Compiled by Christina Hur
Race for Cure Raises $2.5M
The 15th annual Komen Orange County Race for the Cure, held at Fashion Island in Newport Beach, raised $2.5 million. The event was organized by the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Found-ation, OC affiliate. The amount is the highest amount raised in the affiliate’s history. About 24,300, people participated, the highest for the fund-raiser. A quarter of the money will go toward the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation Award and its research grant program. The rest will be used for breast health, education, screening, diagnosis and treatment services.
Santa Ana-based Taller San Jose, a program that provides educational and job-related resources to young adults, raised more than $480,000 at its 10th Annual Light Up A Life benefit held at Mission San Juan Capistrano. The money will help with the cost of 350 students who will enroll in Taller San Jose’s programs.
J.F. Shea Therapeutic Riding Center in San Juan Capistrano raised more than $355,000 at its 28th Annual Country BBQ. The money will go toward therapeutic riding programs, which serve about 240 people with disabilities each week. More than 1,700 people attended.
The Surf Industry Manufacturers Assoc-iation Humanitarian Fund, the charity arm of the Aliso Viejo surf association, raised $220,000 at its Liquid Nation Ball 3. The money will be distributed to a dozen groups that use surfing to support humanitarian efforts such as malaria prevention, autism, spinal cord injuries, breast cancer awareness, mental illness and underprivileged youth.
The Building Block Foundation Fund, an Orange County fund-raising group created by local commercial real estate professionals, gave a total of $175,000 to three charities: KidWorks, Guardian Scholars and Project Access. KidWorks, which develops and operates community centers in Santa Ana, received $100,000. Guardian Scholars received $50,000. The program provides resources for higher education pursued by former foster kids. Project Access, an affordable-housing resource for poor families and seniors, received $25,000.
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Capistrano Valley raised nearly $65,000 at its Caribbean Nights fund-raiser. More than 300 people attended. The Boys & Girls Clubs of Capistrano Valley provides mentoring programs and services for kids.
Santa Ana-based title insurer First American Corp. donated $25,000 to San Antonio Alternative Housing Corp., a nonprofit that provides housing and support services for poor- to moderate-income families in Texas. The money will go toward work on a 59-unit subdivision in San Antonio.
Orange County United Way received a grant of $15,000 from the Verizon Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Verizon Communications Inc. The money will be used toward the Raising A Reader Project, an early literacy program for childcare providers and poor families who don’t speak English well. The grant will allow the group to expand the project into two more centers by the end of the year.
AIDS Services Foundation Orange County received a $10,000 20-20 Vision grant from the Irvine Health Foundation. The organization provides free services in AIDs/HIV education and prevention as well as case management and assistance programs. The award includes public relations services to help raise awareness of the group. The foundation gave 20 grants to mark its 20th anniversary.
The Junior League of Orange County Inc., a group of women volunteers, paid $1,500 to send two members as volunteers to New Orleans for the Leagues Rebuilding a Better New Orleans project. The project involved repairing and cleaning up areas in New Orleans that were devastated by Hurricane Katrina. The Junior League of OC also gave $10,000 toward the project from funds raised at the 2005 Christmas Company annual fund-raiser.
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