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Gettin’
Groovy at “Luv” Affair 2010
 “With
a Little Help from our Friends,” as the Beatles and Joe Cocker often
sang, our annual Love Affair was a celebration of the Swingin’
Sixties. In a cloud of “Purple Haze” (ok, it was actually dry ice)
and through a black lit tunnel with psychedelic posters, gypsy
Madame Rue welcomed each guest with their own bottle of “Luv Potion
#9.” Peace signs, colored lights and swirls of fluorescent colored
fabrics
(Donning their fab 60's fashions are Steve and Jolene
Wise Silverman, Pam Sasser, Laura Crane, Fred Sasser and Bruce
Crane)
transformed the Donald
E. Stephens ballroom into a set reminiscent of Rowan and Martin’s
Laugh-In TV Show, while 60’s commercials (remember the Dodge
Rebellion Girl?) and Ed Sullivan Show clips played on the big
screens.
The screens also showed
Avenues’ own version of the 1968 song “Put A Little Love in Your
Heart,” – a newly revamped music video. The video featured many of
the people that Avenues serves through our residential, job
placement and work center programs.
Party crasher “Mello
Jell-O”( none other than Avenues’ own VP of Business Contracts Ron
Reeves) joined emcee “Twistin’ Tony Mirabelli” as they relived
highlights from the 60’s.
And the evening proved
to be full of highlights.
With 273 guests, it was
our highest attended Love Affair since our 50th
Anniversary Celebration 7 years ago.
During dinner, 60
children from the Mirabelli Fine Arts Studio sang and danced to a
medley of popular 1960’s medleys, and later we all grooved on the
dance floor to the music of “The Moods.”
Thanks to our generous
donors and sponsors, and a special shout out to our major benefactor
Clarence Herbst, we raised more than $125,000 that will go directly
to support Avenues’ residents. In a very moving but alarming messge,
Board Chairman Jacki Kimel told how cuts from the State of Illinois
will directly impact 24 of our residents: “These 24 residents will
no longer be eligible for state funding. The state will not be
there for them – so we have to be.”
 Joining
Jacki on stage were two long-time Avenues’ residents, Brett Farrell
(resident since 1980) and Kym Dohnke (resident since 1989) who
shared what it means to be part of Avenues’ family. We thank all
our “Luv Affair” guests for putting a lot of Love in their hearts
for Avenues.
If you weren’t able to
attend the Love Affair, but want to help keep these individuals in
their Avenues’ homes, please consider a donation that would provide
half the cost of one person’s rent – whether it be for a month, six
months or a year.
-
$150 will subsidize
one month of rent for an Avenues resident
-
$450 will help a
resident stay in his/her home for three months
-
$900 will provide a
six-month rent subsidy
-
$1800 will provide
support for an entire year
Please note that any
donation is appreciated, and in addition to paying the rent, your
help also gives the people of Avenues the chance to lead lives with
independence and dignity. As the lyrics from “Put a Little Love in
your Heart’
poignantly reminds us:
I hope when you
decide
Kindness will be your
guide
Put a little love in
your heart
And Avenues CAN be a
better place
And Avenues WILL be a
better place
‘cause of you and me
Please help us be
Put a little love in
your heart
Put us ALL in your
heart
more pictures and comments from
Love Affair 2010 on
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