Fashion Show Again Exceeds Previous Year’s Record: $187,500 Raised to Benefit Eva’s Village
Paterson, NJ (PRWEB) June 05, 2017 -- For a second year in a row, Eva’s Village May 23 ‘Behind the Seams’ Fashion Show brought in 17% more than the record-setting amount raised last year. More than 350 guests contributed more than $187,000 to support Eva’s 20 anti-poverty programs. As ‘Behind the Seams’ continues to grow in popularity, so has its fundraising success.
Since 2010, this annual event has raised over $940,000. ‘Behind the Seams’ continues to provide critical support for the food, shelter, supportive recovery services and medical care, job training and education programs at Eva’s Village. “Our 20 anti-poverty programs depend on private donations and fundraising, which make up more than a third of our annual revenue,” noted Eva’s Development Director Heather Thompson.
In his opening remarks, Ralph Lauretta, founder and co-chair of the event remarked, “We at Sal Lauretta for Men are so pleased at how far this event has come. Eva’s is right in our backyard, and we are grateful for the opportunity to support a charity where you can actually see lives being changed in our community on a day to day basis." He observed that, “Where hope begins’ couldn't be a more appropriate tag line for what happens at Eva’s Village in those five city blocks in downtown Paterson.”
Founded and hosted by Sal Lauretta for Men, The DSM Group, and Bottagra Restaurant, the Fashion Show attracts many return guests each year. BAE Systems, in Wayne, sponsored the event for a second year, in addition to sponsoring the Runway-Dining Room this year. The evening’s entertainment included cocktails, food and beverage stations, and silent and live auctions at Bottagra Restaurant in Hawthorne, NJ. Professional dancers, courtesy of Arthur Murray Dance Studio in Ridgewood, demonstrated several dance styles to open the show. The runway show featured spring and summer styles by Sal Lauretta for Men and Boutique 811, plus a sneak peek at fall fashions.
More about Eva’s Village
Founded by Msgr. Vincent E. Puma in 1982, Eva’s Kitchen began by serving 30 meals a day to feed the hungry in Paterson. In response to the related issues of poverty, addiction, mental illness and homelessness, programs and services grew out of the original soup kitchen to address the root causes as well as the effects of homelessness and poverty. Today, Eva’s Village, a non-profit, comprehensive, social service organization, offers 20 programs that address needs in the community for food and shelter, recovery and medical services, and education and job training, with the goal to help those in need move toward stability and independence.
Ellen V. Kuhn, Eva's Village, http://www.evasvillage.org, +1 973-523-6220 Ext: 270, [email protected]
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