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$700,000 for Research on Organics Raised! You can Help Too!
Organic Center benefits from
Organic Industry Generosity.
Funds for Organic Research Projects
more than $700.000.
Date: 3/19/2008 1:42:35 PM ( 16 y ) ... viewed 837 times
Organic Center dinner donors pony up $700,000 to help fund new research efforts
It was a wonderful example of people being willing to stand up and put their cash where their convictions are.
That’s what happened March 14 at the Organic Center’s Annual VIP Fundraising Dinner during Expo West in Anaheim, Calif., where, stirred by rousing oratory and music, guests donated a whopping $700,000 for new research projects being sponsored by the center, ranging from $100 to a $5,000 contribution from Rick Rockhill of PetCo to a munificent $30,000 check from Bill Nicholson of Ideasphere.
The donations will be leveraged into millions of dollars worth of research being undertaken at Cornell, Tufts University, the University of Washington and other venues to solve such problems as eczema in children, the diabetes epidemic and "colony collapse disorder" affecting honeybees that now threatens the viability of much of our food supply.
This dinner gave representatives of industries touched by organic agriculture the opportunity to hear holistic guru Dr.Andrew Weil and Dr. Alan Greene, the center’s current chairman and resident pediatrician, talk about some of the research done last year and its results, as well as to be entertained by a band comprised of green industry musical talent, led by Organic Center Managing Director Steve Hoffman and featuring the guest guitar of Walter Robb, COO of Whole Foods and vocals by Stephen Brooks.
Then James White of Safeway and Walter Robb got on stage and asked for people to donate, while Steve and I went down into the audience with our ‘collection plates’. One by one, guests stood up, DID SOMETHING and donated to help fund the research The Organic Center has on its "to-do list."
It was a magical moment to watch—all that energy and enthusiasm building as Steve and I roamed with our hand-held microphone. It also brought back to mind the way all this started, with individuals like Mark Retzloff, Gene Kahn and Michael Funk standing up and saying we had to provide scientific proof that organic agriculture is better, which led to the Organic Center becoming a reality. I will particularly never forget Michael standing up and donating the first $100,000 to launch the center. Then a year later, Steve Demo (check spelling), who had started a tradition of a Friday night dinner for Silk, dedicated the dinner and the proceeds for fundraising to the Organic Center.
It all goes to further demonstrate how individuals who stand up and Do Something can make a tremendous difference in this world -- and I must say it’s been both a privilege and a source of pride to watch how this has grown into meaningful research results and consumer benefits. (For more details about the ongoing research, go to the Organic Center at:
http://www.organic-center.org
).
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