Hamilton Jewelers Honors War Heroes from Five Wars

July 6, 2012 - PRLog -- Hamilton Jewelers will honor local war heroes from five wars during a fundraiser benefiting the West Palm Beach chapter of Friends of Fisher House,  Wednesday, July 11 from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. at Taboo Restaurant on Worth Avenue. Hamilton Jewelers will present the 12 U.S Veterans with a leather/croc frame to commemorate the evening.  The event is hosted by Taboo and sponsored by Tito Vodka.

Other Worth Avenue merchants quick to jump on board to support this worthy event include Christofle, who generously offered beautiful sterling silver bookmarks for all volunteers.  Sequin Boutique extended its hours to welcome the overflow of guests and host the ‘chinese auction’ including a $4,000 Swiss Camp voucher offered by Village Camps; Juicy Couture will host the Black River Caviar tasting and is offering generous patrons special gift bags.  Other Palm Beach business supporters include Stubbs and Wootton, Emilio Pucci, Key Leaf, Island Company, Badgley Mischka, The Breakers and The Ritz Carlton Club in Jupiter.

Honored veterans include Palm Beach resident Joseph Dryer, one of the few remaining survivors of the attack on Iwo Jima; Jerold Klein, Friends of Fisher House Treasurer and recipient of the Silver Star for heroism in Vietnam; Daniel R. Baer who served in World War II; Rodman Steele a Vietnam Vet, Desmond Price who was deployed five times, and recently returned from Iraq and Afghanistan, and Ted Task and Frank Hogan who both served as US Marines during the Korean War. Also being honored are: Leo Lazar, Scott Barber and Patrick Rielly.  

Area ‘celebrity’ personalities offering to ‘pour’ to raise money include: NFL Hall of Famer Tucker Frederickson; American Le Mans race car driver Jay Cochran; Food Network Reality Show Personality Josh Lyons, Production and Event Maestro, Bruce Sutka, Television Personality Robert Riva, CBS Technical Correspondent Herb Tabin, HGTV Design Star Celebrity Miera Melba, Former MGM Actress / Vietnam Radio Personality for troops Chris Noel, South Florida builder/developer/promoter Michael Capponi; President/CEO of Douglas Elliman, Vanessa Grout; and many other Palm Beach movers and shakers.  

Other local notables ‘pouring’ for donations include Arvo Katajisto, Reid Boren, Andres Fanjul, Brad Deflin, Tommy Morrison, Jim Pappas, Lori Stoll, Ronnie and Jeni Garcia, Jeff Koons, Leslie Linder, Daniel Jennings, Marissa Pepper, Philip Nicozisis, Pamela Tombari and Alexis Posada.   Local promoter Neil London and photographer Michael Price have offered their services for the night.  DeeJay Adam Lipson and Bruce Sutka of Sutra Productions have also offered to donate their time for the worthy cause.  

Palm Beach residents generously sponsoring the cause include the Fanjul Family, Diane and Llwyd Ecclestone, Candia Fisher, Jane Holzer, Franklyn di Marco, Carlos Morrison, Bruce Sutka, and Diane de la Begassière.  

Says Fisher House President Joe Tringali, “The community has come together to support those who have so diligently served our country. We are so grateful to the individuals and businesses that are supporting this exciting event.”

If you would like more information on this topic or to schedule an interview, please call Linda Soper at (612) 308.4159 or email: linda@lindalanemarketing.com.

About Fisher House:
The Fisher House program is a unique private-public partnership that supports America's service men and women in their time of greatest need.  Families do not pay to stay at Fisher Houses, which serve as a "home away from home" for them while their loved ones are receiving medical care at major military and VA medical centers.  
The program was the brainchild of New York real estate developer and philanthropist Zachary Fisher and his wife Elizabeth who opened the first "Zachary and Elizabeth Fisher House" at the National Naval Medical Center Bethesda, Maryland on 24 June 1990.  There are now over 50 Fisher Houses throughout the United States, and the program is growing every year in response to the needs of veterans and their families.  More than 183,000 days of lodging are provided by Fisher Houses every year.  
The local Fisher House is an eight-bedroom facility situated on the West Palm Beach VA Medical Center campus. It has been in operation since 1995, and has accommodated approximately 10,100 families.  Each guest room has a laptop with Wi-Fi Internet, flat screen TV, and a DVD/VCR player. Families are welcomed to use a fully stocked kitchen to provide for their meals.  The homey living room has an extensive library of books, DVD's and games, and the shaded patio overlooking the quiet lake behind the house provides a much- needed respite for families after caring for their loved ones at the Medical Center.
The Friends of the Fisher House, a charitable corporation recognized under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, supports all the needs of the West Palm Beach VA Fisher House. Board members volunteer their time and talents to raise funds for food, supplies and necessary capital improvements. In the words of Board President Joseph A. Tringali, "The expenses of the Board are zero and will remain that way." The Friends of Fisher House have also established a voucher program with selected area hotels to take care of families when Fisher House has no vacancies.
The Friends of Fisher House anticipates the demand for rooms will continue to increase, especially now that the West Palm Beach VA Medical Center has a major cancer treatment facility.  They believe that America owes a debt to its veterans and their families who deserve to be fully supported in their time of need with safe and convenient lodging while in the West Palm Beach area for medical treatment. One Board member summed up our obligation to our veterans with one simple statement – “We have a ‘land of the free’ because of the brave!"