Thanks to you, the Abilities United Authors Luncheon 20th Anniversary was a huge success...raised $200K

On November 5, the 20th Anniversary Authors Luncheon was attended by a sell-out crowd of 650 book lovers who gathered at the Crowne Plaza Cabana Hotel to be entertained by authors Calvin Trillin, Maxine Hong Kingston, Erik Larsen and local children's book author, Jennifer Holm. Thanks to the enthusiastic leadership of Carolyn Brennan and Gina Rayfield, the help of 65 volunteers, and the generosity of event sponsors and attendees, the luncheon was a record success!

ABC7 news anchor, Carolyn Johnson, joined us this year as our very enthusiastic emcee. Abilities United Executive Director, Lynda Steele, highlighted 20 years of accomplishments of the Authors Luncheon which included over $2 million raised for services for people with developmental and physical disabilities, 92 world renowned authors who have donated their time and talent, over a thousand community volunteers, and countless community businesses contributing to this popular event!

This year, the audience was moved by Andy Ramans' story about his son's 40-year history with Abilities United - from infancy to independence. Laura Arrilllaga-Andreessen, whose mother Fran Arrillaga was the first honorary chair of the Authors Luncheon, spoke passionately about her mother's example of philanthropy and gifted her new book, Giving 2.0, to all of the guests.

Our community partner, Books Inc. provided their expertise and assistance to recruit the authors and manage the Book Salon which featured the 2011 authors as well as books from past Authors Luncheon speakers.

Finally, the event was topped off with the Abilities United Art Auction, which featured original works of art from a dozen artists from Abilities United, 16 pieces of art sold for a total of over $1,600 going directly to the artists!

Can you image a better way to spend a Saturday? Gathering with hundreds of fellow literary aficionados while you support the mission of Abilities United! Please join us at the 2012 Abilities United Authors Luncheon! For more information about the luncheon or how to be a 2012 sponsor, contact Michele@AbilitiesUnited.org 650-618-3330.

Watch your email and mailbox for the date announcement for the 2012 Authors Luncheon. It sells out each year and you won't want to miss it!

Thanks to you, the Abilities United Aquathon was a huge success...raised $150K!

The Abilities United Aquathon is truly a special time for the community to come together and celebrate all abilities, from the littlest of infants to our respected seniors. Everyone is a champion for the day! Year after year, donors, participants, staff, volunteers and community members dedicate thousands of hours of work and fundraising to make the Abilities United Aquathon incredibly successful and fun! The 2011 Aquathon just set the bar higher…netting $150,000!

400 community people gathered at the California Sports Center in Sunnyvale to swim and raise money for services at Abilities United. Swimmers, representing all ages and swim levels, swam on 40 teams and were entertained by and swam with everyone’s favorite mascot, “Sharkie”, from the San Jose Sharks. You could hear the music and cheering from a block away. In addition to having fun, participants left feeling really good about their contribution to the success of the event. We owe a huge thank you to our top $10,000 sponsors, NVIDIA and Oracle, for their long-time support of this event; new corporate sponsor Lockheed Martin and returning sponsor Intuit for their $5,000 sponsorships; and Webcor their $2,500 sponsorship. Don’t be left out next year - be sure to mark your calendars for the 2012 Aquathon, Sunday September 9, at 2:00 pm.

We rely on the efforts of all of our fundraisers, some who have been with this event for 25 years. Our top 10 individual fundraisers were: Charlotte Rayfield, Marc Weeks, Michael Rayfield, Michael Skarpelos, Philip Decker, Keely Costedoat, Jesse Smithnosky, Michael Seiders, Dan Logan, and Robin Flecha.

Mike Seiders, a lifelong participant at Abilities United, moved the audience to cheers and tears as he completed the event’s first laps as the 2011 Honorary Swimmer. Each year, John Rothmann of KGO Newstalk 810 and Olympic swimmer Susan Roy make the event extra special by presenting medals to and posing for photos with the children.

In addition, the success of this event depends on volunteers. We send a special thank you to:

Bern King- Photography; Chris Ream-Emcee; Vickie Yamaoka-Food Coordinator; Douglas Tao-Video Tao & Audio Services; Raymond Chin-Video; Homestead Interact Club volunteers; One Brick volunteers; and all the Abilities United staff and Board members.

Over 30 Abilities United participants swam and raised over $12,000. Bill Hall, who is in our Adult Services program, goes above and beyond each year and won a special award for raising $1,600! We welcome new participants and corporate sponsors for 2012. To learn more about the Aquathon, view our video at www.abilitiesunited.org/aquathon and contact jo@abilitiesunited.org or at 650-618-3331.