Team Kids Honors Community, Philanthropist & Kids
05/16/09 08:50
Team Kids Honors Community, Philanthropist & Kids
Team Kids Honors Community, Philanthropist & Kids Nearly 300 gather at 4th annual Team Kids Family Celebration
Irvine, CA – May 4, 2009 – “It’s all about the kids,” said Team Kids Founder and CEO Julie Hudash when she welcomed nearly 300 supporters of the Orange County organization to its 4th annual Team Kids Family Celebration.
Irvine police, school leaders, Team Council Presidential Service Award winners and a Newport Beach philanthropist were honored during the Sunday, May 3 event at Irvine’s Il Fornaio restaurant.
Irvine Deputy Police Chief, retired, David Mahalik, and Vista Verde Elementary and Middle School Principal Jean Mylen, PhD, received the 2009 Team Kids Spirit Award.
Chief Mihalik, who chairs the Team Kids board of directors, started one of Team Kids’ most treasured programs, Shop with a Cop. Uniformed officers take children who were living in a local domestic violence shelter on a holiday shopping trip, bringing joy and forging friendships between the children and the police officers who protect them. “It’s important we show kids real everyday heroes, not just the spots stars or celebrities of the day,” said Mihalik.
In 2001, Dr. Mylen hosted the first Team Kids Challenge event, back in 2001, during which children joined together to raise funds for a young boy to receive needed heart surgery. “I have been fortunate to be a part of Team Kids and have witnessed the hope and dreams on the faces of children who have been involved. We cannot always build the future for our children, but Team Kids can build our young people for the future,” she said.
Seven Team Kids Council members performed more than 150 hours of service and received the Presidential Service Award. The award is issued by the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation on behalf of the President of the United States. It recognizes the best in American spirit of those who improve their communities though volunteer service and civic participation. Award recipients were: Francesca Apollonio, Keiko Arzouman and Carly Dahl, University High School; Kelly Marshall, Corona del Mar High School; Sasha Glasser, Orange County High School of the Arts; and Caitlyn Kelly and Lang Peirce, Irvine High School.
The group thanked Kelly Smith of Newport Beach, for donating $200,000 to Team Kids. “I believe in the benefits of Team Kids for a number of reasons. Each time the Team Kids Challenge goes to a school, up to five charities receive the benefits. On top of that, the kids in the program see themselves as powerful community leaders,” said Smith.
“Every can of food and toy donated or penny raised by kids during our school-based Team Kids Challenge program goes to youth-serving charities,” said Hudash. “That’s why the organization itself depends on the generosity of amazing people like Kelly.”
Also thanked for their roles in bringing Team Kids Challenge to schools in Newport Beach were: Principal Charlene Metoyer, Harbor View Elementary School; Principal Mary Manos, Andersen Elementary School, and Captain Glenn White, Newport Beach Fire Department.
About Team Kids
Team Kids strengthens innovative community collaborations that empower young people to become resilient and responsible citizens with a passion for service through its school-based and community-wide programs. While serving, students develop the values and skills that enable them to make positive choices in their own lives, while making a difference in the lives of others. For more information, visit the Team Kids Web site: www.teamkids.org
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Irvine, CA – May 4, 2009 – “It’s all about the kids,” said Team Kids Founder and CEO Julie Hudash when she welcomed nearly 300 supporters of the Orange County organization to its 4th annual Team Kids Family Celebration.
Irvine police, school leaders, Team Council Presidential Service Award winners and a Newport Beach philanthropist were honored during the Sunday, May 3 event at Irvine’s Il Fornaio restaurant.
Irvine Deputy Police Chief, retired, David Mahalik, and Vista Verde Elementary and Middle School Principal Jean Mylen, PhD, received the 2009 Team Kids Spirit Award.
Chief Mihalik, who chairs the Team Kids board of directors, started one of Team Kids’ most treasured programs, Shop with a Cop. Uniformed officers take children who were living in a local domestic violence shelter on a holiday shopping trip, bringing joy and forging friendships between the children and the police officers who protect them. “It’s important we show kids real everyday heroes, not just the spots stars or celebrities of the day,” said Mihalik.
In 2001, Dr. Mylen hosted the first Team Kids Challenge event, back in 2001, during which children joined together to raise funds for a young boy to receive needed heart surgery. “I have been fortunate to be a part of Team Kids and have witnessed the hope and dreams on the faces of children who have been involved. We cannot always build the future for our children, but Team Kids can build our young people for the future,” she said.
Seven Team Kids Council members performed more than 150 hours of service and received the Presidential Service Award. The award is issued by the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation on behalf of the President of the United States. It recognizes the best in American spirit of those who improve their communities though volunteer service and civic participation. Award recipients were: Francesca Apollonio, Keiko Arzouman and Carly Dahl, University High School; Kelly Marshall, Corona del Mar High School; Sasha Glasser, Orange County High School of the Arts; and Caitlyn Kelly and Lang Peirce, Irvine High School.
The group thanked Kelly Smith of Newport Beach, for donating $200,000 to Team Kids. “I believe in the benefits of Team Kids for a number of reasons. Each time the Team Kids Challenge goes to a school, up to five charities receive the benefits. On top of that, the kids in the program see themselves as powerful community leaders,” said Smith.
“Every can of food and toy donated or penny raised by kids during our school-based Team Kids Challenge program goes to youth-serving charities,” said Hudash. “That’s why the organization itself depends on the generosity of amazing people like Kelly.”
Also thanked for their roles in bringing Team Kids Challenge to schools in Newport Beach were: Principal Charlene Metoyer, Harbor View Elementary School; Principal Mary Manos, Andersen Elementary School, and Captain Glenn White, Newport Beach Fire Department.
About Team Kids
Team Kids strengthens innovative community collaborations that empower young people to become resilient and responsible citizens with a passion for service through its school-based and community-wide programs. While serving, students develop the values and skills that enable them to make positive choices in their own lives, while making a difference in the lives of others. For more information, visit the Team Kids Web site: www.teamkids.org
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