Formerly homeless people are now starring in the opera

Breaking Ground and Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen are teaming up for some theater. On Site Operate will present Amahl and the Night Visitors  in early December to draw attention to homelessness in New York City. The production will include a chorus made up of previously homeless people as well as professional musicians and opera singers. The Daily Beast has a deep dive into the production and what it means in the grand scheme of things, but here is where you can get tickets for the performances on Dec. 6, 7, and 8.

“Really, who they were, and whatever their experience of homelessness is, is secondary to them being here and doing this project with us,” Eric Einhorn, the general and artistic director of On Site Opera, told the Daily Beast. “I said last week to them, ‘I want people to see you beyond your housing status. When you say you’re working with a choir made up of homeless and formerly homeless people, people have the impression of what that means and it’s not an Individual one, as the members of the chorus show, it’s one of ‘huddled masses.’ I want this project to correct that misconception.”

The Wild Apricot blog has details on a wide range of free webinars in December. Offerings include insights into what donors want in a charity, developing partnerships, volunteer interview strategies, SEO secrets and how to leverage offline events in an online world. See a list of 40 free webinars here.

New York City has dedicated $8 million to confront the opioid epidemic in the South Bronx. The money will fund increases to health staff that assist first responders, $1 million in advertising about fentanyl dangers, 15,000 naloxone kits and funding for support groups, according to a Nov. 28 press release. Here are a few takeaways:

• The city will have two Health Engagement and Assessment Teams in the Bronx to help first responders from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. seven days per week.
• Rapid Assessments and Response Teams will be placed in Hunts Point, Mott Haven and Highbridge-Morrisania to conduct outreach in these overdose-heavy areas.
• The city Health Department will partner with “Radical Health,” a Latina-run organization that will organize 16 community sessions in Mott Haven.
• The city will partner with 25 Bronx faith leaders to distribute naloxone.

Ford dealers in the Buffalo area are helping nonprofits get some new wheels. The Boys and Girls Club of Elma, Marilla, and Wales and the Hospice Foundation of Western New York both received new vans on Giving Tuesday, NBC-affiliate WGRZ reports.

"Many of our patients are homebound," said Patrick Flynn, the foundation president. "So this is an opportunity to get them out shopping and socializing and get them to clinics and visits that they need, doctor visits, things like that. Anything that we can do to improve the quality of their life is to the good."

Chapin Hall Center for Children is getting a contract renewal from the New York City Administration for Children’s Services. A financial total for the contract was not available by press time but the extension will ensure that Chapin Hall provide analytical consulting services on behalf of ACS through Dec. 13, 2019, according to the City Record. Urban Resource Institute has received a $29,458,409 contract from the Department of Homeless Services. The money will fund Adam’s House, a shelter for homeless families with children.

A partnership between ACS and a Brooklyn dental practice is helping kids smile. More than a dozen kids received free dental services from Bensonhurst Dental last week through the partnership, PIX 11 reports.

“The kids don’t really go to the dentist as often as they should, so the fact that they’re here and able to get their teeth cleaned and whitened is so great,” said Indera Pressley, a youth development counselor at Good Shepherd Services.