Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward “The Magic of MOTOWN”

South Florida Youth Advocates Honored by Big Brothers Big Sisters at Déjà Vu “Magic of Motown” Celebration and Fundraiser

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward County hosted record breaking crowds at its annual Déjà Vu fundraiser which premiered this year at Hard Rock Live venue at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla. Guests were brought back in time to the splendor of rock and roll’s famed Motown era, enjoyed the music of the era and the spectacular sights and sounds of the 1960s and 1970s and celebrated Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward’s 40th Anniversary. The event was an incredible success with more than $270,000 contributed to support the programs and services for the children enrolled in Big Brothers Big Sisters.

At the heart of the event is the recognition of select child advocates in South Florida. Déjà Vu honorees include Child Advocate of the Year, Robert Leider and Visionary Corporation of the Year Royal Caribbean International and Corporate Impact Award, Gables Engineering. In addition, a Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to John Weller in consideration of his decades of support for the organization. Throughout the night, the honorees were celebrated for their personal motivation, desire and action in giving back to the youth of South Florida, and receive gold records acknowledging their “chart-topping performance.”

The “Magic of Motown” theme commemorates the celebration of one of South Florida’s most honored charity events at Hard Rock Live, a venue that exudes the spirit of rock ‘n’ roll and the excitement that Déjà Vu delivers to the South Florida community each year.

Thanks to the planning of event co- chairs Susan Renneisen and Alyssa Lovitt , attendees experienced non-stop dancing, live entertainment acts, large scale dance productions and the always anticipated, top secret live headline performer. This year The Sugar Hill Gang performance brought down the house with extended versions of their hits and musical medleys. At evening’s end they invited guests up on stage with them for the final encore. The evening was as one guest proclaimed “the best party ever”. Doug Jones and Sixth Star Entertainment once again produced the annual event, which topped the 2013 Biz Bash magazine’s list of top benefits events in South Florida again this year with a #6 rating.

“We are proud to live and work in a community that is so dedicated to its children – to developing them into our leaders of today and tomorrow. Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward County and Déjà vu features those who work tirelessly towards the same goal that all children achieve success in life,” says Susan Renneisen and Alyssa Lovitt, event Co-Chairs. “Through events like Déjà Vu and all our annual fundraising efforts, we help children achieve success in life by realizing greater confidence, academic achievement and avoidance of risky behaviors.”

Big Brothers Big Sisters thanks its Déjà Vu sponsors for their ongoing support: Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Sixth Star Entertainment & Marketing, Printing Corporation of the Americas, Marketing Matters, Publix Super Markets, Inc, BB & T, JM Family Enterprises, WSVN, Comcast, AutoNation, Inc., Royal Caribbean International, Timpano, SCG & Associates and Miller Construction Company.

For more information about our 2014 event, auction donations and sponsorship opportunities, please call (954) 584-9990 or email dejavu@bbbsbroward.org.

About Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward County
Big Brothers Big Sisters, the nation’s largest donor and volunteer supported mentoring network, holds itself accountable for children in its program to achieve measurable outcomes, such as educational success; avoidance of risky behaviors; and higher aspirations, greater confidence and better relationships.  Partnering with parents/guardians, schools, corporations and others in the community, Big Brothers Big Sisters carefully pairs children (“Littles”) with screened volunteer mentors (“Bigs”) and monitors and supports these one-to-one mentoring matches throughout their course.  Big Brothers Big Sisters Youth Outcomes Survey Report reinforces the mentoring program’s evidence base of positive academic, socio-emotional and behavioral outcomes for youth, areas linked to high school graduation, avoidance of juvenile delinquency and college or job readiness.