Darlene Croce Lifeknocks Get Up Once More Scholarship

Sometimes life has a way of coming full circle.  In the late 90’s Cynthia DiClaudio, now Blau and I both worked for The American Music Theater Festival, formerly The Prince Theater before it became The Philadelphia Film Center.  Cynthia and I were not friends, just co-workers.  A couple years after I stopped working for the theater, they called me back to work on a special project.  What I didn’t know was that Cynthia had been on a long hiatus from AMTF for bereavement of her beloved sister Darlene, who had finally succumbed to complications from Lupus, which she battled from a teenager until her passing in her early 30’s. [Click HERE for more on Darlene Croce‘s life and accomplishments]

Cynthia’s grief was such that she was thinking of not returning to work at all, but for some inexplicable reason got wind of the fact that I was coming back and felt strongly that she should advise me about a few things before I signed a contract.  She couldn’t explain why the feeling was so strong, because even as former co-workers, our respective departments rarely had reason to collaborate.  Whatever the reason, it gave Cynthia the final impetus to return to work and soon there after she and I became close friends. 💖🦋

Note: Cynthia did a lot of other emotional and physical work during her time of bereavement, including taking up boxing, the theme behind LifeKnocks.

A short time later Cynthia decided she wanted to honor her sister’s memory in someway – a song Cynthia wrote became a music video, then a documentary and then a 501c3 called LifeKnocks,  as Darlene’s motto for life had been: “WE AS HUMAN BEINGS STEP INTO THE RING OF LIFE, GET KNOCKED DOWN, BUT THROUGH THE RESILIENCE OF THE HUMAN SPIRIT, WE GET UP ONCE MORE. The 501c3 aimed to send children suffering with Lupus a moment to take their minds off their illness, by sending them to summer camp for the arts. Studies have shown that art and music can alleviate some suffering for long periods of time.  Cynthia asked me if I would help her run this program, and I did for a time while I was seeking full-time employment, but I found it to be more than I could handle once returning to work and starting Tinsel & Tine.

Now, I’m proud to say, Cynthia eventually continued on without me and is currently working directly with The Lupus Foundation of America on

The Darlene Croce Lifeknocks Get Up Once More Scholarship

which supports children and teens living with lupus
to attend a summer or extracurricular program or camp in 2022.
While not required, preference will be given to activities and programs
that focus on the creative arts.

See More Info Below :

Use the Arrows > Presentation Mode for Full Size Version of the PDF

HOW TO APPLY FOR THE SCHOLARSHIP

The Scholarship is not an endorsement of any particular activity or program.

Requirements:

The following requirements must be met to be eligible to apply for the Scholarship:

• Applicant has a confirmed diagnosis of lupus (SLE or CLE)
• Applicant is between the ages of 11-19 years old
• Applicant lives within the service area of the Philadelphia Tri-State Chapter

Additional details:

• Scholarships awarded must be used in the year they are awarded.
• Scholarships will cover program fees of up to $450 per award.
• Awards are made annually, and applicants can apply each year but are not guaranteed a scholarship regardless of prior years’ approvals

Please direct further questions about the Scholarship program to 215-517-5070 or info@lupustristate.org