Diamonds and Diapers Luncheon
Western Pennsylvania Diaper Bank marked Diaper Need Awareness Week with its inaugural event on Sept. 28 at the Twentieth Century Club in Oakland. The Second Lady of Pennsylvania, Gisele Fetterman, was the keynote speaker for the luncheon. The mission of the Diaper Bank is to ensure every baby is clean, healthy and dry through free diapers for families who cannot afford them. Did you know that 1 in 3 families struggle to afford diapers and diapers are not covered by SNAP, better known as food stamps? Organizations like the Diaper Bank help to ensure that every child in every community has the opportunity to thrive. A necessity that is often overlooked by government agencies and private foundations, the lack of affordable diapers was brought to the attention of the Rev. and Mrs. Phillip (Cathy) Battle in 2012 after asking a congregation what was most needed. Armed with information, they formed the Western Pennsylvania Diaper Bank to serve communities in Western Pennsylvania. The effort, centralized around providing diapers to families and nonprofits in need, also extends to other infant products as well as geriatric diapers.
Learn more: https://www.wpadiaperbank.org/
■
St. Lucy’s Auxiliary to the Blind: Vision of Hope Luncheon
Guests at the St. Lucy’s Auxiliary to the Blind “Vision of Hope Luncheon” were transported to a lemon garden in Capri, Italy, on Thursday at the Valley Brook Country Club. Bright yellow lemons were seen in the centerpieces as well as throughout the ballroom and auction areas. The designer purse auction was a highlight again this year. The Anne Freyvogel Hanna Scholarship was presented by Kelly Hanna Riley to Francesco Lagana, a student at Pittsburgh Allderdice and intern at BVRS, for inspiring students to challenge themselves and feel more confident with using vision tools and strategies.
■
Women on the Move Luncheon
It was a beautiful sunny day for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society Pennsylvania Keystone chapter’s “Women on the Move” luncheon, which was held on Sept. 25 at the LeMont on Mount Washington. After guests visited the silent auction and purse raffle, emcee KDKA-TV’s Ken Rice introduced them to the speaker, Danelle Umstead. You may remember Danelle as the blind contestant who competed last year on ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars.” During the show, she did not mention that she also has multiple sclerosis. She overcame this adversity by learning how to ski from verbal commands. She and her husband made history at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Paralympic Games as the first husband and wife visually impaired ski race team to compete and receive bronze medals in both downhill and super-combined events for Team USA, and they ended that year with the overall and super G World Cup titles. They also earned a bronze medal in the 2014 Sochi Winter Paralympic Games. She is proof that people with disabilities can do amazing things.
■
Auberle's 15th Annual Voices Carry
Auberle's 15th Annual Voices Carry event, presented by Huntington Bank, was held on Sept. 24 at the Westin Convention Center and Hotel, Downtown. Roughly 500 guests attended the event to support the nonprofit organization's programs for children and families. Emceed by WDVE-FM's Randy Baumann, the event featured 36 local performers, including Joe Grushecky, Scott Blasey, Jeff Jimerson, No Bad Juju, Melinda Colaizzi, Tony Janflone Jr., Jenn Wertz, Kelsey Friday, Chris Higbee and Rick Witkowski and the Pittsburgh All-Star Band. The event also included an impressive silent auction featuring a Farm to Table Dinner prepared by Auberle youth using ingredients from Auberle’s chickens and garden.
■
celebratED!
More than 600 educators came together for celebratED! at the O'Reilly Theater, Downtown, on Sept. 23. Emcee DS Kinsel welcomed Lasse Leponiemi, co-founder and executive director of HundrED, a Finnish nonprofit that seeks and shares inspiring innovations in K-12 education with the goal of scaling them worldwide. Mr. Leponiemi highlighted 12 spotlights and honored 80+ Pittsburgh-based education innovations. Remake Learning director Sunanna Chand unveiled the Blueprint for Learning awards, a total of $800,000 in grants that will support a cohort of 16 local schools and nonprofit organizations to reimagine learning spaces. The evening included many award presentations as well as performances by Pittsburgh Public Schools Dilworth World Drummers, City Charter High School musical students, Attack Theatre and a stunning Shakespeare monologue by Chartiers Valley middle school student Wesley Madge. Attendees of this sold-out event represented teachers, school administrators, after-school organizations, mentors, early child care providers, teaching artists, foundation leaders and businesses invested in the future of education. The night ended with the entire audience engaged in a “makey makey” circuitry experiment that popped a balloon onstage and signaled the time for a champagne toast celebrating our region’s incredible educators.
First Published: September 30, 2019, 1:00 p.m.