Sanofi Pasteur’s Pocono Mountains Community Fundraiser Continues Its Legacy With "Millions Raised, Thousands Reached"
POCONO MANOR, Pa., July 20, 2017 /3BL Media/ – At tonight’s sold out 14th annual Pocono Mountains Community Fundraiser, the largest single event fundraiser in Monroe County, $225,875 was awarded to five Monroe County-based nonprofits, bringing the total raised since the event’s inception to more than $2.3 million.
Almost 500 community supporters attended this year’s event, titled “Millions Raised, Thousands Reached.” Within the ballroom of Kalahari Resorts and Conventions, funds were presented to the following local non-profit organizations (in alpha order): Fitzmaurice Community Services, Inc.; Monroe County Habitat for Humanity; Monroe County Meals on Wheels; Monroe County Youth Employment Services; and United Way of Monroe County.
Event founder, Diamond Sponsor and host Sanofi Pasteur once again covered all event costs. As a result, 100 percent of ticket sales and sponsorships directly benefitted the non-profit recipients and their clients.
Monroe County Habitat for Humanity Executive Director Kelly Kemmerer shares, “The Pocono Mountains Community Fundraiser has twice funded our home preservation program. Through that support, challenged homeowners have successfully continued living in their homes in need of repair, ultimately becoming more self-sufficient, more productive community citizens. Consider that type of impact for the clients of the 30 other nonprofit recipients and one can appreciate the true collective impact of the Fundraiser.”
Funding awarded at this year’s event will help the following programs:
- Fitzmaurice Community Services, Inc. -- Employ individuals with disabilities and purchase necessary equipment to operate a first-of-its-kind café at the Eastern Branch of the Eastern Monroe Public Library. This opportunity will provide individuals with disabilities integration into the community and new development opportunities, while enhancing the public’s overall library experience.
- Monroe County Habitat for Humanity – Sustain a home preservation program – helping local homeowners who are affected by low income, age, or disability to receive necessary repairs on their homes.
- Monroe County Meals on Wheels -- Fund a case manager who will connect homebound individuals, often frail and socially isolated, with support services they need to stay healthy, safe, and independent in their homes.
- Monroe County Youth Employment Services -- Continue the Project Success program, which will afford training in leadership, health awareness, career exploration, employability, and entrepreneurship to local youth ages 12 to 24.
- United Way of Monroe County -- Launch the Fresh Change project, a community impact collaboration focused on offering access to healthy, nutritious food to all Monroe County residents. The program will also bring together food pantry partners to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the county’s supplemental feeding system.
Eyewitness News/WBRE-TV/WYOU-TV served as a key media sponsor for the Fundraiser, culminating with Brianna Strunk, Eyewitness News reporter, serving as a co-emcee for tonight’s gala, along with Sanofi Pasteur’s Frank Epifano and Ellyn Schindler. In addition, Eyewitness News/WBRE-TV/WYOU-TV filmed and broadcasted each of the non-profit recipients, highlighting each program supported by the Fundraiser. Guests enjoyed an array of culinary delights by Kalahari and the music of the Jim Roberti Trio.
The agency selection committee, which voted on this year’s non-profit recipients, includes representatives from the following organizations: Desaki Restaurant, East Stroudsburg University, Farr Associates Consulting, LLC, Kalahari Resorts & Conventions, Lehigh Valley Hospital – Pocono, Northampton Community College, Pocono Mountains Economic Development Corporation, Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau, Sanofi Pasteur, and Vigon International.
Past fundraiser recipients include: Burnley Employment and Rehabilitation Services, Equi-librium, Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Pennsylvania, Pocono Alliance, Pocono Services for Families and Children, Salvation Army, Weller Center for Health Education, and Women’s Resources of Monroe County, among others.
Corporate and Media Sponsors for the 2017 Pocono Mountains Community Fundraiser include: Aumvis Pharmatec, Kalahari Resorts & Conventions, Publicis Groupe, and Sanofi Pasteur (Diamond sponsors); LR Costanzo Co., Inc., and St. Luke’s University Health Network (Signature sponsors); East Stroudsburg University/ESU Foundation, Eyewitness News/WBRE-TV/WYOU-TV, Lehigh Valley Hospital – Pocono, Monroe County Bar Foundation, Mount Airy Casino Resort, Relevant Solutions, Sanofi, and Worth & Company, Inc. (Gold sponsors); Adams Outdoor Advertising, Advanced Cleanroom Microclean, Ann & Joseph Farda Foundation, Desaki/The Trapasso Family, DME, DrugDev, Greater Pocono Chamber of Commerce, Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield, Mattioli Foundation, Pocono Manor Investors, LP; Stone Office Inc., Turner Construction Company, Vigon International, and W2O Group (Silver sponsors); ACP Facility Services, Inc., The Braga Family, and ICON Clinical Research (Shining Star sponsors).
About Sanofi
Sanofi, a global healthcare leader, discovers, develops and distributes therapeutic solutions focused on patients’ needs. Sanofi has core strengths in diabetes solutions, human vaccines, innovative drugs, consumer healthcare, emerging markets, animal health and Genzyme. Sanofi is listed in Paris ((EURONEXT: SAN) and in New York (NYSE: SNY).
Sanofi Pasteur, the vaccines division of Sanofi, provides more than 1 billion doses of vaccine each year, making it possible to immunize more than 500 million people across the globe. A world leader in the vaccine industry, Sanofi Pasteur produces a portfolio of high quality vaccines that matches its areas of expertise and meets public-health demand. The company's heritage, to create vaccines that protect life, dates back more than a century. Sanofi Pasteur is the largest company entirely dedicated to vaccines. Every day, the company invests more than EUR 1 million in research and development. For more information, please visit: www.sanofipasteur.com or www.sanofipasteur.us
Contact:
Ellyn Schindler
Director, North America Corporate Social Responsibility and Community Engagement
Sanofi Pasteur
570-957-2689
