PRESS RELEASE Date: 12/19/07
TITLE: “KIDS ON PAPER FLIES SANTA’S WHEELCHAIR INTO VALLEY HOSPITALS”
WHO: KIDS ON PAPER (www.kidsonpaper.org)
WHAT: “THE KIDS ON PAPER HOLIDAY CHEER PROJECT”:
KIDS ON PAPER’S wheelchair-bound director Gary Cifra and his assistant director/wife Patty bring gifts of comic books and graphic novels to young hospital patients this December.
WHERE: Valley Presbyterian Hospital and Northridge Hospital, San Fernando Valley
WHEN: December 10th through New Year’s 2008
Director Gary Cifra founded KIDS ON PAPER in 2003 to share his “passion for stories told in one of the oldest media in the world”.* Gary’s diagnosis of MS, which has him confined him to a wheelchair, has proven to be an encouragement rather than a disability, demonstrating that no matter what your circumstance, you can reach beyond your current hardship.
After a successful KIDS ON PAPER HOLIDAY CHEER PROJECT visit at Valley Presbyterian Hospital last Thursday, KIDS ON PAPER’S wheelchair-bound director Gary Cifra was at home planning his next comic book gift-giving visit, but decided to take the day off. The following evening, an ambulance was rushing him to Encino Hospital with a serious infection.
After three days in the hospital, Gary is now home and recovering. He and his wife Patty, KIDS ON PAPER’S assistant director, are planning their next visit to Northridge Hospital this Thursday, December 20th.
“I don’t want to say this is becoming old hat, but I’ve been to the hospital many times – five or six times this century so far, in fact. I can feel myself getting stronger, day by day,
and I’ll be by for our next visit soon. I believe that comics can help transport kids in the hospital on a sequential art adventure into a world of pictures and imagination and out of the world of nurses and doctors and being poked with needles. “Do we have any copies of ‘Little Lulu’?’” Gary asks Patty, referring to one of his favorite classic comic strips by John Stanley.
CONTACT: Phone: (818) 901-1981 Email:
gary@linesonpaper.com Website: www.linesonpaper.org
MISSION STATEMENT
KIDS ON PAPER’s mission is to reintroduce children to a rich, vibrant medium – comics: a hidden literary and artistic treasure trove, as well as a personal means to creative self-expression, and a highly accessible gateway to a full array of successful and rewarding career paths. KIDS ON PAPER is a 501 © (3) non-profit group.
Please visit us to learn more at: www.kidsonpaper.org
*Los Angeles Times 12/15/95