I signed up for another Cameo video, this time from Maria Bamford!! A portion of the amount paid goes to Downtown Women's Center. I had to write a blurb to give her some idea of what to say but I was pretty clueless. I didn't know what to ask so this is what I said:
Oh geez, pretty much everything you say is hilarious or inspiring! Um, how about a book recommendation? Or who was your first celebrity crush? I dunno, whatever you want, angel pants! xo
Then I waited a few days and just when it had completely slipped my mind, a text came through alerting me that the video is complete. Check out this little snippet:
The Downtown Women’s Center (DWC) is the only organization in Los Angeles focused exclusively on serving and empowering women experiencing homelessness and formerly homeless women.
DWC is built on a friendship that grew between an outreach worker named Jill Halverson and Rosa, a woman experiencing homelessness at the time. This friendship inspired Jill to open DWC and establish a community through which the lives of women like Rosa could be restored.
In the 40 years since Jill’s extraordinary act of compassion, we’ve reached thousands of women and transformed countless lives. Today, DWC manages 119 units of permanent housing across greater Los Angeles, and has grown to serve more than 5,400 women annually. We provide a wide array of resources to decrease barriers and end homelessness for good for all women, including female veterans and their families, women with severe physical and mental health concerns, and survivors of domestic violence.
Our Housing First and trauma-informed service model includes:
• Access to basic needs and resources through our Day Center, where women can receive three daily meals and access to showers, restrooms, mail, laundry, and telephones.
• On-site housing and supportive services, with our 119 units of permanent housing across two residences making us one of the largest housing providers for women in the country.
• Community-based housing services, provided in partnership with the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services, the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA), the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, and various private foundations and corporations.
• Health and wellness services, including individual and group counseling, medical care, mental health services, preventive screenings, Trauma Recovery Center services, and enrichment activities.
• Job readiness and employment training, as well as job placement services and transitional jobs at MADE by DWC, in partnership with LA:RISE.
• Advocacy training, to empower women to become successful advocates for themselves and others by participating in press interviews, public policy meetings, lobby visits with legislators, fundraising events, press conferences, and more.
• Public education and volunteering, with a volunteer program that engages over 5,000 individuals annually.
• Research and evaluation, to continue to push the envelope on creative solutions to ending homelessness by providing real-time data on needs and impacts (see the DWC 2019 Los Angeles City Women’s Needs Assessment here).
Please join me in the Low Budget Philanthropy movement and help out your community and beyond in the simplest way - donating any amount to whatever charity or organisation that you care about!
***BONUS***
Clearly I had to immediately send a thank you note:
Maria!
I just received my fantastic Cameo video and I wanted to say thank you! (I'm the weirdo who asked you about your first celeb crush.) The books you recommended (Red Comet and Hurry Down Sunshine) have already been added to my Audible and I'm really looking forward to starting the Sylvia Plath bio. I loved that you intuited that I might be creative (not for a living (yet) but I'm a writer - if I ever do a book about a magical, loving, goofy pug I give you my word she shall be named Maria in your honor) and that you guessed about my possibly having mental health issues (depression), so those two books will be right up my alley.
Your video has me on cloud nine and I genuinely appreciate the care you put in to it. Also, more importantly, keep doing what you do. Because of your unique sense of humor, your kindness and class, you bring immense joy, laughter, and much needed ease and relief to so many people. I look forward to seeing you, be it in person at a live show or if you do another RushTix performance. Wishing you ridiculous, monster-sized amounts of health and happiness, as well as rich beyond dreams of avarice.
Much love to you and yours,
Lisa Star
Then my review on Cameo:
This Cameo was the best decision I've made in six months. Maybe even seven. Ms. Bamford is a glowing ray of sunshine in an often cloud-filled sky of doom.
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