jester & Pharley, and David's life story as symbols for our theme for the year. The quote from the book, 'It's up to us to make a difference. It's up to us to care' will be our theme and The Jester & Pharley will be used as mascots or visual aids for school-wide displays."

Greystone students donated proceeds from the yearlong Jester & Pharley fund-raising events, including sales of The Jester Has Lost His Jingle and Jester & Pharley Dolls, to the American Cancer Society and Hope Lodge in Birmingham.

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The Jester & Pharley Phund is a non-profit 501 (c) (3) corporation. Proceeds benefit ill and special needs children and literacy. Federal EIN #95-4785834