Communities in Schools of Miami (CIS of Miami) hosted its 28th annual fundraiser, presented by Publix Super Markets, on Saturday, April 8, 2017 at the Intercontinental at Doral Miami. The fundraiser supports the educational programs and services that help over 20,000 South Florida students each year succeed in and out of school.
“Together we can create a society where all children discover their own greatness and build on their strengths, optimizing their own unique brand of excellence to become productive, fulfilled members of our community,” explained Elyssa Linares, President & CEO of Communities in Schools of Miami.
The theme of the 2017 charity event was “Bow Ties & BBQ,” a family-friendly function to commemorate the organization’s dedication to empowering students to stay in school through mentoring, tutoring, skill development, community resources and more.
Guests enjoyed a delicious barbecue dinner, silent auctions, craft sales, and activities for both children and adults including a “make your own bow ties” station, table tennis, sand art and a photo booth. Supporters wore an assortment of bow ties, which they were encouraged to donate post event for CIS students to wear for internships and future interviews.
Attendees were treated to various live music and dance performances by Guitars Over Guns (GoGo) alumni students, the Haitian Youth of Tomorrow dance group, GoGo Dancers, BaBs Girl Club Country Line Dancers, Homestead Senior High Choir, and the North Miami Middle School Jazz Band. CIS of Miami students, including Lil’ Marion Ragin, Matthew Novoa and Andony Sinclait, gave testimonials describing how the organization has changed and improved their lives in and out of school.
Subaru of America, on behalf of Lehman Subaru, presented a $12,676 check to the organization. Proceeds directly benefit CIS of Miami to fund dropout prevention programs including tutoring, mentoring and financial literacy to children in grades K-12.
The event’s sponsors included: Publix Super Markets Charities; Greenberg Traurig; Florida Power & Light; Richard & Judith Jacobs; City National Bank; JPMorgan Chase & Co.; HEICO; Marcum LLP; Olympus; Kaufman, Rossin &Co.; Lehman Auto World; Doral Hyundai and Doral Kia; Popular Community Bank; Alberni, Caballero & Fierman, LLP: CI Management; and Shutter Box Photo Entertainment.
About Communities In Schools of Miami
Communities In Schools of Miami surrounds students with a community of support, empowering them to stay in school. Through a school-based coordinator, CIS connects students and their families to needed community resources, and provides comprehensive wrap-around services including mentoring, tutoring, life skills development, case management, counseling, job readiness and more. CIS of Miami serves more than 20,000 students each year and is an affiliate of the nation’s leading dropout prevention organization, whose model has been proven to both increase on-time graduation rates and reduce dropout rates. For more information, visit their site.
