SUBMITTED NEWS RELEASE
Queen in You Charity Dinner Saturday, March 31, raises money for SAFF and teaches guests how to live life at the next level
University of Nevada, Reno’s A.B.L.E. Women brings the community to campus this Saturday for the Second Annual Queen in You Charity Dinner. Event proceeds benefit the Sierra Association of Foster Families. Reno-based life coach and international bestselling author Linda McLean will deliver the evening’s keynote address, “Live Life at the Next Level in 2012.” The dinner is open to the public and takes place at 6 p.m., Saturday, March 31, in Ballroom C on the fourth floor of the Joe Crowley Student Union on the University campus.
Joseph Galata, executive director for the Sierra Association of Foster Families, says benefits like this one are critical for his organization. SAFF depends entirely on private funding to conduct its education and wellness foster youth programs.
“85 percent of adults in American federal and state prisons don’t have a high school diploma and 70 percent of those adults were once children and teens in foster care,” Galata said. SAFF’s in-home after school academic foster youth tutoring program is changing those numbers. “We see the success going on. We have the statistics,” Galata said. “We want to change the public perception of foster care.”
Keynote speaker Linda McLean understands intimately that perception fuels reality. She has spent years cultivating that message, teaching people how to positively change their self-perception and live life at a higher level. Like Galata, McLean believes in helping people develop the self-esteem they need to break negative life cycles.
“So many young people have been told they are worthless, that nobody wants them. Uprooting that message and replacing it with the truth—that they are beautiful and strong and important—is a critical piece of the blueprint for a successful life,” McLean said.
A.B.L.E., which stands for ambition, beauty, leadership, and equality, is a group of University women that aim to instill McLean’s message in Washoe County high school girls with free confidence-building workshops beginning at 11 a.m. on Saturday. Attendees will spend the day learning to feel beautiful both inside and out. They will be pampered with hair-styling and makeup sessions, cultivate health through yoga lessons, and learn about nutrition and wellness from medical experts. The all-day affair includes workshops, speakers, lunch and dinner for absolutely no cost to participants.
At 6 p.m. the public is invited to join the girls for the SAFF benefit dinner and McLean’s keynote address. Tickets are $12 for the general public or $8 for students and faculty of Washoe County School District and Nevada System of Higher Education. Foster family members will receive a discounted ticket rate of $4. For dinner tickets and/or workshop registration, email [email protected] or call (775) 287-9455.
