April 23, 2014

Princeton Education Foundation Thanks Community for Successful Spring Gala

To the Editor:

On behalf of the Princeton Education Foundation, its Board of Trustees and Advisory Board, I am sending gratitude and sincere thanks for our most well-attended and successful spring gala and silent auction on April 5. Special thanks to our many attendees as well as our lead community sponsors: OnePrinceton, Georgeanne Gould Moss and The Gould Group of Wells Fargo Advisors, and the W. Bryce Thompson Foundation for their support of the Princeton Education Foundation.

We’re also grateful to Princeton University for the donation of the beautiful venue, Frick Chemistry Laboratory. Thanks, too, to the Princeton High School all girls a cappella group, The Cat’s Meow, for treating guests to a surprise mini-performance high above the crowd. Resounding thanks to our community tasting station sponsors who ensured that guests enjoyed an outstanding array of gourmet tastes, and to our silent auction donors for adding a fun spirit of competition to the charitable event.

The gala committee and volunteers were many. Together, this group of committed parents raised nearly $55,000 and produced a fun, well-attended community event to benefit the Princeton Education Foundation, our children, and the Princeton Public Schools. Raising awareness of the Foundation’s work was a key goal of the gala, and it was achieved with resounding success. Please look for our ad thanking our sponsors and supporters [Town Topics, April 16]. Meanwhile, names of friends, supporters, and volunteers follow here with sincere apologies if we’ve omitted anyone:

PEF Corporate and Community Sponsors: OnePrinceton, Georgeanne Gould Moss and The Gould Group of Wells Fargo Advisors, W. Bryce Thompson Foundation, Anne Skalka and Associates, Bai Brands, LLC, The Bank of Princeton, PNC Bank, Dennigan Cahill Smith, LLC, Beatrice Bloom, Weichert Realtors, Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., Jon Craig Tyl DMD & Michael P. Fogarty DDS, Greg’s Landscaping, Lear and Pannepacker, LLP, J.B. Redding & Son, Inc., JOYcards, Inc., Princeton Air Conditioning, Inc., Ellen T. Nita, State Farm Insurance Agency.

Community Tasting Sponsors: Alchemist & Barrister, Bai Brands, Chez Alice, Eno Terra, IQuisine, Jammin’ Crepes, Lula Cellars, McCaffrey’s Markets, Mediterra, The North End Bistro, The Pind, The Peony Pavilion, Riverhorse Brewery, Small World Coffee, Thomas Sweet.

Gala Committee: Rebecca Balaguer, Jeff Bergman, Lakshmi Bhamidipati, Caroline Cleaves, Amy Craft, Pooja Datt, Anne Desmond, Jean Durbin (Co-Chair), Jon Durbin, Lynne Glass, Jeanine Hillesland, Janice Kioko, Nicola Knipe, Bill Madden, Jean-Anne Madden, Shazia Manekia, Pam McClean, Jill Morrison, Ed Normandin, Grace Normandin (Co-Chair), Owen O’Donnell, Shilpa Pai, Jan Pierce, Barbara Prince, Archie Reid, Lawrence Roth, Suzanne Roth, Adrienne Rubin, Ronica Sethi, Aman Shergill, Hilary Steiger, Monika Suri, Todd Wachtel, Wendy Wachtel, Alan Zetterberg, Heidi Zhang.

Auction Committee: Arthur Cucchiaro, Julianne Hagarty, Mike Hepler, Kerry Herbert, Tim Herbert, Bill Madden, Jean-Anne Madden, Julia Madden, McKenna Madden, Shazia Manekia, Barbara Prince, Aman Shergill.

Jean-Anne Madden

President Board of Trustees, Princeton Education