The New York Foundling Receives $100,000 from "The Oogieloves in the Big Balloon Adventure" to Renovate Crisis Nursery for Children

NEW YORK, Aug. 28, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Big Balloon Adventure Movie, LLC, creator of the new interactive, family-friendly movie, "The Oogieloves in the Big Balloon Adventure," has donated $100,000 to The New York Foundling, one of the City's oldest and largest child welfare and family services agencies. The Foundling will use the grant to renovate its Maria Lucadamo Crisis Nursery and Family Center at its headquarters in Manhattan and create an Oogieloves playroom.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120828/NY63999 )

The Foundling's crisis nursery provides a safe haven for families who face a crisis and need a safe place to temporarily care for their children. The nursery takes care of up to 10 children at a time, ages 0-10. The children can remain at the nursery for up to three weeks. The Foundling's after-care services monitor the family for 90 days after the children leave. The goal of the nursery is to reunite the family and successfully keep the family together while offering supportive services and resources to prevent future crisis.

The renovations will transform the crisis nursery into a cottage for children. Improvements will include:

- New sheets and comforters so that children will be able to personalize their beds so that they can identify with a personal space;

- Replacement of a portion of an interior wall with glass, so that the staff has a full line of visibility on the children;

- Installation of Dutch doors, giving staff the perfect balance of childcare management and supervision;

- Custom designed bathrooms with child-friendly toilets and tubs in the appropriate sizes;

- A newly decorated playroom, covered in Oogieloves decor including a wall mural of the Oogieloves characters, creative learning tools, interactive play kitchens and accessible toy bins.

"Spending the night away from home, away from their parents, in a different bed, surrounded by different walls and sounds can be a scary and intimidating situation for young children. This renovation project will make that transition easier by surrounding our kids with a colorful, Oogieloves-inspired atmosphere filled with artwork, soft beds and playful decor. We thank Big Balloon Adventure Movie for its generosity and support," said Bill Baccaglini, CEO of The New York Foundling.

"We created The Oogieloves in the Big Balloon Adventure to serve a very underserved segment of the market as movies are not made for the very youngest of the children and their families.  The main message of this movie is love and love should be accessible to all children, not just those who can afford to buy tickets.  As a result my team has agreed to cancel our wrap party and put the monies earmarked for our party to give to The New York Foundling crisis nursery," said Kenn Viselman, producer of the movie.  "In supporting The New York Foundling, we wanted to serve these children who are in crisis, so they know that there are people who care about them and to help this wonderful organization fulfill their goals."

Big Balloon Adventure LLC presented the $100,000 check to The Foundling at "The Oogieloves in the Big Balloon Adventure" movie premiere. Seventy-five Foundling children enjoyed a reception followed by a star-studded walk down the red carpet and film screening. The Oogieloves in the Big Balloon Adventure is the first of its kind interactive family film experience and stars Toni Braxton, Cloris Leachman, Christopher Lloyd, Chazz Palminteri, Cary Elwes and Jaime Pressley. "The Oogieloves in the Big Balloon Adventure" is produced by Kenn Viselman and directed by Matthew Diamond.

SOURCE The New York Foundling