Inaugural Charity Event to Benefit Local Students in Need of College Assistance

The
Josie Pearl Memorial Scholarship will holds its inaugural “Josie Pearl Memorial
Scholarship Celebration” on Saturday, October 5, 2013, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.,
at the Sunroad Resort Marina, located at 955 Harbor Island Drive. Supporters,
sponsors, and the public are invited to join together to help raise dollars to
support grants for local students in need of college funds. The festive event
will entertain guests with wonderful hors d’oeuvres, fine wines, craft beer,
and auction filled with exciting opportunities and the soothing musical sounds
of the Lenny Morris band. The goal of
the 2013 charity event is to raise more than $10,000 to support local youth.

The
Josie Pearl Memorial Scholarship fund was launched by Carmel Valley resident
and local high school teacher, Staci Ortiz-Davis, who won the title of Mrs.
California International, 2014, in August. As California’s representative, she
will champion her passion of education throughout the year, as well as expand
the scholarship foundation she created last year.

“My
98-year-old grandmother, Josie Pearl, died in 2011,” said Ortiz-Davis, “and was
a depression-era child who was forced to drop out of school and work the family
farm to make ends meet. For her, education was a privilege, not a right, so I
stared the Josie Pearl Memorial Scholarship to ensure students today don’t
suffer the same fate.”

Last
year, the Josie Pearl Memorial Scholarship awarded $3,000 to a Torrey Pines
High School student who is now attending Johnson and Wales University in
Florida.

Tickets
to the event are $40 before October 4 and $50 at the door. For more
information, or to purchase tickets, please visit https://josiepearlscholarship.eventbrite.com, and “Like”
The Josie Pearl Memorial Scholarship on Facebook for regular updates.