Breakfast of Hope raises $150,000 for Esperanza

A glorious spring morning provided the perfect backdrop for the inspirational messages delivered at the 3rd Annual Esperanza Academy Breakfast of Hope, held April 17 at the Andover Country Club. Great Women to Know sponsored the event, which raised $150,000 from both direct donations and 5-year pledges. This qualified the school for a matching grant of $100,000 from an anonymous donor.

One of Esperanza's major fundraising events of the year, the Breakfast of Hope is designed to interest new donors and volunteers in supporting the school. Great Women to Know provided a $5,000 financial contribution to cover the cost of the breakfast, which was free to guests. Great Women to Know members also acted as table captains, reaching out to their networks of friends, colleagues and family members to ensure a packed house. There were 250 guests in attendance, approximately 45 percent of whom were there as a direct result of invitations from GWTK. All sixty of the Esperanza girls and their teachers attended the event, as well as some of their parents. The girls sang for the group and joined the guests at their tables to eat breakfast.

Laurie Bottiger, Esperanza's Head of School said, "Esperanza is dependent on individuals and organizations to fulfill its mission of educating middle school girls. Groups like Great Women to Know contribute on so many levels to our students and their families. We are thrilled to have involvement from such talented and generous women."

The decision to sponsor the event was made at a special meeting of the GWTK general membership on March 5. About 25 members of GWTK who attended the special meeting unanimously voted to have GWTK sponsor the Breakfast of Hope.

Special thanks to our table captains Lucy Abisalih, Amy Aycock, Denise Bordonaro, Emma Campbell, Andrea Carlin, Susan Carlton, Deb Gray, Elizabeth Harris, Cheryl Juba, Amy Moore, Meg Rokos, Lea Savely, Merit Tukiainen, DC Ware and Karen Wood, and to all the Great Women to Know who attended the event and contributed to the Breakfast of Hope.

Members of GWTK who have not visited Esperanza are invited to a Garden Street Coffee at the school on Wednesday, May 7, 8:30-9:30 a.m. RSVP to Susan Casey, Development Director at 978/686-4673 ext 13 or susan.casey@esperanzaacademy.org.