South Florida Gala of Hope Closes in on Milestone

On Thursday, October 2, Jennifer Miller Smith and Fiorenna Fuentes Israel, two dedicated mothers of children with SMA, planned an evening to be remembered in their quest to achieve a huge fundraising milestone: $500,000 to cure spinal muscular atrophy.

This year’s event, the 4th Annual Gala of Hope, has already raised $110,000 and climbing, bringing them within $10,000 of their total goal.

One of the most touching and memorable moments of the evening came when Shaina Rappoport, advocate and volunteer fundraiser, shared her personal story of loss and courage, inspiring the 300 attendees to donate another $20,000.

Entertainment was provided by South Florida’s own DJ Laz, TrueVibe, and Salvador LIVE!, a performance artist, break dancing-speed painter whose unique style had the partygoers in awe. Giant-sized rabbits, talking trees and trapeze artists appeared throughout the night at this Alice in Wonderland themed event.

Our deepest thanks to Jennifer and Fiorenna, and their husbands Aaron and Aldo (respectively), for all their hard work and creativity. Thanks also to Ferrari Maserati of Ft Lauderdale for hosting the event, The Capital Grille and Premiere Beverage & Catering for providing the food and drinks, and to Galaxy Productions for providing the evening’s entertainment.

If you would like to learn more about the Gala of Hope, or if you would like to make a donation to help us reach $500,000, please email [email protected] or visit the event’s website.

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