Road to Independence Gala, Auction, nets over $370,000 for community programs

OAKTON, VA—June 15, 2010— The memorable evening of May 14 marked the 12th celebration of the NVFS Road to Independence Gala held at the McLean Hilton in Tysons Corner. With 550 guests in attendance, including politicians, business leaders, agency supporters and individual community members, it was the largest NVFS Gala on record. Over $372,000 in net revenue was raised through sponsorships, donations and ticket sales to benefit NVFS programs and services.  This tremendous outpouring of support is a testament to the tireless efforts of the Gala Committee, Board members and staff who promoted the agency’s work to the Northern Virginia community.

“It was a delight to have such a buzz in the room and connect with loyal friends of our organization – and to see so many new faces – from many different industries,“ said Mary Agee, President and CEO of NVFS. “Our Grand Benefactor sponsors (Capital One, Kaiser Permanente, the Peterson Family Foundation, along with John and Nina Toups) provided a very strong foundation of support that ensured the event would be successful!”

At the end of the evening, John and Nina Toups were presented with the inaugural NVFS Legends of Northern Virginia Award, followed by a warm tribute delivered by Milt Peterson of the Peterson Family Foundation. The Agency was equally pleased to honor J. Knox Singleton, CEO of Inova Health System as the 2010 NVFS Community Champion.

A silent auction featured an array of over 160 unique items that raised over $30,000. During dinner, the 9 live auction items, ranging from luxurious vacation packages to an authentic Pacific Island luau, raised over $50,000.  One particularly popular item was an opportunity for a number of youth to meet and run drills with Lorenzo Alexander of the Washington Redskins.  Several generous and thoughtful guests bid on this item and then donated it back to NVFS for use by children in Agency programs.