By Lisa Rimmert, Director of Development
Recently, I visited the Portland, Oregon area for a Team Vegan fundraising event hosted by the incomparable Diane and Dennis. They recently moved from Southern California to Vancouver, Washington—just outside Portland—and offered up their gorgeous new home for a Vegan Outreach event. Thank you, Diane and Dennis!
Taste of Excellence catered the event—and did a wonderful job! The food was creative and tasty, and of course all vegan.
In addition to the catered dishes, we enjoyed dipping pretzels, vegan marshmallows, and fruit into Diane’s new chocolate fountain!
We also got to taste seven flavors of Miyoko’s Kitchen cheeses, thanks to a donation from Miyoko’s. Thank you, Miyoko, Maria, and team!
VO Executive Director Jack Norris provided an overview of what VO has been working on—including our growing international outreach program, the success of our Vegan Mentor Program, and the work our leadership has done to hire and promote women (like me).
Paige and David Carter, who flew in from the Oakland Veg Fest that day, spoke to the crowd about the importance of VO’s work to reach a more diverse audience with a message of compassion for animals.
Then I had the wonderful opportunity of inviting people to donate to continue VO’s work. I was blown away by everyone’s support that day.
This event was a fundraiser for our Team Vegan drive, so all the money donated will be matched dollar-for-dollar. On top of that, three wonderful donors pledged to match $10,000 that day! The event attendees donated $6,380, which means $25,520 for animals. Thank you to everyone who gave so generously!
To donate now to Team Vegan and have your donation matched, click here.