Studio Blog

We are excited to announce this month’s Grant winners!

Our Professional Resources grant goes to writer Jeffrey Joyner. Jeffrey’s 10-year-old computer is so run down that he can’t visit many websites, making research and writing exceptionally difficult. What’s more, Jeffrey is the primary caregiver for his disabled brother. He’ll use his new laptop to stay on top of work while taking his brother to doctor and therapy appointments.

Our first Work/Life Balance grant goes to writer Carolyn Scheidies. Carolyn’s husband was recently diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. Needless to say, life has been difficult for both of them. Carolyn and her husband will use the grant to attend a family reunion this summer and visit the family they haven’t seen in 3 years.

The second Work/Life Balance award goes to CE and writer Paula Martinac, who won a free pass to a “Soulful Power” retreat at a lakeside resort near Manhattan. She must redeem the pass by the end of 2011, but is having trouble finding the time and funds to pay for travel. This grant will fund Paula’s travel to the resort.

Our third Work/Life Balance award goes to writer Anna Scanlon, who is moving to Amsterdam for a MA/PhD program in history. She’ll use the grant to buy a bike so she can explore the city and get fresh air between school and writing for DMS.

The final Work/Life Balance award will go to CE William McCahill. As a stay-at-home dad, William is spending a lot of time caring for the newest addition to the family. He’ll use the funds to give his two-year-old son a swim class over the summer.

Also, we’re excited to announce the name of last month’s grant winner, writer Michael Keenan. Michael used last month’s grant to put toward an engagement ring for his girlfriend of 7 years. We promised to keep his name secret until the proposal. Well, good news – she said “yes”! Congratulations, Michael!

Finally, our Short Film grant goes to writer Laura Plummer for her short documentary “According to Us” (working title). This documentary will explore the lives of ten girls from diverse neighborhoods of Boston and elsewhere in New England. The girls come from different backgrounds, race, religion and class. Laura will feature one-on-one interviews with the girls, along with a party for all of the girls to get to know one another. We can’t wait to see the finished film!

Remember, if you didn’t win this time, you can apply three times with the same application. It was a tough decision to select just six applications, so don’t get discouraged.

Please join us in congratulating the winners!