By Cindy Schutt
Five hundred guests – sporting exceptionally enormous hair, over-the-top sequined attire, gregariously loud makeup and Elton John-like platforms – traveled back in time to the excesses of Studio 54 at The Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Déjà Vu gala. Déjà Vu, headlined by 80s multi-platinum recording artist Exposé, raised $292,830 in support of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward County.
“We pulled off a successful, sold-out gala, thanks to our amazing supporters, with all the trappings of a ‘disco made me do it’ Studio 54 theme,” said Ana Cedeño, president and CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward County. “The recreation of the world’s most iconic discotheque combined with the performance of 80s dance-music royalty, Exposé, made for a fabulous evening.”
Exposé, one of the most successful girl groups of all time, burst onto the music scene in the 80s with more Top 10 hits from a debut album than any other artist. The Exposé trio, Gioia Bruno, Ann Curless and Jeanette Jurado, performed chart-topping songs including Seasons Change, Come Go with Me and Let Me Be The One, among others, culminating with fan favorite, Point of No Return.
In addition to the pop beat of Exposé, Déjà Vu featured the ever-popular Shane Duncan/All Access Band, who played the top hits from the 80s to today. Déjà Vu, co-chaired by Alyssa Lovitt of I LOVE-ITT EVENTS and Susan Renneisen of The Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, also recognized honorees who are huge supporters of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward. They included:
Kristi Krueger, Child Advocate of the Year: Kristi Krueger, anchor and award-winning medical reporter for WPLG Local10, is closely connected to the Big Brothers Big Sisters mission. She learned firsthand how the organization protects potential as a Big Sister to Luisa, who now has a nursing career and is a mother of two boys. For the past two years, Krueger has emceed Big Brothers Big Sisters LittleBig GlamSlam, a fundraising event featuring community leaders who walk the runway for a great cause.
Florida Panthers, Visionary Corporation of the Year: The Florida Panthers has supported Big Brothers Big Sisters financially through the Panthers Community Champions Grant and programmatically through the Big Brothers Big Sisters School to Work program. As part of School to Work, Florida Panthers executives offer career mentoring to 14 Piper High School 10th and 11th graders, teaching them about Florida Panthers hockey, what it takes to run a large-scale arena, and how to attain workplace skills and career opportunities. One Panthers mentor, Dennis Docil, was one of the first to participate in the Big Brothers Big Sisters new initiative, BigPride, focused specifically on the needs of LGBTQ youth. The mission of the Florida Panthers is to compete relentlessly on and off the ice, and to enrich the Florida Panthers Community through exciting events and exemplary service.
Coleen Sterns Leith, Champion for Children: Coleen Sterns Leith has served on the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward County board of directors for 9 years, where she has offered sound and consistent pro bono marketing advice while supporting the organization financially through event sponsorships and contributions. Sterns Leith is president and founder of Marketing Matters, an agency working exclusively with small and medium‐sized technology companies. For the past 20 years, Marketing Matters has been the agency of choice for companies like Bose and Sharp to launch new technology.
The recognition of these upstanding community members at Déjà Vu was made possible by the financial supporters of the event. In addition to Marquis Sponsor Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, sponsors included: Tina Turner Title Sponsor Publix Super Markets Charities; Production Sponsor Sixth Star Entertainment; Diana Ross Diamond Sponsors JM Family Enterprises and Ultimate Software; Elton John Platinum Sponsors PCA and Wells Fargo; and Grace Jones Gold Sponsors Apotex, Broward Health, Comcast , Crowe, Gables Engineering and Van Horn Law Group.
A – Doug Jones, Susan Renneisen, Kristi Krueger, Ana Cedeno, Alyssa Lovitt
B – Susan Renneisen, Colleen Sterns Leith, Alyssa Lovitt
C – John Adams, Dennis Docil, Lindsay Bohlen
D – Chad Van Horn, Gabriela Paez, Shelley and Tom Burkett
E – Ana Cedeno, Susan Renneisen
F – Nayibe and Dan Young
G – Little Sister Saleen, National Big Sister of the Year Myra Camino
H – Dawn Stagliano, Doug Jones
I – Nick Mazzurco, Laura Teboul, Fabiola Martinez, Bill Saunderson
J – Carey Warburton, Peter Neirouz
K – Jim McEachern, Christin Gray, Karen McEachern, Mike Gray
L – Marlene Williams
M – Suzanne Higgins, Wendy Gaugler, Cammy Richards, Dana Duquesne, Nancy Tanner, Pam Masters
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