Arts & Entertainment
Fundraiser to be Held for ‘Kyle’s Bedroom Project’
June 14 event is to help family build first-floor room for son with special needs.
By Lisa Lenkiewicz
Kyle Tripputi of Farmington was born with Triplicate 15, a rare chromosome disorder. At age 4, he was diagnosed with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome, a severe form of epilepsy. He has frequent seizures which can last for three days. With some cognitive impairment and behavioral disturbances, Kyle, now 8, requires 24-hour care.
His parents—Kim and Michael—manage his seizures, his therapy for low muscle tone and his medications. They say he is a sweet and happy child. But they have other challenges-- Michael was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma in 2010 and underwent a bone marrow transplant.
The disease and treatment left him physically limited and seven inches shorter in height. Yet Michael still manages to carry Kyle, who now weighs about 90 pounds, up to his bedroom and bathroom on the second floor of their home.
So the family began thinking of converting their one-car garage into a handicapped-accessible bedroom and bathroom for Kyle. However, due to a loss of family income, the cost of the project became prohibitive.
The Tripputis reached out to the Molly Ann Tango Memorial Foundation—created by Todd Tango and Cathy Tango-Dykes in memory of their daughter Molly, who was born prematurely and was brain damaged. Molly lit up a room with her smile and beaming eyes, but sadly, passed away at age 10 in 2003. The goal of the foundation is to provide support to families who are raising children with special needs.
To date, the non-profit, Ridgefield-based Foundation has helped 150 families with children with special needs.The Foundation has provided wheelchairs and medical equipment, adaptive bicycles, subsidies for the purchase of handicapped accessible vans and lift systems. It also provides direct financial support, often when insurance is exhausted.
While the Foundation believed the Tripputi’s renovation project was too large for its organization to fund, the board decided to help the Tripputis organize a fund-raising campaign. The purpose of the campaign is to help raise approximately $75,000 required for renovations, said Debbie Haughney, a vice president of the Foundation, who provided the information about the Tripputis to Patch.
A fundraiser for the Tripputi family, billed as “Kyle’s Bedroom Project,” will be held Friday, June 14, 6:30-10:30 p.m., at The Farmington Club, 162 Town Farm Road, Farmington. There will be dinner, dancing and a silent auction.
“We are so thankful the Molly Ann Tango Foundation has become a part of our lives. This bedroom project would not be possible without their help,” Kyle’s parents said in a statement emailed to Patch. “All the members have busy lives but they seem to find the time to help us and others achieve things out of reach. We appreciate all they have done for us, including bringing together family, friends and an entire community.”
Tickets for “Kyle’s Bedroom Project” on June 14 event are $75 and may be purchased on the website, www.mollytango.org. For more information about the Molly Ann Tango Memorial Foundation, call (203) 403-7070.
