The Victory Center 14th Annual Gala

The Students of The Victory Center Win Big at the “Victory Royale Casino Night”

The 14th Annual Gala “Victory Royale Casino Night” – a casino night fundraiser held on Saturday, March 16 2014, at the Westin Diplomat Resort and Spa, Hollywood, Florida brought out a spirited crowd of over 240 Victory Center loyalists for serious socializing, dining and auction bidding. The evening raised over $200,000 in support of The Victory Center’s educational programs and services such as Early Intensive Behavioral Intervention (EIBI), the Victory Academy and the Victory Vocational Program.

Jen Herrera, Local 10 Evening News Anchor was the emcee for the event and shared her passion for the mission of The Victory Center. Her sister is a teacher of children with autism. Guests included prominent members of the banking, real estate, building and legal communities. The event draws from the diverse South Florida community, from South Dade to West Palm Beach. An especially moving Video was shown during the evening’s program highlighting the activities and programs for the students at The Victory Center. Nancy Brown, President of her family’s foundation, The Fritch Foundation, was the evening’s Honoree and is strong supporter of The Victory Center. The Fritch Foundation believes that one person can make a difference and is proud to support the Victory Center for Autism and Related Disabilities.

The Auction raised over $40,000 and was highlighted by a Culinary Tour of Paris going to the highest bidder. It is a tradition at the Gala for the teachers to present a “Wish List” of items for their students and classrooms. This year, the “Wish List” sold out very early in the evening, ensuring many needed items for the students. The silent auction provided some competitive

bidding – a trip to New York brought the highest bids, along with much excitement about the wonderful variety of items available.

A very special guest at the event, Liz Loughrey, along with Adrian X. Ecclestone, entertained during dinner. Ms. Loughrey is a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from Toronto, Canada. Her musical training began at the early age of 5 years old and by 12, she was writing original compositions. Liz has won numerous awards for her talent. With new material scheduled to be released later this year, Liz has spent the last few months writing and recording across North America.

The mission of The Victory Center, a Florida non-sectarian, non–for-profit Corporation, is to provide children with Autism and similar disorders comprehensive individualized therapy. The students receive one-to-one/ two-to-one student- teacher ratio therapy within a classroom setting based on the principals pioneered by B.F. Skinner and his Applied Behavior Analysis.