At the most recent SARAH Gala, we dedicated the evening to celebrating SARAH’s Direct Support Professionals (DSP) who help make independence possible by supporting the individuals we serve. The dedication, commitment and care displayed by SARAH’s staff working directly with individuals is awe-inspiring. The video above shares the “WHY” from the perspective of some of the staff on the ground each and every day. You’ll also hear from some of SARAH’s leadership staff and board members and their appreciation for the ongoing effort of the staff.

SARAH is only as good as the staff who work daily to make the mission come to life for the betterment of hundreds of individuals and families right here in our community. We hope you enjoy learning more about our colleagues.

The annual SARAH Gala event was another success thanks to our generous Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze sponsors, in-kind auction donors, event volunteers and more than 275 guests. In addition to celebrating our DSP staff members, guests we treated to a rousing performance from the Tuxis Tuners musical group as well as live music throughout the evening from The Grateful Friend band.

The highlight of the evening was the heartfelt message from our guest speaker, SARAH Tuxis manager, Lachelle Sosa who shared how she focuses on making the best experiences possible for the individuals living in the house share manages.

John Peter was our volunteer auctioneer and led another successful live auction and raise the paddle campaign to close out the evening program. Earlier in the program, the SARAH Foundation was presented with a surprise donation from our friends at Illuminate resulting from a fundraising event they hosted with their employees and friends in honor of Autism Awareness Month in April.

The Gala Committee led by Carolyn Wolff was the driving force behind the positive results from the event. Committee members included Sally Esborn, Jennifer Gould, Terese Howey and Jamie Rubin. SARAH Foundation’s Development Manager, Kim Vigliotti, did a wonderful job overseeing all major components of the event from event logistics to event-day oversight to ensure the event went off without a hitch. See below for a list of sponsors.

Thank You to our Generous Sponsors!

 

PLATINUM SPONSOR

 

GOLD SPONSORS

 

The Wolff Family

SILVER SPONSORS

Claudia Buzzi & Pietro DeCamilli

The Helle Family

 

 

 

 

BRONZE SPONSORS

The LiPuma and Baldwin Families

Bill MacDonell

 

 

 

Dr. Arnold Wolff

The 2023 SARAH Gala will be held on Thursday, May 11, 2023 at The Woodwinds in Branford, CT. Join us for the annual dinner and auction as we celebrate all who make SARAH’s mission possible. Sponsorships and individual tickets are NOW on sale! We are also seeking contributions for the silent and live auction. If you are interested, please contact Kim Vigliotti at [email protected] or call our office at 203-453-6531. We hope to see you there!

What a Night at the SARAH Gala 2022!

The 2022 SARAH Gala was a resounding success! We were elated to gather with so many new and old friends on Wednesday, May 18th for the annual SARAH Gala. It was great to be back at Woodwinds in Branford, CT to enjoy their beautiful venue and delicious food. Upon arrival, guests were treated to live music from The Grateful Friend Band. The energy and enthusiasm from cocktail hour and the silent auction carried into the plated dinner and evening program.

To kick-off the evening program, guests were treated to a wonderful musical performance by the SARAH Tuxis Tuners. The joy and love of music permeated throughout the room as guests sang along with the Tuners to classics such as Sweet Caroline. Following dinner, the room was moved by the powerful and emotional words shared by new SARAH Foundation board member, Joe LiPuma, as he spoke about his son Jack and their family’s experience with Jack’s autism diagnosis. Now an adult, Jack is supported through day and recreation programs offered by SARAH.

There was also a surprise presentation by Rick Taylor and our friends at Illuminate who shared they recently hosted a company fundraiser to celebrate Autism Awareness Month with proceeds from the event benefitting SARAH. Rick and Illuminate presented a check for $15,000! Amazing!

The evening program closed with a wildly successful live auction and raise the paddle campaign led by the charismatic John Peters. The live auction featured nine exciting items including The Rambling Inn mobile Irish pub, a weekend getaway in Boston, a private group cruise on a 52ft Tiara motorboat, Pizza Truck for 50, Lobster Bake for 10 and more! The items and experiences were provided by numerous partners and friends, and we are grateful for their support.

The raise the paddle campaign ended the evening on a high note thanks to an incredibly generous matching gift of $15,000 from the Scully Family Foundation plus two $10,000 commitments in the room that night as well as numerous others pledging gifts ranging from $5,000 to $100 dollars. It was an overwhelming display of generosity bringing many in the room to tears of joy seeing the response of so many to support SARAH’s mission.

The success of the event was driven by the energy and tenacity of our gala chair, Carolyn Wolff, and the entire committee comprised of Kathy Duncan, Erin Duques, Sally Esborn, Terese Howey, Suzanne McCormick, Jamie Rubin and Heidi Tuebert. The coordination of the event was led by SARAH Foundation staff member, Kim Vigliotti, without whom this event would not have been possible.

Huge thanks to all of our generous sponsors led by Bishop’s Orchards Farm Market & Winery, Terese Howey, Seedlings Foundation, Carolyn and Barry Wolff and Yusen. See the complete list of sponsors below. Thank you for supporting SARAH!

Special thanks to the following in-kind service providers: Mark Johnson Photography for capturing wonderful images throughout the event (see images below). Flowers on the Green for providing the beautiful center pieces. Guilford Savings Bank volunteers for ensuring the check-in and check-out process was seamless. Finally, John Peters for his talents to make the live auction and raise the paddle a success.

The full gallery of photos can be found here: https://client.markjohnson.photo/sf. Password: 0923.