The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Torrington telethon raises thousands for St. Jude
TORRINGTON — A day of music, dance, food and prizes drew a crowd toTorrington High School for the 44th Tim Driscoll St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Telethon, which raised $80,329 this year, the most it’s ever collected for the children’s hospital.
Kristin Raymond, whose late father, Tim Driscoll, founded the telethon 44 years ago, now runs the annual event with her family and many friends.
“I’m so tired but so happy. I’m just filled with joy,” Raymond said of Sunday’s telethon. “It’s the most we’ve ever raised, and it was packed all day, with a huge crowd. Our food and bake sale and our prizes raised more than $14,000 alone.
“I still can’t believe it, honestly,” Raymond said. “It’s almost surreal, that we were able to do that.”
Over the years the telethon has raised tens of thousands of dollars for the hospital, prevailing even during the pandemic with a virtual event that raised about $40,000. Each year, the Driscoll family plans the telethon without a goal, making every penny count.
Raymond thanked her family, particularly her aunt Lisa Bauer, whose husband, Corky Bauer, died last week. The telethon was dedicated to him and Tim Driscoll.
“I’m over the moon that we had a record-breaking year for Corky and my dad,” Raymond said. She also noted the work of Teresa Cannino for the food and bake sale, and Stacey Deloy, Melissa Ferrucci, Marissa DiMauro, Jordan Mooney, Angela Calabrese and Liza Rosa, who oversaw the prize table.
“We made $8,000 on tickets alone for the prize table,” Raymond said.
“My family is always behind me, and Chris McKenna and John Milette who’ve
been with us since the beginning, never say no,” she said.
St. Jude representative Sarah Potter attended the telethon this year for the first time. “She said this was one of the things (St. Jude Hospital founder) Danny Thomas always
wanted to do, to make it a grassroots effort,” Raymond said. “That’s what this was, and it makes all the difference.”
The telethon took place in the cafeteria at Torrington High School. Participating groups included the Center for Dance Arts and Debra’s Dance Workshop, Villari’s Martial Arts, students from Watertown’s Judson and Polk
elementary schools, Laurel City Historical Fencing, Next Generation Dance, John Ambrose Music, groups from VogelWetmore Elementary School, Forbes School and Torringford School; the Torrington High School hip-hop dance and cheer teams; St. John Paul the Great Academy and piano students with Dana Laporta.