DALLAS, June 7, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- Employees of the Dallas-based real estate investment firm Basic Capital Management, Inc., one of the Gene Phillips companies, are hosting a morning of crafts, games and activities for the children of women undergoing substance abuse treatment at Nexus Recovery Center, Inc. in east Dallas on Saturday, June 8, 2002, from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Some 40+ employees that make up Basic Capital's "Back to Basics" volunteer effort will be on hand to guide participants in two art projects and a various games of skill suitable for the wide ranging ages of children residing at Nexus. In addition to painting Native American symbols and animals on two Plains-styled canvas tipis, the kids and moms will have patriotic theme portraits taken to commemorate the day and decorate frames for their photos. A wide variety of carnival games and two Moon-walks will be set up to allow the children to play and compete for prizes, including everything from a football toss and basketball dunk, to digging up an "archeological site" where plastic eggs containing dinosaurs will be discovered by tots wielding sand shovels and rakes in the sandbox. A face painting artist will be on hand to add to the fun.
"It is nice to see our employees share their Saturday with the women and children of Nexus, as it is an organization my wife, Roxanne, holds in high regard and has lent her support to for a number of years," said Gene Phillips.
"It's comforting to know that there are still companies out there, despite 9-11, that want to reach out and make a difference in a child's life," said Jackie Schooley, Nexus' director of Children's Services. "This will be a lasting memory for all involved and each one of us will be wearing big smiles!"
"When creating our new volunteer effort this spring, Basic Capital's goal was to reach out and share our good fortune with others in the community," said Phyllis Wolper, who heads the company's volunteer initiative. "For this project, we worked directly with Jackie Schooley to put together a program that would show the women at Nexus that there are people who care and want them to succeed in bettering their lives and the lives of their children."
In planning the play day, Basic Capital's employees found the challenge was two-fold -- to provide activities suitable for kids of all ages and to offer quality activities that would provide a benefit beyond the one day. First, eight different games and four activities were chosen to cover a wide range of skills, including special "non-violent" pinatas that release prizes when kids as young as toddlers grab one of the many ribbons that dangle from the bottom of the Smiley faced orbs. To create a more lasting memory, digital photos will be taken of each family group and printed on the spot for participants, who then can decorate and personalize frames to preserve the photos. In the case of a child who is visiting for the day and not residing with the mother at Nexus, a second photo and frame will be given to the child to take home to help reinforce the family bond. In addition, a gift bag of special items will be presented to each mother.
Basic Capital Management, Inc. is a Dallas-based real estate investment company and is advisor to three publicly traded real estate entities that invest in equity interests in real estate through direct ownership and partnerships. More information is available the companies' Web site at www.bcm-inc.com.
Nexus Recovery Center treats indigent women, women with children, pregnant/postpartum women and infants and adolescent females with both residential and outpatient drug/alcohol programs. Nexus has been serving women for more than 30 years and is the only facility in the area that allows women to bring their children into treatment with them. For more information on Nexus, call the Admissions Department at 214-321-0156.