Boca Raton gala one week away

Grammy Award-Winning Reggae Star to Perform in Boca

	Grammy-award winning reggae artist Shaggy, and The Hot Shot Band, will perform at Food For The Poor’s 20th annual Building Hope Gala, Feb. 6, 2015, at Boca West Country Club in Boca Raton, Florida.
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COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (Jan. 30, 2015) – It’s only one week until Grammy-award winning reggae artist, Shaggy, and The Hot Shot Band will perform at Food For The Poor’s 20th annual Building Hope Gala, Friday, Feb. 6, 2015, at Boca West Country Club in Boca Raton, Florida. Shaggy is currently up for another Grammy Award with his reggae album, “Out of Many, One Music.”

Mary Wong, President of the Office Depot Foundation, will be recognized as Food For The Poor’s 2015 Ambassador For The Poor at the gala for her philanthropic endeavors throughout the community. This year’s theme is old Hollywood glamour.

In time for Valentine’s Day, one of this year’s sponsors, J.R. Dunn Jewelers, in Lighthouse Point, Florida, will offer gala attendees an exclusive way to contribute to build critically needed houses for destitute families in Haiti. For a $100 donation at the event – with only 100 chances available – one guest will win a $5,000 shopping spree at J.R. Dunn Jewelers.

Attendees at the 20th annual Building Hope Gala will be invited to create a charitable legacy by pledging to build Food For The Poor houses for people in desperate need of adequate shelter in the area surrounding Pon Batay, Haiti. A gift of $3,200 will move a destitute family from their dirt-floor makeshift shack, into a permanent home.

“I would like to thank Shaggy, Mary Wong, and the Building Hope Gala committee members and sponsors for their dedication to build a tremendous amount of homes in Haiti at the gala’s 20th anniversary,” said Food For The Poor President/CEO Robin Mahfood.

Bidding on silent auction prizes such as artwork, electronics, jewelry, vacations, golf and dining packages also offer opportunities for guests to shop and support the cause. Silent auction prizes at the gala will range from a five-night stay at the beautiful Couples San Souci Resort in Ocho Rios, Jamaica, to the opportunity to be Sheriff for a Day with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office.

Live auction prizes will also be available exclusively to attendees. In addition to a ride in the clouds for two aboard the Goodyear Blimp based at the Pompano Beach Airpark; and a seven-day stay at one of Interval International’s member resorts; Chef Ron Duprat, a star on the reality TV show “Top Chef” has offered to share his passion for cooking to help build homes in his homeland of Haiti. At the Building Hope Gala, attendees can bid on a 12-course dinner for 25 guests prepared by the French-trained executive chef at the home of the winning bidder.

For additional information regarding the Building Hope Gala, including sponsorship opportunities and tickets, available at $250 per person, please call 888-404-4248 or visit www.FoodForThePoor.org/boca.

The Building Hope Gala Chairwoman is Rene Turner-Mahfood, and additional committee members include Wedler Alexandre, Carlos Bodden, Matthew Bryant, Becky Carlsson, Ronda Ellis Ged, LaMae Klos, Susan Krassen, Julie Mahfood, Tashia Rahl, Kara Seelye, Deborah Shapiro and Renee Stetler.

Gala sponsors include Club Managers Association of America, Dennis Charley & Associates, Blackbaud, DKB Trade Concepts Inc., Gregory's Fine Jewelry, Harcourt M. & Virginia W. Sylvester Foundation, Innovvaire, J.R. Dunn Jewelers, Leslie L. Alexander Foundation, McFFe Group, MOR Printing, Oceans 234, Office Depot Foundation, Premier Aircraft Sales, Seaboard Marine, TD Bank, Teemlink Ltd., The Calmark Group, The Levitetz Family Foundation, Trinity Direct, United Healthcare and The Boca Raton Observer.

Food For The Poor, named by The Chronicle of Philanthropy as the largest international relief and development organization in the nation, does much more than feed millions of the hungry poor in 17 countries of the Caribbean and Latin America. This interdenominational Christian ministry provides emergency relief assistance, clean water, medicines, educational materials, homes, support for orphans and the aged, skills training and micro-enterprise development assistance, with more than 95 percent of all donations going directly to programs that help the poor. For more information, please visit www.FoodForThePoor.org.