These children, whose father is an anti-war and global human rights activist, have received RFC funding for a range of services over the years. Several grants were applied to tuition at an independent holistic school integrating arts and environmental education into academic disciplines. The school constructs its curriculum around three major themes: Building Community; Working for Social Justice; and Caring for the Earth. In support of the siblings’ applications for RFC funding, the school wrote that it was, “pleased to learn of the Rosenberg Fund for Children and the support it gives for families that suffer because of their dedication in working for a better world for their children.”

“I hate that my father is in prison, but I’m glad there’s an organization like you who not only understands, but goes even further to help.”— RFC beneficiary

The RFC has held a total of six Gatherings since introducing the program in 1999: we’ve hosted Carry it Forward events for teen and young adult beneficiaries, and Family Gatherings for school-age kids and their activist parents. Some of those who have traveled farthest to attend have been beneficiaries whose families have been involved with various Puerto Rican liberation movements. One such parent, the mother of the boy seen here participating in a drumming workshop at a Gathering, writes about her son’s experience, “[It] was very important for him. [It] made him more proud about what his father believes, and he met new friends…I saw him in tears [as he looked at photos from the event].”

“My daughters have suffered in silence throughout our ordeal. Even so, they have been our unrelenting cheerleaders. Your organization’s generosity will allow them to be kids again.” —Targeted activist parent of RFC beneficiaries

In 2009 this young activist served a two-month prison sentence for demonstrating at the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation, formerly the School of the Americas. Prior to that protest, she had worked assisting immigrants found in the desert trying to cross into the U.S. from Mexico. Special Travel and Carry It Forward awards allowed her to study social movements and community organizing in Central America and continue her education at home. She writes, “I had an amazing time taking advantage of the travel grant, and as my second quarter at [college] begins, I am certainly grateful for the Carry it Forward grant to fund my books.”

“At this time of economic havoc and as an 83 yr old living on a fixed income, I had to make some painful decisions about how I would allocate my donations. The one thing I did not have to think twice about was my commitment to the RFC, to which I had been one of the original donors.” —RFC Supporter