When your trust is all but shattered When your faith is all but killed You can give up, bitter and battered Or you can slowly start to build

-- "Beautiful City" by Stephen Schwartz

Healing and rebuilding. It started shortly after September 11, as the shock began to wear off. So many lives have been affected, needing many kinds of support and New York City is the center of much of this need. There has been a huge outpouring of help from throughout the country, and throughout the world, to assist in the healing and rebuilding of this beautiful city. An additional need has been recognized by a group of theater people and web companies, that of a centralized location for information on how people can help those directly and indirectly affected by the recent tragedy. Inspired by the words of Stephen Schwartz' song "Beautiful City", this group has created a portal to educate and aid in the healing and rebuilding of New York City, Beautiful-City.com.

Though the emphasis is the support of the theatrical community, the site is intended to also serve the national fund drives for aid and also the long-term road to recovery for all victims. The site's Lend a Hand section provides a comprehensive list of opportunities to contribute to major relief efforts, online and offline. The list currently includes complete information on the Twin Towers Fund, the American Red Cross, the September 11th Fund, The Salvation Army, The New York Firefighter 9-11 Disaster Relief Fund, The Citigroup Relief Fund, the New York Police And Fire Widow's And Children's Benefit Fund, Clear Channel Relief Fund, and The ASPCA Animal Disaster Relief Fund.

To promote the rise of theater attendance, many producers and theater companies are offering promotions to make it more affordable for theatergoers to increase their support for the community they love. The Support Theater section of Beautiful-City.com presents the promotions all on one page for easy access. The list, which includes instructions on obtaining special deals on tickets for Broadway and Off-Broadway shows, is already sizable and will be increased as information is provided.

Special events have been generously planned to bring fans of the arts out for special one time events which bring together groups of talented and popular performers. This is a win-win concept: the organizers and performers are able to make a contribution using their special talents, and attendees can enjoy unprecedented presentations while contributing through the purchase of a ticket. The Benefits/Events section lists these special events with information about the causes served and how to purchase tickets.

The most unique section of Beautiful-City.com is the Kids Corner. A resource guide to help children, especially theater-loving children, do their part as Kids for a Beautiful City, this section includes reports on how kids are already making this effort and suggestions for kids, families, schools and other organizations who are anxious to help in the support of those affected by the September 11 tragedy.

All of the above information is easily accessible on Beautiful-City.com and you can even hear Stephen Schwartz playing "Beautiful City" on the piano. The fine people who are donating their time to create and maintain this important site (including Bitflip Interactive Group, Metarhythm, Kathy Canfield, and David Risley) welcome suggestions and additional information and encourage everyone to use the resources they have provided to help heal and rebuild the beautiful city on the island of Manhattan.

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