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Teen's Comedy Benefit Raises $1,000 for Family Services of Westchester

WHITE PLAINS – “Text Master” Ryan Drum joked about winning over the girl of his dreams by writing 22 drafts of each text he sent her. Dillon Heverin demonstrated how he aced a Social Studies test by using the knowledge he gleaned from the sayings on Snapple bottle caps. And 13-year-old Simon Cadel, who organized “Laugh til it Helps,” explained how the question “Is it bigger than a break basket?” can be taken to the extreme.  Last weekend Simon, a resident of Edgemont and a student at The Masters School, was able to fulfill his dream of organizing a Comedy Benefit for a charity similar to the event he attended at Madison Square Garden recently, where such legends as Robert Klein and Ray Romano told jokes to raise money for the Garden of Dreams initiative.

            Simon recruited seven of his stand-up comedian friends from Kids ‘N Comedy and chose Family Services of Westchester as the beneficiary for his benefit, which took place at The Digital Arts Experience, a beautiful new facility in White Plains. The event marked Simon’s Bar Mitzvah and raised $1,000 for FSW, a non-sectarian non-profit founded in 1954 with 50 social service programs that run the gamut from Head Start to home health care, from adolescent group homes to teen leadership programs.

Although Simon’s temple, Bet Am Shalom in White Plains, does not require a community service project, Simon wanted to organize a comedy show that would benefit people in need. “Everyone appears to have everything they want here in Westchester, so it’s easy to forget that there are people right here in this county who don’t even have the basic things they need,” says Simon, explaining why he wanted to help FSW make a difference in people’s lives. Rob Kissner, owner of The Digital Arts Experience, donated the space for the fundraiser.

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“We are thrilled that Simon Cadel chose Family Services of Westchester to be the beneficiary of his comedy event,” notes Susan B. Wayne, President and CEO of FSW. “It’s exciting to see a talented young man use his gifts to benefit others.”

 Simon learned about stand-up comedy from his counselor at Long Lake Camp for the Arts last summer. Since then, he has been honing his craft at Kids ‘N Comedy, a program taught at the well-known Gotham Comedy Club in New York City, which boasts such successful graduates as Josh Peck from Nickelodeon’s hit, “Drake & Josh.” Clips of Simon’s performances can be found at

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http://youtu.be/pREzFvH3Wr8

Founded by Jo Ann Grossman and her partner/husband Stu Morden in 1996, Kids ‘N Comedy teaches comedic skills to children and teens from 11 to 18 and gives them numerous opportunities to perform at the Gotham Comedy Club. The program has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and Good Morning America on ABC, as well as in numerous other news outlets.          

Simon was joined at the Comedy Benefit by Master of Ceremonies David Smithyman, an award-winning comedic writer, and six other young performers from Kids ‘N Comedy: Eric Kurn, Ryan Drum, Val Bodurtha, Joe O’Hare, Dillion Heverin and Mark Cohen. Simon Cadel's Bar Mitzvah

Founded in 1954, Family Services of Westchester offers more than 50 mental health and social services program, including local chapters of Big Brothers Big Sisters, Head Start and AmeriCorps. Through its seven family centers located throughout the county, FSW also offers programs for older adults, families affected by HIV/AIDs, children, teens, families and Latino immigrants. Check out the organization’s website, www.fsw.org, to learn more about its mission and programs.     

PRESS CONTACT: Colleen Davis Gardephe, cgardephe@fsw.org, (914) 305-6836

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