National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Dana Gioia and actress Karri Turner of "JAG" and "Heroes" television series fame will be participants in the 2007 SemperComm Gala. The Gala, set for May 10 at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, VA, is the SemperComm Foundation's major annual fundraising event, featuring a black-tie dinner, a performance by country singer Chely Wright, and both a live and silent auction of several donated items.
SPRINGFIELD, Va. (BusinessWire EON) May 2, 2007 --
National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Dana Gioia and actress Karri
Turner of “JAG” and “Heroes”
television series fame will be participants in the 2007 SemperComm Gala.
The Gala, set for May 10 at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington,
VA, is the SemperComm Foundation’s major
annual fundraising event, featuring a black-tie dinner, a performance by
country singer Chely Wright, and both a live and silent auction of
several donated items.
Gioia, an internationally acclaimed poet, critic, educator and former
business executive, has served as NEA Chairman since 2003. As part of
his special guest appearance at the Gala, Gioia will discuss Operation
Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience, an NEA program that
preserves the stories and reflections of U.S. military personnel who
served in Afghanistan and Iraq and their families.
“The SemperComm Foundation's mission—helping
our nation's deployed troops communicate with their loved ones—is
an essential and noble undertaking,” Gioia
said, adding, “I am deeply honored to speak
at the 2007 SemperComm Gala.”
Turner has supported SemperComm events in the past and will be the emcee
for this year’s Gala. “I'm
super proud to be a part of another SemperComm event. I love the men and
women of our military and support their missions and know how much this
organization does to help them. Through organizations like this, I've
met amazing people...the ones who give their lives ...and the ones who
support them. I'm honored to be there again!”
she said.
Turner appears through SemperComm’s major
partner, Stars For Stripes, a nonprofit organization dedicated to
bringing live celebrity entertainment to U.S. troops based overseas. In
the last three years, she has performed at U.S. bases in both Iraq and
Afghanistan as part of a number of different military support
organization tours, including one sponsored by Stars For Stripes.
“We’re certainly
pleased about how much public support we’re
getting this year for our efforts,” said Lara
Coffee, SemperComm’s executive director. “Karri
and Dana both add quite a depth of recognition to our event that we’ve
never had before, and it’s gratifying to have
them both on board.”
Tickets are still available for this event. For more information, go to www.sempercommgala.org,
or call 703-923-7611.
About The SemperComm Foundation
The SemperComm Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charity dedicated to supplying
morale-boosting communications and entertainment equipment, software and
services to small, overseas remote U.S. military bases. SemperComm
receives major support from Computer Systems Center Incorporated,
a unique defense-oriented software development company; Stars For
Stripes, a nonprofit that brings celebrity entertainment to U.S.
military personnel; and PC Recycler, an electronics recycling and
services company. For information about SemperComm, visit www.sempercomm.org.
NOTE: Printable photos of Dana Gioia and Karri Turner can be
downloaded from the Media Room on the SemperComm website at www.sempercomm.org.
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