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Celebrities Serve as Bingo Callers in Benefit to Build New School in Sudan
Save the Children to Build and Equip School in Atok, Where No School Exists Today
Washington, DC (October 10, 2007) — A group of committed Los Angelinos including Felicity Huffman, Helen Hunt, Ricki Lake, Anthony LaPaglia, Bill Macy, Neil Patrick Harris and Steven Weber joined Save the Children this past Saturday night to host a Bingo Night that raised funds to build a school in the village of Atok in the Nuba Mountains of Sudan.
Due to decades of war, no schools for children exist today in many areas of Sudan including the village of Atok.
The special fundraising event coincides with the first anniversary of Save the Children's Rewrite the Future campaign which seeks to address the educational needs of an estimated 39 million children whose living situations are so unstable as a result of war and conflict that they are prevented from attending school.
Actresses, writers and producers from the television and movie industry put together the event including Gabrielle Allan-Greenberg, Gia Carides, Jennifer Crittenden, Jackie Filgo, Juliette Hohnen, Elizabeth Ingold, Allison Smith, Jamie Tarses, and Katie Tarses.
LaPaglia and Weber, whose wives are on the committee, emceed the agency's second annual live auction in Los Angeles. Last year's event helped build a school for 270 children in the remote area of Dendi, Ethiopia.
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Actors Steven Weber and Anthony Lapaglia emceed Save the Children's celebrity bingo event. Photo Credit: Tiffany Koury |
"We want to thank all the generous people in the television and movie industry in Los Angeles who came out last weekend to help the children of Atok, Sudan, go to school for the first time," said Charles MacCormack, President and CEO of Save the Children USA. "Education is essential in helping to rebuild communities after conflict and key to helping lay the groundwork for personal growth, economic growth and political development."
Save the Children has worked on behalf of children in Sudan for more than a decade. Before the current conflict in Sudan's Darfur State captured the world's attention, much of Sudan was ravaged by a decades-long civil war. The village of Atok lies within one of most neglected and underdeveloped regions of Sudan – the Dilling district of South Kordofan State – an area with one of the lowest life expectancies in the world, where school enrollment is as low as 5 percent. Although there is no school in Atok currently, Sudanese officials have authorized the creation of a primary school there and families have indicated that education for their children is a top priority.
In areas of war and conflict, education is often among the first casualties. Schools close, teachers flee or are recruited into the military, and school systems are no longer funded. This puts children at risk, making them easier targets for recruitment as child soldiers, or exploitation as cheap labor. It also increases their vulnerability to trafficking and abuse.
A year after the launch of the agency's Rewrite the Future campaign, Save the Children has assisted 3.4 million children in more than 20 countries and put the issue of education for children in communities affected by war on the world's agenda. In addition, Save the Children has helped mobilize support from governments, corporations and individual contributors. The UK and Dutch governments have committed nearly $600 million in new international assistance to support education-in-crisis programs. In the United States, the Education for All Act was introduced in Congress to provide $10 billion over the next five years for education. The legislation seeks to prioritize education in emergency responses, and ensure that education receives priority investment status in conflict-affected countries.
Media Contacts:
Mike Kiernan, 202-261-4686, mkiernan@savechildren.org
Ana Rahona, 202-236-5341, arahona@savechildren.org
