Compiled by Christina Hur
University of California, Irvine, raised more than $1.5 million at its 2006 Medal Awards: A Celebration of Stars. The gala is the university’s largest fund-raising event. The money will fund campus programs such as the Regents’ Scholars and graduate fellowships.
Irvine-based heart valve maker Edwards Lifesciences Corp. donated nearly $1.1 million in grants to 40 charities that primarily focus on heart disease and the communities where Edwards’ employees live and work. The grants are provided by the Edwards Lifesciences Fund, the charitable arm of Edwards.
Philanthropists John and Donna Crean donated $1 million to Chapman University. The money will establish the John and Donna Crean Film and Media Archive and Special Collection in the university’s Marion Knott Studios building. The archive will house film prints, movies and television shows on tape and DVD, as well as movie and TV scripts. John Crean founded Riverside’s Fleetwood Enterprises Inc., a maker of recreational vehicles and pre-fab homes.
Santa Ana-based Think Together, a nonprofit that provides after-school programs for kids, raised nearly $350,000 at its Third Annual Think Together Celebration: Come to Where the Stars Are. The money will go toward the center’s expansion effort into other counties such as Los Angeles and the Inland Empire.
The Discovery Science Center in Santa Ana raised more than $200,000 at its 2006 Quest Discovery Gala. The money will be used for the center’s operations and science education programs. Santa Ana-based Ingram Micro Inc., the largest distributor of technology products, donated nearly $100,000 in computer equipment for the center’s recent exhibit, Dino Quest.
Costa Mesa’s Serving People in Need received $45,000 from the Wells Fargo sponsored Tin Cup Golf Classic. About 126 golfers attended. Serving People in Need helps the homeless support themselves again.
Laguna College of Art & Design raised about $30,000 at its LCAD@45 event, which celebrated the school’s 45th anniversary. The money will go toward the Founders Scholarship Fund, an endowment for merit and need-based scholarships and related programs. The event also honored the founders as well as those who played key roles in the early development of the school.
The University of California, Irvine Extension program, which provides continuing education, received a $22,000 grant from the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. The money will go toward a free financial course as well as two financial certification programs, which are registered with the board.
The Irvine-based Center for Hope and Healing, a provider of affordable mental health counseling to victims of abuse and neglect, received a $2,000 donation from the Weingart Foundation and a $2,000 donation from the Boeing Employees Community Fund. The money from both donations will go toward the center’s therapeutic services.
IndyMac Bank’s Huntington Beach branch raised $3,575 during its two-week Boys & Girls Club Challenge. The money went to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Huntington Valley. It will be used to support the club’s before- and after-school programs.
American First Credit Union raised more than $3,000 in a silent auction. The money was donated to the American Cancer Society’s Relay For Life event in La Habra. More than 100 employees and business partners of the credit union donated items such as baseball tickets and gift baskets for the auction. La Habra-based American First Credit has six branches in OC.
