— Keynote Speaker: Leigh Anne Tuohy, Inspirational Foster Mom Portrayed in “The Blind Side” —
San Jose, CA (BlackNews.com) — Unity Care, a youth and family development agency providing services and support for San Francisco Bay Area at-risk and foster youth, will host its Fourth Annual YouthLive! Gala (www.youth-live.com) on Saturday evening, April 25, 2015, at the Fairmont San Jose.
Keynote speaker for the event will be Leigh Anne Tuohy, inspirational subject of the record-breaking movie, The Blind Side, which chronicles her journey as foster mother to current NFL (National Football League) offensive tackle, Michael Oher. In the movie, Leigh Anne Tuohy was portrayed by Sandra Bullock, who won an Academy Award® for Best Actress for her performance. The story of Michael and the Tuohy family has been covered throughout the national media including Good Morning America, The Today Show, 20/20, and Huckabee.
The event will open with a VIP reception (by invitation) with Ms. Tuohy, as well as a no-host cocktail reception, a silent youth art auction and treasure chest key sales for all guests. In addition, Unity Care youth and youth from the community will showcase their unique talents by performing and modeling fashions on the runway. Tuohy’s talk follows the formal dinner and a Unity Care foster youth will share a testimonial about overcoming the odds. ABC 7’s Spencer Christian will emcee the evenings festivities.
“We’re excited to host Leigh Anne Tuohy as our guest keynote speaker this year,” says Unity Care Founder and CEO André Chapman. “Her passion for service and commitment to bettering the lives of foster youth are perfectly aligned with our mission, as our organization was originally founded to help those in foster care and beyond. There is a powerful line from “The Blind Side” that describes her, ‘There was a new force in Michael Ohers life: a woman paying extremely close attention to him who had an eye for detail, a nose for trouble, the heart of a lion, and the will of a storm trooper.’ “I know its going to be a fabulous evening!”
Tickets to YouthLive!, which has sold out in the past, are $150 per person. VIP table (seating for 10) sponsorships are available at $2,500. Tickets should be purchased by Friday, April 10, 2015 at www.youth-live.com/purchase.php.
YouthLive! sponsors (to-date) include Sleep Train Mattress Center, Cisco, Silicon Valley Business Journal, Insperity, and Lexus of Stevens Creek.
Detailed information about Unity Care, its programs and opportunities, is available at www.unitycare.org.
About Unity Care
Unity Care offers a wide range of services benefiting at-risk and foster youth and their families throughout Northern California. Its signature program, founded in 1992, focuses on serving the housing needs of youth in foster care and beyond. The organizations mission has grown and expanded over the past two decades and, today, includes more than a dozen community-based, education and behavioral health programs, aiding approximately 5,500 underserved youth and families.
Unity Cares programs exemplify its “Five Pillars of Success” philosophy: Housing, Education, Employment, Well-Being (physical, social, emotional and spiritual) and Unconditional Care (adult connection). Each program focuses on being successful and supportive while promoting accountability, honesty and fun.
