Children's Friend Grief Center

Big Dipper History
Big Dipper 2008
Big Dipper 2007
Third Annual Carriage House Concert 2007
The Miles-Lincoln Silent and Live Auction and Dinner Gala 2008

The Big Dipper All You Can Eat Ice Cream Festival History
The Big Dipper All You Can Eat Ice Cream Festival began in 1989 as a family oriented fundraiser for Children’s Friend and was originally planned and organized by some of the agency’s adoptive families. Over the past eighteen years, the festival has hosted thousands of children and families. So, The Big Dipper not only creates a great opportunity for family fun, but the money it raises supports the programs and services of Children’s Friend – over $250,000 so far!

The 2008 Big Dipper All You-Can-Eat Ice Cream Festival will be held on Saturday, July 12th from 11 AM to 6:30 PM at a NEW LOCATION – ELM PARK - LOCATED AT THE INTERSECTION OF ROUTE 9 AND PARK AVENUE IN WORCESTER! (The festival will front on the Russell Street side of the park).

The 2008 Big Dipper All-You-Can-Eat Ice Cream Festival is scheduled for Saturday, July 12th from 11:00 AM to 6:30 PM at the beautiful, family oriented Elm Park! Our usual location, as many of our “regulars” know, has been the Worcester Common, but we’ve just learned that the Common will be under construction. We’re excited to try the Dipper out at Elm Park!

Kids and adults 12 years and older are charged just $5.00 per person – those under 12 are FREE. We think that’s a great deal, for which you get a great deal of ice cream – or - as previously mentioned – ALL YOU CAN EAT.

Besides delicious ice cream from many leading national and local vendors, the Dipper offers Moonwalks, a food tent, face painting, continuous entertainment, clowns, team mascots, and many other fun activities!

So join us on Saturday, July 12th, when Elm Park becomes a giant outdoor ice cream parlor – RAIN OR SHINE! And bring the entire family - the very youngest and oldest members will find something to enjoy.

More on Elm Park: The park is a beautiful, family-friendly park conveniently located at the intersection of Route 9 and Park Avenue, with plenty of parking, a playground, and lots of space for the kids to play and eat ice cream. For directions, or to read more about this lovely gem of a park in Worcester, go to: http://www.ci.worcester.ma.us/dpw/parks_rec/city_parks/elm_park/home.htm

Interesting ice cream fact you might not know: For all of you ice cream fanatics out there, President Reagan proclaimed National Ice Cream Day as the third Sunday in July, so we planned to hold our Dipper around that time of year. We’re not sure why President Reagan decided on that date, but we love him for it!

Sponsors – If you are a business and would like to sponsor the Big Dipper All-You-Can-Eat Ice Cream Festival, we welcome your participation. We welcome ice cream donations, as well. You will be supporting the programs of Children’s Friend which helps the kids of central Massachusetts.

Raffle Prizes – We hold a GIGANTIC raffle with really great prizes during the Dipper. If you would like to donate a raffle item, or become involved in getting items, we’d love to have your help!

Or - Volunteer at The Big Dipper
Before the Dipper, we need volunteers to help organize Elm Park by setting up tables, putting together ice cream booths, hanging signs, etc. We also need people to pick up ice cream from local vendors.

At the Dipper, we need ice cream scoopers, food grillers, people to pick up trash, raffle ticket and balloon salespeople, face painters, Moonwalk operators, a take down crew, and many other tasks.

For more information on volunteering, to sponsor the Big Dipper, or to donate raffle prizes or ice cream, please contact:
Deborah Huegel, Director of Marketing and Events
Phone: 508-753-5425
Email: dhuegel@childrensfriend.org

The 2007 Big Dipper All You-Can-Eat Ice Cream Festival

Thanks to your generous support, the 2007 festival held on July 13th and 14th on the Worcester Common was the biggest in its history and broke all records for attendance. The Common was swarming with happy families and excited kids, all of whom enjoyed the delicious ice cream, face painting, Moonwalks, food tent, Sparkles the Clown and Andi the Clown, free massages, and many other fun activities. With your help, we raised thousands of dollars to help our programs that, in turn, help the people of Central Massachusetts. The Ellsworth Child and Family Counseling Center, the School Age Mothers Program, Adoption and Family Services, and The Carriage House - the only children’s grief center in Central Massachusetts - all benefited from your attendance at the Big Dipper!

At the 2007 Big Dipper, we had eight wonderful ice cream vendors, all of whom donated their delicious ice cream: Cold Stone Creamery of Millbury, Friendly’s, Hood, Price Chopper, Robbie’s Place/Crystal Caves of Auburn, The Broadway, Trombetta’s Farm, Turkey Hill

Our Media Sponsors provided us with great publicity! Thanks to Charter Communications and WCTR-TV3, Worcester Telegram & Gazette, WXLO 104.5 FM.

Our Business Sponsors are the best! - Al’s Rubbish Removal & Container Service, Bay State Savings Bank, Benefit Development Group, Biomedical Research Models, Inc., Bollus Lynch, Bowditch & Dewey, LLP, Commonwealth National Bank, Consigli Construction, Fallon Clinic Foundation, Fletcher, Tilton & Whipple, PC, Fox Tours, Harleysville Worcester Insurance Co., Mirick O’Connell, National Grid, Nypro, Peterson Oil Service, Polar Beverages, Inc., Protector Group, Public Sector Partners, Inc., St. Vincent Hospital, Stowe and Degon , The Wetzel Group/Morgan Stanley, Unum, Waste Management, Woodmeister Master Builders

And special thanks to our generous donor! – Flagship Bank

The Miles-Lincoln Silent and Live Auction and Dinner Gala 2008
Ann E. Carlson, our past Board Chair, was honored at the 2008 Miles-Lincoln Gala and Auction, our biggest fundraiser. The Miles-Lincoln award is named after two of the leaders who founded Children’s Friend in 1849, Mrs. Jonas M. Miles, and Colonel John Waldo Lincoln. The award is given to someone who has demonstrated extraordinary commitment to the welfare of children and families.

lincoln miles

With the support of The Hanover Insurance Group, Children’s Friend was the first organization to use the beautifully renovated Hanover Theater for the Performing Arts for a fundraiser. The number of people who attended was a whopping (and record) 270. The only space in Hanover Theater that could accommodate so many people was on the stage, which turned out to be pretty exciting! The formal evening included hors d’oeuvres, cocktails, dinner, entertainment, and silent and live auctions. A wonderful time was had by all, and all proceeds from the Miles-Lincoln Gala benefit the programs of Children’s Friend.

Thanks to The Hanover Insurance Group for sponsoring the Miles-Lincoln Gala, to the many dedicated committee members, and to the wonderful companies and individuals who donated to our event. We are fortunate to have such strong support in our community.

For more information on sponsoring, donating an auction item, purchasing tickets to the Gala, or volunteering for the Miles-Lincoln Gala, please contact:

Deborah Huegel
Phone: 508-753-5425
Email: dhuegel@childrensfriend.org

The Third Annual Carriage House Concert – Broadway in Worcester

Thanks to everyone who attended our Carriage House Concerts. A good time was had by all, the results were wonderful, and our performers were extraordinary. The concerts raised over $8,000 to support our Grief Center. Thank you to Elisabeth and Michael Gondek, Paulette LaBarre, Tom Lynch, Richard Monroe and Ian Watson, all of whom donated their time and musical gifts to support the only free Grief Center in Central Massachusetts for children and their families.

Special thanks to our sponsors: Stephen M. Desio, M.D., Orthopedic & Sports Medicine, Bowditch & Dewey, LLP, Miles Funeral Directors, M. Steinert & Sons, Worcester, Philip P. Massad Movers, and Newbury Comics, Inc.

We also are grateful to our Annual Sponsors: BayState Savings Bank, Benefit Development Group, Biomedical Research Models, Inc., Peterson Oil Service, Polar Beverages, and Woodmeister Master Builders.

The businesses that supported the Concert with an in-kind donation are: Austin Liquors, Holmes-Shusas Florist, Inc., Polar Beverages, Scano’s Bakery & Restaurant, Shaw’s Supermarket, Trader Joe’s, and Yankee Spirits Package Store.