SAVING LIVES WITH YOUR SUPPORT |
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Dear Superheroes Thank you for your partnership and support with Pop Culture Hero Coalition. Together we bring crucial bullying prevention and mental health programs to schools, which we are only able to do with your continued, tax-deductible support. Here is some of what we accomplished together in 2019! One example is Christopher, an 8-year-old boy in Ohio who was suicidal after being violently beaten up, shoved in a locked closet, and verbally bullied at school. We spoke to his mother, who had no success in getting the teacher to stop these horrors. After advice from Co-Founder Carrie Goldman and Coalition psychologist Dr. Janina Scarlet, Chase called and spoke with both the Superintendent’s office and the school principal. They called an urgent meeting with all the children involved, as well as the parents. The bullying has stopped, and Christopher is no longer afraid to go to school. Other members of our team help children like Christopher, through our programs in schools. |
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• Our psychologists and experts completed work on the HEROIC JOURNEY Curriculum — the first program working to end bullying, racism, misogyny, homophobia, and cyberbullying by using stories that children and teens find relatable and accessible. |
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We are working with YMCA of Northern Colorado to bring our Heroic Journey Bullying Prevention & Mental Health programs to schools there — and in the summer of 2020, to YMCA Camp and After-School Programs — a groundbreaking initiative, using stories kids love! |
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Co-Founder and Curriculum Director Carrie Goldman created a Partnership for the Coalition with the Chicago chapter of non-profit Communities in Schools, bringing our bullying prevention and mental health programs to children living in poverty! |
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With your support, and a matching grant from the Roddenberry Foundation, we created H.E.R.O.I.C.: Healing, Empathy, and Resilience for Orthopedically Impaired Children Program for schools, serving two purposes: 1.) Teaching children with serious physical disabilities: resilience, healthy identity, breaking barriers, and other crucial mental health and life skills. 2.) Teaching the peers of children with disabilities: inclusion, ending marginalization, and becoming an ally. H.E.R.O.I.C. Presenter Scott Palm is completely paralyzed with cerebral palsy and uses a communication device to speak. He credits Star Trek with getting him through 13 surgeries, to this point in his life, where he can be a powerful force for good. We are honored to help Scott — and the kids he is helping! |
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SUPERKIDS! • We have raised enough money to create, print, and distribute SuperKids!, the first-ever, interactive mental health comic book, for children who are hospitalized with cancer and other serious illness. Written by psychologist Dr. Janina Scarlet, SuperKids! helps them navigate depression, anxiety, loneliness and fear, and giving these kids mental health tools they need. |
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• We have translated SuperKids! into Spanish, German, and Italian, and we are in the process of getting it to hospitals worldwide, with your support! • We are working on the next versions of SuperKids!, including early plans for one teaching kids healthy identity over social media addiction — stay tuned! |
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TED TALK Chase did a talk at TEDxVienna on founding the Coalition with Carrie Goldman and on the Coalition’s work since 2013. Powerful! Stay tuned for the link to the talk. |
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INTERNATIONAL BULLYING PREVENTION ASSOCIATION Truly brilliant bullying prevention expert and author Carrie Goldman (author, Harper Collins’ award-winning Bullied: What Every Parent, Teacher, and Kid Needs to Know About Ending the Cycle of Fear) founded the Coalition with Chase Masterson in 2013, and she presents regularly at schools and events, including the International Bullying Prevention Association conference this year! |
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CONVENTIONS As the first non-profit to create bullying prevention outreach at conventions, our panel are always powerful! Here’s Coalition Curriculum Co-Creator Dr. Janina Scarlet — a psychologist, neuroscientist, Chernobyl survivor, and former child refugee — on the Coalition panel at NYCC, relaying her experiences using X-Men to heal from PTSD. |
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GOOGLE TALK Coalition Attorney Angelo Alcid set up a Google Talk for Chase on Giving Tuesday — what an honor to speak at Google HQ on that day! Each attendee received a copy of SuperKids!, purchased by Google from the Coalition. We are following up on referrals we made through that event for both SuperKids! and our new Spring programs. Stay tuned for the link to the talk! |
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WORLD-ANTI-BULLYING FORUM Chase spoke at the World Anti-Bullying Forum, furthering the Coalitions’ contacts and preparing to spread our work internationally! |
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SUPERHERO SQUAD! In 2019, our Superhero Squad of celebrity supporters grew! We are proud to have endorsement for the Coalition’s work and our Be Kind Campaign from Brandon Routh (Superman, Legends of Tomorrow), Joe Gatto (Impractical Jokers), Felicia Day (Supernatural, The Librarians, Buffy), author John Scalzi, Darren Hayes (Savage Garden), astronomer Dr. Phil Plait, and other onscreen & online favorites. Get your Be Kind shirts, caps, totes, and mousepads at www.BeKindMerch.org 100% goes to support the Coalition’s work to end bullying in schools! |
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| | Brandon Routh (Superman, Legends of Tomorrow) | | |
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| | Joe Gatto (Impractical Jokers) | | |
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| | Felicia Day (Supernatural, The Librarians, Buffy) | | |
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| | Darren Hayes (Savage Garden) | | |
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| | Astronomer Dr. Phil Plait | | |
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Five Ways You Can Help to Change a Life: - Please consider being a monthly donor: www.popculturehero.org/support-us
- Buy “Be Kind” merch and give it as gifts. Tell the story of what the “Be Kind” movement is all about. www.bekindmerch.org
- If you are a teacher or school administrator consider adopting our Heroic Journey Curriculum for Bullying Prevention and Social Emotional Learning: www.popculturehero.org/school-curriculum
- Please consider a one-time donation to support our work to make kids safe. www.popculturehero.org/support-us
- If you work with kids in the medical field, please consider using and buying the “Superkids!” comic children with serious illness: www.bekindmerch.org/product/comic/
Remember, our admin team — including all of Chase’s daily work -- is all-volunteer! Your donations go to directly to bring our bullying prevention and mental health programs to schools. With all our hearts, and the hearts of the children and parents we serve, thank you for your donations — joining with us to save lives — you are superheroes! All our best to you and the kids we serve together in 2020! Chase Masterson and Carrie Goldman |
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