![Party animals halloween costumes](https://loka.nahovitsyn.com/155.jpg)
![front porch front porch](http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_meYITxWA0ZU/TB6bV6sAebI/AAAAAAAAPSI/4HpDuKcNhLY/s1600/IMG_3947aa.jpg)
“Staches to Lashes" is a very special one for which I have been humbled to receive so much support for. As a partner in discovery and care with the NIH, The Inn strives for the day when no family endures the heartbreak of a seriously ill child. Giving back is a part of my DNA and I have supported many philanthropic efforts personally and through my restaurants. Since opening in 1990, nearly 13,500 families from across the world, and many from New England, have considered The Inn their home. The Inn reduces the burden of illness through therapeutic, educational and recreational programming – all at no cost to the families. The Children’s Inn at NIH is a private, nonprofit “Place Like Home” for children and their families participating in pediatric research at the Clinical Center of the world-renowned NIH. I now sit on the board of The Children’s Inn where my family and I have spent over 250+ nights while I underwent treatment at NIH. The first transplant in fifth grade unsuccessful, and the second in 2014, at the age of 24, was luckily successful in curing my disease. Throughout my life I received care at the NIH for this life-threatening illness, and underwent two stem cell transplants.
![front porch front porch](https://kristywicks.com/app/uploads/2019/05/Front-Porch-Summer-Refresh-Kristy-Wicks.7.jpg)
THE WHY:At 6 months old I was diagnosed with a rare immune deficiency called Chronic Granulomatous Disease and began my care at NIH the world’s leading research hospital, located in Bethesda MD. My expectation for this year is to raise over $200,000 for a cause very near and dear to my heart.
![front porch front porch](https://easydecor101.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/front-porch-landscape-designs-fresh-front-porch-landscaping-ideas-book-covers-amazing-small-of-front-porch-landscape-designs.jpg)
Over the first three years of this event, we went from raising $32,000 in the piano bar (2017) to $137,000+ in a 200-person sellout crowd at a bigger venue space (2019). I initiated this event in 2017 during my first summer as the owner of The Front Porch. We are so grateful for their immense generosity. The Cliff House has generously donated their beautiful ballroom for the evening and are our Presenting Partner.
![front porch front porch](https://thearchitecturedesigns.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Porch-design-1.jpg)
This year the event will be held at The Cliff House Resort in Cape Neddick, Maine. We have more exciting developments to share with you all soon! Watch your inbox and social media for updates.I am excited to announce "Staches to Lashes” a benefit for The Children’s Inn at The National Institutes of Health (NIH), to be held on October 20, 2022. We are ever grateful for your continued investment in the movement we call The Porch. Though we are concluding our financial relationship with CST, we look forward to our continued artistic partnership with our two co-productions next season: Queens Girl in the World by Caleen Sinnette Jennings and the Fats Waller musical Ain’t Misbehavin’ (also co-produced with Greater Boston Stage). CST’s anti-racist and inclusion values have helped to create a path forward for The Porch, and we are excited to be creating space for CST to nurture the next startup BIPOC artists and organizations. The staff and leadership of CST has shown what true allyship really means. Central Square Theater has been a true mentor, and helped us evolve into a vibrant arts institution. Today I want to thank you, our beloved Porch family, for helping us get to this place, and thank the team of Central Square Theater for their stewardship over the past 5 years. Our relationship with Central Square Theater helped us get to this point, and we are grateful to them for their constant encouragement as we take this crucial next step to becoming an independent theatre company. It is with great joy that I share with you that The Front Porch Arts Collective is now an official Black owned non-profit business.
![Party animals halloween costumes](https://loka.nahovitsyn.com/155.jpg)