One of our friends on the steering committee for the annual Educate Tomorrow fundraiser sent this request for donations for their silent auction. They are looking for art and all sorts of stuff. It is a nice way to get your name out and support a good cause, if you can spare something. Please see below for info.

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DONATION DEADLINE:  MAY 5

Here is some information on the upcoming Educate Tomorrow fundraiser. At Educate Tomorrow we mentor foster youth that have aged out of the system by helping them get into college by applying for special programs and grants. We also help them prepare for school, find affordable housing and get part time jobs. www.educatetomorrow.org.

You can see most of that information on the flyer below. The location is at Coco Plum Woman’s Club, 1375 Sunset Drive
Coral Gables, Florida 33143 http://cocoplumparty.com from 6-9:30pm. The space is beautiful and is being kindly donated as they realize the caliber of attendees we expect to have and want to showcase their beautiful venue.

The last 2 years we’ve had over 300 people attend and even in the bad economy we’re expecting more this year because we’ve teamed up with 3 chambers and the FAWL (Florida Association of Women Lawyers) and hope to bring in guests from those organizations that have not attended in the past. We also plan to honor Elizabeth and Tom Smith for their 25th anniversary of The Wine News Magazine and they expect to bring in many of their supporters as well.

In the past we’ve had light hor d’oeurves, the wine tasting and silent auction but we want to make this a true event this year so we plan to have several food stations including Smith and Wollensky, Orantique on the Mile and Trattoria del Sol who have already agreed to be food sponsors for the event and we’re going to have a live band.

We will supply volunteers to help with anything they need.
I hope you can help, let me know anything else you need. I REALLY appreciate it!!!

Dear Friend of Educate Tomorrow,

We would like to invite you to show your support as a Corporate Sponsor or a Silent Auction item donor for Educate Tomorrow and our youth at the annual Wine Tasting & Silent Auction to be held on Friday, May 8, 2009, from 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. The fundraiser will include live music, excellent wine and fare, and the company of top executives and professionals. Partnering organizations are the Women’s Chamber of Commerce of Miami-Dade County, the Florida Association of Woman Lawyers, the Miami Beach Women’s Business Council, the Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce’s 20/30 Group, and the SoFi Social Club. All benefits will serve youth who have aged out or will age out of foster care, were never adopted, and are alone – youth like Aisha:
Aisha attended a day-long “It’s Your Life” camp session when she was 19 years old. A community college student at the time, Aisha was introduced that day to her Educate Tomorrow mentor, Karen. Karen has helped Aisha through Independent Living Program hurdles and assisted her in transferring from Miami-Dade College to Florida A & M University. Aisha says that the “guidance and devotion I have received from my mentor is like no other. She has been an intricate part of my life.” Karen helped Aisha to secure a prestigious internship in Washington, D.C. with the Congressional Coalition for Adoption. Aisha is one of Educate Tomorrow’s first youth to complete a four-year college degree. Having recently graduated with her Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice and Sociology, she is pursuing a Master’s degree in journalism/mass communication with hopes to transfer to a school in Washington, D.C. in the near future.
Educate Tomorrow, Corp. endeavors to create systematic change by guiding these youth one by one to a life of “Independence Through Education.” A small investment in their future is a huge investment in our future. National statistics reveal that less than 40% of foster youth finish school and that as high as 80% of prison inmates were at one time in the foster care system. In contrast, almost 100% of Educate Tomorrow’s foster youth are enrolled in educational programs. Educate Tomorrow currently serves 200 of the nearly 2,000 foster youth (between the ages of 13 and 21) in Miami-Dade County. With your help, we can serve nearly all of the youth in our community. The cost of mentoring, life skills training, and in-school support groups is approximately $2,000 per child for the first year. However, the cost of prison, welfare systems, or homeless intervention programs can range between $5,000 and $50,000 per year. Your donations or time as a volunteer can make the difference to a youth and create systematic change now and for our future.

Thank you in advance for your support of this important event! Our contact information is listed below.

Sincerely,
Virginia Emmons McNaught
Executive Director, Educate Tomorrow
Phone 305.374.3751 Fax 866.897.1564 www.educatetomorrow.org