Feb. 14, members of The Bellingham Circus
Guild swung from the trapeze, performed acrobatics and juggled to raise money
for The Caleb Kors Memorial Scholarship Foundation.
At
The Cirque Lab on Iron St., community members gathered for the annual
Valentine’s Day show. This year,
The Bellingham Circus Guild used the ticket proceeds to start a fund in honor
of 10-year-old Caleb Kors.
Kors
died Jan. 10 with brain damage from lack of oxygen caused by an accidental
hanging, according to King County Medical Examiner’s office.
Kors
was known for his acrobatics in The Bellingham Circus Guild’s variety shows and
also for his juggling at The Bellingham Farmers Market, where he was known as
“Flip.”
Western
student Arielle Spayd met Kors through working at a vegetable stand at the
farmers market.
“Caleb
was so full of life and was always running around playing with kids and talking
to adults,” Spayd said. “I quickly
became friends with him because he was so outgoing and got along with everyone
he met.”
Spayd
said the Caleb Kors Memorial Fund is a great way to honor Kors because he was
so passionate about the performing arts and would want other kids to be able to
pursue their interests too.
Leading
the board of the scholarship fund is guild member Strangely Doesburg, who
taught Kors acrobatics tricks and was a mentor to Kors in the circus guild.
“There
is a lot of energy going toward raising money for his [Kors’] family and the
medical bills, but I wanted to put energy toward something for Caleb,” Doesburg
said.
Beginning
this year, kids ages 10 and 11 can write an essay and apply for a $200
scholarship for pursuing the performing art of their choice. The scholarship board will pick a
winner.
The
memorial fund was inspired by Caleb’s love for performing.
“I
really love the idea of kids from the community having the opportunity to
follow their dreams,” Della Moustachella, guild member said. “With arts programs sometimes being
financially unfeasible, this scholarship feels very significant.”
Moustachella
said the Valentine’s Day show was the perfect way to raise money for the Caleb
Kors Memorial Fund.
“In
the past, the Valentine’s Day show was a way to bring people together in a
place where everyone feels welcome and loved, whether you are a couple or not,”
said Moustachella. “We decided to
incorporate the Caleb Kors Memorial Fund because of how much we and the
community loved and still love him.”
The
Valentine’s Day show was a success nearly selling out of both of the
performances that evening. Whether
they knew Kors or not, the audience members were responsive to the goals of
both the show and the scholarship fund, Doesburg said.
Moustachella
said Kors had a sparkle in his eyes that could inspire anyone.
“He was like a fun, brilliant, enlightened, present,
clever, hilarious, beautiful adult in an adorable kids body,” she said.
Moustachella honored him through her own
performance in the Valentine’s Day show as a fan-dancing pig that learns she
can fly. This was an act from a
previous show, The Circus Supernova, which Kors was originally a part of.
“Part
of the message of the act is that anything is possible, which is also the
message Caleb shared with people,” Moustachella said.
A
winner of the scholarship will be chosen by the board, which includes Doesburg,
this spring. The board will review
the applications and choose the child with the best essay explaining his or her
passion for a certain kind performing arts.
Moustachella
hopes the Caleb Kors Memorial Fund will inspire other organizations and
businesses to start similar scholarships and programs for children and
teenagers to pursue their passions.
