Huntington Community to Come Together for Hope Through Health
Since graduating from Huntington High School in 2000, Jennifer Schechter has become a full-fledged humanitarian. After earning an undergraduate degree at Georgetown University, she completed a stint with the Peace Corps and now serves as executive director of Hope Through Health, an international organization that offers technical and financial assistance to community-directed health initiatives in West Africa.
A group of Huntington community members will come together at the Huntington Yacht Club for a fundraising cocktail party and silent auction to benefit HTH on Saturday, November 15 from 7 to 9 p.m. Tickets to the event are priced at $75 per person and include food and open refreshments.
The evening is expected attract a crowd of more than 200, most of them Huntington residents and business leaders. Local merchants, businesses and organizations have offered their support. Two previous events raised a combined $29,000, creating high hopes for success this year.
The event is being organized by Ms. Schechter, who volunteered for two years with the Peace Corps in Togo, West Africa, her parents Evie and Duncan and a committee of friends and neighbors. Ms. Schechter volunteered with the Peace Corps in Togo, West Africa from 2004 to 2006.
Proceeds from the evening will help provide lifesaving treatment to people living with AIDS Togo. Hope Through Health currently provides comprehensive medical, nutritional and psychosocial services to more than 1,300 people in Togo living with HIV/AIDS. The organization has recently expanded its program to prevent the transmission of HIV from mothers to infants. For more information on HTH and its activities, visit www.hthglobal.org.
"I have had the pleasure of working closely with Hope Through Health both in Togo and here in the United States," Jennifer Schechter said. "I have seen firsthand how a few dollars can save a life in Togo and how often lives are lost because of a lack of resources. I can also attest to HTH's commitment to ensuring that every dollar received is spent directly on much-needed services for patients and their children.”
Hope Through Health spends 99 cents out of every dollar received on its programs in Togo and is funded largely by small individual donations. “Having volunteered with HTH for over three years, I am inspired by the generosity of individual Americans,” Ms. Schechter said. “They know that when they give to HTH their donation goes directly to those who need it most. Many of our supporters pledge twenty dollars a month, which is enough to cover the costs of treating one patient in Togo for an entire year. All it takes is the decision to get involved.”
For more information on the event or to reserve tickets, contact Evie Schechter at (631) 427-1486 or (516) 885-3203 or by e-mail at: dschecht@optonline.net. If the event doesn’t sell-out in advance, tickets will be available at the door.
“The event is not only a fundraiser for a worthy organization, but also an opportunity to recognize the humanitarian contributions of local businesses and individuals," Ms. Schechter said.
The Huntington Yacht Club is located at 95 East Shore Road in Huntington.
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