The Washington Post – Thursday, June 11, 2009
The National Center for Children and Families presents its seventh annual Art and Soul charity auction at the Music Center at Strathmore from 7 to 10 p.m. tomorrow.
Proceeds will support the construction of the Freddie Mac Foundation Youth Activities Center, the cultural arts and recreational facility on the Bethesda campus of the children’s center.
A live auction, hosted by broadcaster JC Hayward of WUSA (Channel 9), will feature works by youths from the Greentree Adolescent Program at the children’s center and by local artists, including Kari Minnick and Ellen Sinel. A silent auction will feature “gifts from the soul” (non-art items) and juried pieces from other regional artists.
Tickets for the event, which is the center’s signature fundraiser, are $150 per person and can be purchased by contacting Heidi Coons at 301-365-4480, Ext. 114.
During the evening, the center’s annual Spirit of Humanitarian Awards
will be presented to:
— Michelle A. Rhee, chancellor of the D.C. public schools — Spirit Award for Humanitarian Leader. The award cites Rhee’s “belief in the importance of social equity for the poorest, most challenged children in our region, and her persistent efforts to refocus the public school system on providing an academic vision for each and every child.”
— Duchy Trachtenberg (D-At Large), Montgomery County Council member — Spirit Award for Humanitarian Advocate. The award notes Trachtenberg’s commitment to the community’s changing needs. “Whether it is her response to the victims of domestic violence with the creation of the Family Justice Center or her support of NCCF’s Community Liaison position to address the growing population of undocumented women and families at the Betty Ann Krahnke Center for New Beginnings, Trachtenberg’s impact is widespread, powerful, and felt by many.”
— Montgomery County Community Foundation — Spirit Award for Humanitarian Philanthropist. The award recognizes the foundation, including its executive director, Sally Rudney, as “a collaboration of philanthropic leaders who truly understand the contemporary, broad-based challenges faced by nonprofit, voluntary organizations.”
— James Ward, FutureBound Independent Living Program — John F. White Alumni Award. Ward spent his adolescent years in multiple foster homes and group facilities. He is being honored for his “ability to overcome obstacles that most would consider too formidable to overcome.”
The National Center for Children and Families is a nonprofit agency that has served vulnerable children, youths and families in the area for nearly a century. Its residential programs help homeless families, victims of domestic violence and abused and neglected adolescents.
Other programs include traditional and treatment foster care, social services for family reunification, parenting education, transitional housing to promote independent living in the community and a national community school model. For information, visit http:/ /www.nccf-cares.org.
