Education Foundation Holds Annual Fundraiser At Wee Play

The Clarkstown Education Foundation held its annual Family Fun Night Out event Friday night at Wee Play in Nanuet.

The foundation is a non-profit group that raises money and gives it to the students in the Clarkstown Central School District in the form of educational enhancements. They hold a number of fundraisers throughout the year, including a chili festival and the family night at Wee Play.

“It was a good idea to have it here,” said Seema Kuldhe, of Nanuet, who was there with her daughter. “It’s a place that’s good for [my daughter] and for older kids.”

Kuldhe added she hadn’t taken her daughter there before and was impressed with all the center had for the kids to play with.

Kuldhe’s daughter, Brachi, a one-year-old, said her favorite part was playing in the sand. Brachi also enjoyed playing with the tiny toy shopping carts, which were definitely some of the most popular items during the fundraiser. There were multiple play stations at Wee Play with plastic fruit, groceries and other food items that many kids spent time playing with. Some kids even put them in shopping carts and brought them to a play checkout area, where other kids used toy registers to check them out.

Other magnets for the kids were the bouncy house, indoor playground and the cars kids could drive around. 

Patrice Casciola, three-years-old, of New City, said her favorite things were the bouncy house and the roller coaster, where kids could sit on a car, push themselves slightly and then roll down the wavy track. Her twin sister Emily, had fun driving around in one of the cars.

Their mother, Amy Casciola, said she read about the event on the school district’s website. She teaches seventh grade English at Felix Festa Middle School, and said she thought it’d be nice to come out and support the foundation as well as let her daughters play around for a bit.

There was also pizza and drinks for the guests, all of which was donated to the event. There was also a raffle for a Nintendo 3Ds, which was donated as well.

“Every dollar we raise we give back,” said Michael Aglialoro, president of the foundation. “The has no operating costs. Everything is either donated or paid for outside of the money raised. I think that’s what really separates the Foundation, and makes people really appreciate what we do.”

Aglialoro said he thinks Friday’s event went better than last year’s Family Night Out. Over the course of the organization’s five years of existence, they’ve seen the number of participants in their events rise.

One person at Friday’s event who is especially appreciative of the work the Foundation does was Clarkstown Central School District Superintendent Dr. Margaret Keller-Cogan.

“It’s a great social opportunity for children and their parents to come out and see each other,” she said. “It’s also great for the schools. At a time when resources are being cut, it’s great to see a group working hard to raise funds for the schools. We’re really thankful for the support.”