Tuesday's Children Holding Derby Party for Good Cause

Photos courtesy of Tuesday's Children
She was only 10 years old. There’s no way that someone as young as Kristen Dimmling could’ve made sense of what was going on around her on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001.
For Dimmling, it wasn’t just the traumatic images of that day but the news that would come in the hours following the attacks on the World Trade Center. Her uncle William, 47, worked at Marsh & McLennan on the 98th floor of Tower One.
William was one of 295 employees who, along with 63 consultants working in the office, were lost in the attack. He left behind a wife and two boys, ages 6 and 15 at the time. Beyond that, there were other family members, nephews and nieces like Kristen, dealing with the loss.
“I grew up with my cousins and our family is pretty close,” Dimmling said. “My family, we just saw the impact. Especially, being from Long Island, our communities had a lot of people who were impacted by that day.”
Kids came home to devastating news in Garden City, where Kristen’s uncle lived, and the pain wasn’t just confined there. In nearby Manhasset, 42 families were directly impacted. Terry Grace Sears didn’t lose a relative but she felt the pain of so many of her neighbors who did.
“I was born in Manhasset, grew up there, still live there now. It was one of those communities that evening and afternoon, the cars of the victims were still in the lot and stayed there for days afterward because they didn’t come home,” she recalled.
As time went on, Sears learned just how far and deep the losses ran, both within her community and beyond.
“Many children were impacted,” she said. “There were 3,051 children who lost a parent on 9/11. So, in the community of Manhasset, where I have four children, there were one or two kids in every one of their classes that had lost a parent.”
Sears was compelled to act and began volunteering for an organization called Tuesday’s Children. It was created initially to help kids who had experienced the loss of a relative, often a parent, on that devastating Tuesday in September of 2001.
The organization initially provided children with basic response and recovery resources; support, counseling and eventually mentoring. By March of the following year, Sears was volunteering full-time and would became the executive director of the charity (a title she still holds today.)
“The main thrust of the organization was, and still is to this day, to fill in for that parent lost,” she said.
Tuesday’s Children aimed to restore some sense of normalcy for those children and newly widowed parents, getting them out to events and reconnecting them with the world in a positive way. For teenagers and young adults who sought help, Tuesday’s Children could offer college and career guidance, internship leads, job contacts and additional leadership programs.
GUESTS SUPPORTING TUESDAY'S CHILDREN AT AN EVENT

“Our initial promise was to be there for every kid who lost a loved one until they were 18,” said Jessica Breslin, development manager for Tuesday’s Children. “There were over 100 kids who were not even born yet and who never met their fathers. We’re continuing our efforts for those children, while also now expanding our mission and lessons learned to families of the fallen and first responders and other communities that might need us in the future.”
As time went on, there proved an enduring need for the resources and programs, both at home and in communities well beyond the Atlantic. Today, the organization, through a program called “Project Common Bond” has expanded support to families of victims of acts of terrorism and war in 21 nations.
The continued growth of Tuesday’s Children naturally required a sustained level of support from volunteers and donors. In an effort to boost fundraising, Tuesday’s Children decided to have some fun three years ago when it threw its first Kentucky Derby party. The event was an instant hit.
“We figured the Kentucky Derby is traditionally an event that attracts 20-somethings, mostly because it encourages people to get dressed up in bow ties and hats, which is always fun. So, we figured offering people an event where there would be an open bar, live band, silent auction, it allowed us to attract people of that age group to go to that event and also to help fundraise for us,” said Kristen Dimmling, who co-chairs the event.
Last year, the Kentucky Derby party help raise $30,000 and the goal this year is to surpass that number. The party is one of three major fundraising events held by Tuesday’s Children each year, and it has become one of the most anticipated.
This year’s Derby party will be held on Saturday, May 7, from 4:00 - 7:00 p.m. at Hudson Terrace Rooftop (621 W. 46th Street, New York, NY 10036).

The entire event is organized by the Junior Board of Tuesday’s Children, a group of 75 young professionals led by Kristen’s brother Matt Dimmling, and Kevin Parks, whose father Bob died on September 11. About 30 percent of the board is comprised of family members of victims, while the remaining volunteers are largely friends and colleagues of those who were directly impacted.
“It has really expanded to a bunch of people in their 20’s just volunteering their time. I think that the community we’ve grown is what I find most attractive about the Junior Board and also what keeps friends of mine coming back to the events and volunteering their time,” Dimmling said.
As part of her role as event co-chair, Dimmling is responsible for finding sponsors and items that can be used for the silent auction. Some of the items up for auction will include tickets to sporting events, golf outings, racing-themed clothing and restaurant gift certificates.
Tuesday’s Children is still seeking additional items for the silent auction, as well as sponsorship for its Kentucky Derby party. Volunteers are also invited to inquire. Meanwhile, tickets for Tuesday’s Children’s Kentucky Derby party cost $80 and can be found here. 
“That one ticket will get you an open bar, live band, photo booth, silent auction and all of those perks,” Dimmling said. “It also gives you an opportunity to go to a cause that’s not only helping people affected by 9/11 but other communities that have been impacted by violence and terrorism worldwide, which we continue to provide help and outreach to.”