$226,000 Donated to Pursuit of Excellence, South Bay
The Summit League held their biennial event titled “A Day in The Garden with Friends” at the historic Villa Montalvo Arts Center on June 1, 2023. This was an inspirational event featuring guest speakers Maria Shriver and Jessica Aguirre. The luncheon also offered a curated shopping experience while raising awareness and funds for Santa Clara Valley community nonprofit agencies. The primary beneficiary of this event was Pursuit of Excellence - South Bay, which provides both financial support and mentorship to deserving Bay Area students pursuing advanced education. Each student is paired with a volunteer mentor, who coaches the student throughout their college career. Ninety-eight percent of POE-South Bay funds go directly to support student scholarships as this is an all-volunteer organization, with no salaries or office expenses.
Co-Chairs (L-R) Liz Ferrari and Gretchen DiNapoli welcome guests.
“POE-South Bay is sincerely appreciative to have been Summit League’s 2023 grant recipient as their donation and level of support for our mission was more than we ever imagined! Casting a light on the financial and mentoring needs of well-deserving, low income students at the fundraising event was invaluable. With the funds raised, our all-volunteer scholarship program has been able to expand by adding another high school in San Jose and to increase the grants to our current students as college costs continue to rise.”
— Donna Guldimann and Rosemary Rossi, Founding Directors
The event was co-chaired by local philanthropists and Summit League members, Gretchen DiNapoli and Liz Ferrari. Gretchen and Liz are both very active in the community and run local businesses.
“The Summit League, founded in 1957, is a longstanding local non-profit women’s organization committed to supporting local community needs in the areas of education, health, welfare, and the arts” described current president Marianna Samson.
PoE leaders and scholarship recipient pose with featured speaker Maria Shriver.
Jessica Aguirre, the 5, 6 and 11 p.m. evening anchor at NBC Bay Area News and an Emmy award winning journalist, interviewed Ms. Shriver on the beautiful outdoor stage at Montalvo Arts Center. The wide-ranging conversation encompassed women’s health and many other pressing issues affecting women and families today. As a mother of four, an Emmy and Peabody award-winning journalist, a seven-time New York Times best-selling author, an NBC News Special Anchor, Ms. Shriver is also the founder of Shriver Media, and co-founder of the mission-driven brain health and wellness brand, MOSH. She brings a unique perspective to health and wellness issues, having also founded the Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement (WAM,) which in February 2022 joined forces with the Cleveland Clinic to become WAM at Cleveland Clinic, where she now also serves as a Strategic Partner for Women’s Health and Alzheimer’s.
The program struck an optimistic note with both speakers inspiring the audience to use their hearts and minds to elevate the voices of others who are moving humanity forward. Finally, Ms. Shriver encouraged everyone in the audience that it is never too late to find meaning and purpose and each individual can make a unique difference and impact in making their communities a better place.
