The Viscardi Center will bring the Great White Way to Woodbury next Tuesday at its 34th annual Reach for a Star Luncheon.
Chilina Kennedy, the star of Broadway’s “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical” will be the featured performer at the fundraiser for the Albertson-based non-profit’s Henry Viscardi School for people with severe physical disabilities.
The Viscardi School’s second-grade class will join Kennedy for a song on stage at Crest Hollow Country Club, a tradition of the Reach for a Star events, said Kim Brussell, the Viscardi Center’s associate vice president for development and external relations.
“It’s really a special day for them,” Brussell said.
The event will fund the coming year’s after-school programs and wheelchair basketball teams at the state-accredited school for physically disabled youth, Brussell said.
The Viscardi School gets state funding for its academic programs, Brussell said, but has to raise its own money for those after-school programs, which have an important place in the students’ lives.
“When they go home and leave our school, they don’t have the opportunity to participate in a local soccer team or the Girl Scouts or whatever, …” she said. “It’s really important for them from a socialization standpoint.”
Denise Wolfbiss, one of three Reach for a Star event co-chairs, saw Kennedy in “Beautiful” and thought she would be a fitting guest for the luncheon, Brussel said.
She agreed and a Viscardi School student got to do a backstage tour with Kennedy and interview her, she said.
The Reach for a Star Luncheon usually nets between $180,000 and $220,000 for the programs, including recreation nights, adaptive sports, cooking classes, dance therapy, arts, crafts and more, Brussell said.
Proceeds also support transportation for students, nursing staff, the Viscardi School’s three wheelchair basketball teams, its swimming pool and the Viscardi House, where students can go for overnight programs that teach them daily life skills.
Past Reach for a Star guests include “Today Show” host Hoda Kotb, “American Idol” singer Elise Testone and members of the cast of the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical “Kinky Boots.”
The Viscardi School’s graduating high school class will also attend the luncheon, Brussell said.
It’s a meaningful day for the many students who have never before seen live theater or music or gone out to eat at a restaurant, she said.
“There are so many things that children who do not have severe disabilities take for granted a little bit, but there are just so many places that are not accessible,” Brussell said.
The Viscardi School in Albertson was founded in 1962 and has classes in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade.
Its students get advanced Regents diplomas and go on to college and careers, Brussell said.
