ThanksgivingCares Press Release 2006

The LeadershipCares Foundation
10181 Nightingale Street
Gaithersburg, MD 20882

Ron Yudd (301) 540-5791
www.leadershipcares.org

STUDENT LEADERS FROM MENTORCARES PROVIDED THANKSGIVING BASKETS TO FAMILIES THROUGHOUT THE D.C. AREA AS PART OF THEIR 9th ANNUAL THANKSGIVINGCARES INITIATIVE.  OVER 800 FAMILIES WERE SERVED IN THE ROCKVILLE, ASPEN HILL, WHEATON, SILVER SPRING, TAKOMA PARK AND HYATTSVILLE AREAS.

November 27th, 2006. LeadershipCares, an organization that teaches leadership and life skills to teenagers and young adults, assembled and delivered baskets of ingredients to prepare a traditional Thanksgiving meal for families in need as part of their annual ThanksgivingCares initiative. The baskets were assembled by groups of enthusiastic volunteers on Monday, November 20th and Tuesday, November 21st 2006, and then delivered the afternoon of the 21st. Teens from the MentorCares™ program, and caring adults living in the Metropolitan area volunteered their time organizing, assembling and delivering baskets to families in need.

Three large banquet rooms at the DoubleTree Hotel in Rockville, Maryland were converted into the assembly and distribution center for this year’s program. A contingent of very enthusiastic MentorCares students, along with adults from Lexus Nexus, the Montgomery County Rotary Club and volunteers from sister radio stations WTOP, WGMS and Z104 helped to stage the boxes and begin the assembly process.

MentorCares™ Students from Northwestern High School in Prince Georges County who participated in the event also worked very hard to raise over $3,000 to support the effort.

Culinary students from Thomas Edison High School in Montgomery County prepped and baked 175 bags of assorted cookies for the baskets.  

For the ninth year in a row Basic Necessities, a non-profit run by twin sisters Madeline and Hannah Carretero provided shampoos, soaps and lotions for the baskets. These young local leaders have had a major impact on families in need throughout the Metropolitan area by collecting and distributing sample size soaps, shampoos and lotions. 

Deliveries were coordinated with various agencies throughout the area. The organizations that received baskets included Catholic Charities, Linkages to Learning, the Inter-Community Faith Network, and Mt. Horab Church Community. Deliveries were made to Broad Acres, Rolling Terrace, Montgomery Knolls, and New Hampshire Estates Elementary Schools. Baskets were also distributed to over a 130 families that stopped by Northwestern High School in Hyattsville MD to pick up. MentorCares™ students unloaded trucks at several sites and also helped carry the baskets to cars for the families.

Ms. Marina Purich, the Director of Catering at the DoubleTree Hotel in Rockville, Maryland donated banquet space for this year’s event and provided refreshments for all the volunteers. Her fantastic staff jumped in to help throughout the two-day event.

Mr. Steve Rothenberg, President of Talk of the Town, a Rockville based special events company, donated the use of company trucks. Talk of the Town associates made deliveries to two sites in Montgomery County along with Talk of the Town, General Manager, Ms. Kera Drabick, a long time LeadershipCares volunteer. 

Congressman Chris Van Hollen (MD-8th District) and his Chief of Staff, Ms. Karen Robb, made an official visit to chat with the volunteers and learn more about the work the MentorCares™ students and what they are learning and doing in their communities.

The following groups and individuals supported this year’s hunger relief efforts:

• MentorCares™ Students-Northwestern High School-Prince Georges County, MD
• Tracy and Ray Walls from Northwestern High School-MentorCares™ Program
• MentorCares™ Coaches-A. Sampson, G. Cox, D. Sanders and G. Ledwell
• Capt. Kenneth Trass and ROTC Students-Kennedy HS, Silver Spring MD
• Rita Skolnik-Lexus Nexus Volunteers-“The Famous Box Brigade” Rockville MD
• Marina Purich, Director-Catering, and her staff DoubleTree Hotel, Rockville MD
• Chef Teresa Smith and the Incredible Culinary Students at Thomas Edison HS 
• Steve Rothenberg  and Kera Drabick, Talk of the Town, Rockville MD
• Jean Fowler and volunteers from WTOP, WGMS and Z104 radio stations
• Hannah and Madeline Carretero-Basic Necessities-Kensington MD
• Bruce, Clint and Debby-Weis Markets Inc., Damascus MD
• Potomac Rotary Club and Montgomery College Staff, Rockville MD
• Darlene Bruton-Assistant Principal Northwestern High School-Hyattsville MD
• Chef Andrea Feldsott and dad Stuart Feldsott
• Tesfaye Abate, Director of Sales, Renaissance Harbor Place Hotel-Baltimore MD
• Mary Pittman and grand children Chaz and Chadley-Silver Spring MD
• Robert and Brian Willcoxon-Rockville MD
• Jeannie Wolf, with her mom and hardworking daughter Jennifer-Rockville MD  
• Brian T. Yudd, BT Studios Photography, Annapolis MD
• Michael and Karen Sternberg and their three super star daughters-Great Falls VA
• Martin from Penske Trucks/Cenit Leasing-Rockville MD

“Our mission has been to increase awareness about hunger in our area and to give our young people an opportunity to actually do something about it in a “hands on” way. Every year they amaze us.”—Lula J. Davis, Executive Director, Leadership Cares.  

LeadershipCares provides an opportunity for those living in the area to volunteer as “hands-on” participants to help make a difference for those in need. Teenagers and young adults learn and practice leadership skills through their participation. For more information about the ThanksgivingCares initiative, LeadershipCares and how to get directly involved call (301) 540-5791 or visit our web site at www.leadershipcares.org.