The Affair showrunner Sarah Treem has partnered with Adam Shapiro and his Shappy Pretzels to support local kids in need.
The Partnership for Los Angeles Schools — one of the largest in-district public school transformation organizations, which serves more than 14,000 students — has launched the Families First Campaign, an initiative that provides students with technology, support and resources for online learning amid the COVID-19 crisis. Treem is backing the effort by helping to rally donations from industry peers and friends. In doing so, she teamed with Shapiro (who played Joel on a multiepisode arc of The Affair) so that donors could receive Shappy Pretzels in return for their contributions.
For $100, donors receive three of his Philly specials and other offers include three pretzels plus delivery for $250 and a top prize of a pretzel party for $3,000 and more. More than $38,000 has been raised thus far toward a $150,000 goal.
“An education cannot be a privilege of the rich in a society that considers itself civilized and yet, here we are. These kids aren’t going to get a do-over next year, they’re simply going to fall behind, perhaps insurmountably so,” says Treem. “We’re hoping to bring in these resources and make it possible for all students to stay engaged in home school until everyone has a chance to return in person, safely.”
More information about the initiative can be found here.
A version of this story first appeared in the Jan. 27 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.
