John Muir Elementary School is raising the eco-bar at this year’s Silent Auction Dinner and Dance, titled “Paint a Bright Future,” to be held at Bergamot Station on March 24.
“To honor our school’s namesake, naturalist John Muir, we are taking on the challenge of keeping our event’s environmental impact to a minimum” explains Silent Auction Chair Thea Mercouffer. “To this end, we’ll team up with the Santa Monica Environmental Division and LA’s TreePeople to calculate the final environmental impact of the event, and offset it by planting trees throughout Santa Monica. The plantings will commence on April 21, John Muir’s birthday, and will be done by students under the guidance of TreePeople.” The organizers are also taking extra steps in planning an eco-friendly evening: they are using only recycled materials for programs and invitations, will aim for zero-waste and will even reward carpoolers with fun prizes.
The City of Santa Monica is very excited about the school’s environmental commitment. “How inspiring,” says Santa Monica City Councilmember Kevin McKeown, “to see John Muir Elementary students, parents and staff taking the lead, and deliberately modeling the policies Santa Monica is adopting.”
The famous Library Alehouse, a Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce “Sustainable Quality Award” winner, will cater the event and will also be one of the sponsors. John Muir Elementary approached the Library Alehouse specifically because of its active commitment to sustainability. “We believe in supporting public education on a local level,” says Alehouse owner David Lackman. “When we heard of John Muir’s focus for this event, we jumped at the opportunity to also be a sponsor because we feel it’s important for local businesses to join local organizations in an effort to improve our community.”
The entire school is galvanized around this year’s Silent Auction Dinner and Dance. John Muir Principal Martha Duran-Contreras comments: “This fundraiser normally helps us pay for our art, science and technology programs. However, this year we feel the event itself is teaching us about our world and the way we interact with it. We are very grateful for, and encouraged by, the impressive auction gifts and financial donations we’ve been receiving from Santa Monica and Greater LA businesses. A small school can indeed make a big difference – especially in such a great community as ours!”
“Paint a Bright Future” will be held Saturday, March 24, from 6:00-11:00 p.m. at the Writers Boot Camp in Bergamot Station, 2525 Michigan Avenue, Building I. Tickets are $45-$55 and can be purchased by calling 310.399.7721 x181.