Dorado, Puerto Rico – On Saturday July 14, the St. Louis Arches youth circus group and the National Circus School of Puerto Rico, who have been traveling together on tour in Puerto Rico for the past week, received a surprise donation from all-star Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina’s charitable foundation, Foundation 4.
During their show in Dorado – the town where the National Circus School of Puerto Rico is based, and where Molina is from – a representative of Foundation 4 announced that they would be receiving $5,000 to help bring the Puerto Rican circus kids to St. Louis. This would return the favor of the visit to Puerto Rico of the St. Louis Arches facilitated by Circus Harmony, the social circus based in St. Louis and run by Jessica Hentoff.
The kids were thrilled. Fundraising is difficult in Puerto Rico now, as the whole island is still recovering from Hurricane Maria. Though $5,000 will not be nearly enough to bring all 10 Puerto Rican circus students to St. Louis, it gives them the chance to begin planning to come to their new friends’ hometown.
“They looked like they’d won Miss America!” Hentoff said.
Evelyn Guadalupe, spokeswoman for Foundation 4, said that when they were approached by the St. Louis Cardinals Care charitable foundation, Foundation 4 saw this as the perfect chance to help out.
“We were approached by Cardinals Care from St. Louis,” Guadalupe said. “They had mentioned to us that Circus Harmony was coming to Puerto Rico to spread some cheer to low-income communities that were affected by Hurricane Maria. Foundation 4 has been very involved with recovery from Hurricane Maria efforts. We’ve been doing charity events to raise funds to help our island, and to rehabilitate after the hurricane.”
Guadalupe said that this cultural exchange will help the Puerto Rican circus students expand their worldview, just as coming to Puerto Rico helped the St. Louis Arches. “It shows them the different cultures outside of Puerto Rico, and that there are also Puerto Ricans in St. Louis, and that Yadi has a big fan base over there in St. Louis,” Guadalupe said. “Unless you go over there you would not even know, unless you’re a baseball fan.”
Yadier Molina, in a press release about the donation, said that this effort connects his two different homes.
“This initiative not only has a direct connection with the St. Louis Cardinals but it bridges two destinations that I consider my home: Puerto Rico and St. Louis,” Molina said.
The Revolution for Harmony Circus Tour has been traveling around Puerto Rico, bringing the joy and wonder of circus to communities still devastated by the hurricane, for the past week. For the week before that, they trained together and bonded under the National Circus School’s big top in Dorado, so their Dorado show felt like a homecoming.
“For me, here in our tent is where we can do our best,” said Eduar Santiago, a performer with the National Circus School of Puerto Rico. “We’re the most comfortable, because this is where we met.”
“I’m actually excited, because since it’s my hometown, my cousins are trying to come, and my family members and stuff,” said Ilka Miranda, another Puerto Rican performer. “
Though the St. Louis students only spent a week in Dorado, they also enjoyed performing for their new home crowd. “Even though this place isn’t, like, my home, it feels better to be here, because we trained here,” said Sabrina Skaggs of the St. Louis Arches.
For their Dorado show, which had a larger and more boisterous audience than they had seen yet – with a tent so packed that some audience members stood outside the big top and looked in – the Revolution for Harmony Circus was preceded by an opening act, Mago Barry Barry, a local professional magician and father of two of the members of the Puerto Rican circus troupe.
They were also met in the tent by members of Los Guardianes de Dorado, Yadier Molina’s amateur baseball team. After Mago Barry Barry’s act, the circus kids danced around the tent with the mascot of Los Guardianes de Dorado.
A representative of the mayor of Dorado came to the show to recognize the efforts of the two circus groups and presented Circus Harmony with a declaration of appreciation.
“The mayor of the autonomous municipality of Dorado, Puerto Rico, receives as distinguished guests of this municipality the directors and members of the nonprofit organization Circus Harmony, and would like to congratulate them for their commitment to be present here, with their scenic and circus arts, in our international community; and recognizes the talented directors and members of the National Circus School of Puerto Rico, who now work in brotherhood with their companions from Circus Harmony,” Carlos A. Lopez Rivera, mayor of Dorado, said in the statement.
Circus Harmony can facilitate donations to help bring the National Circus School of Puerto Rico to St. Louis. For more information or to contact Circus Harmony, visit http://circusharmony.org.
