News

Even with the 2015-16 social season coming to a close, board, committee and staff members at local nonprofits remain busy planning events for 2016-17, including the George Snow Scholarship Fund.
    Debi Feiler, vice president of program services, announced the date of Boca’s Ballroom Battle — Aug. 22 — and identified the dancers who will undergo rigorous training to perform professional routines at the Boca Raton Resort & Club to raise money for college-bound students. This year’s community dancers are: Donna Biase, Dan Davidowitz, Alex Eremia, Peter Gary, Bonnie Halperin, Stacey Packer, Doug Paton and Samantha Vassallo. The ninth annual benefit is patterned after the popular Dancing With the Stars television program.
    “This is the do-not-miss event of the summer, as eight of our community’s most recognizable personalities take to the dance floor for a good cause — not to mention that coveted mirror-ball fundraising trophy,” President Tim Snow said.
    Tickets start at $185 and include two drinks and hors d’oeuvres stations. Call 347-6799 or visit scholarship.org.
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    The Spirit of Giving Network is in the news after appointing Sue Diener as executive director.
Diener is a veteran in the nonprofit industry, having served as a volunteer for nearly 30 years. She is the former president of Impact 100 Palm Beach County and a past president of the Junior League of Boca Raton.
    “A longtime resident, Sue has a wealth of experience in the nonprofit arena,” Spirit of Giving Network President Ann Rutherford said.
    Diener will be responsible for supporting the agency’s 60 nonprofit member groups, strengthening community partnerships and promoting volunteerism.
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    A $15,000 grant from the Boca Raton Regional Hospital Foundation will pave the way for an interactive health-clinic exhibit at the Boca Raton Children’s Museum.
    The exhibit, titled “Living Healthy Living Well,” will let little ones play doctors, nurses and patients in a make-believe medical setting.
    “By providing high-quality early arts, science and creative education through hands-on exhibits and classes, our children have the opportunity to play, which is the work they need for a lifetime of success,” museum President and CEO Ellyn Okrent said, noting that play enables children to learn about and interact with their world and gain the mental, physical and social skills necessary to succeed in adulthood.
    “We’re pleased to support the Living Healthy Living Well exhibit,” foundation President Mark Larkin said. “It’s a great opportunity for children to learn about their health in a fun and imaginative setting.”
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    Impact 100 Palm Beach County set a record — again — by recruiting 532 members who collectively donated $532,000 to local charities.
    Grants of $100,000 went to Alzheimer’s Community Care, American Association of Caregiving Youth, Camelot Community Care, Delray Students First and YMCA of South Palm Beach County at the fifth annual Grand Awards Ceremony, which celebrated the theme “Power of Women Giving as One!” Flamingo Clay Studio and the Florida Atlantic University Foundation Pine Jog Environmental Education Center each received $16,000.
    The organization, whose members each agree to make a $1,000 contribution and attend one meeting to vote on which organizations will receive funds, scored another coup when it was announced the 2016 Impact 100 Global Conference will take place in Delray Beach. The conference, scheduled for Oct. 23 through 25, is designed to encourage collaboration and the sharing of best practices among Impact 100 groups around the world to allow for continued growth and sustainability.
 
To submit your event, contact Amy Woods at flamywoods@bellsouth.net.