One of the biggest names in the NFL has joined some of the biggest names in South Florida’s business community to raise money for Parkland Cares.
First fundraiser is April 25 at the house of StevenDouglas CEO Steve Sadaka
PARKLAND, Fla., April 18, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- One of the biggest names in the NFL has joined some of the biggest names in South Florida’s business community to raise money for Parkland Cares.
Pro Football Hall of Famer Jason Taylor has declared his support for Parkland Cares, the charity that seeks to provide long-term mental health counseling for the families and victims of the tragic shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Parkland Cares will also create a model program that can be used nationwide.
Taylor is a former Miami Dolphins defensive end and All Pro who works closely with Steve Sadaka, CEO of StevenDouglas, one of the nation’s leading boutique search and project-based professional services firm. Sadaka also sits on the board of the Jason Taylor Foundation, an organization he has been involved with for almost 10 years.
Each year, Taylor and Sadaka host an exclusive event at Sadaka’s house for anyone who donates $1,000 towards the Jason Taylor Reading Room, which works with middle-school children in the area of literacy, but has recently expanded into college scholarships and even a widely lauded poetry program, the Omari Hardwick bluapple Poetry Network.
“Jason told me recently that he wanted to do something to support the kids of Marjory Stoneman Douglas, but we didn’t know what exactly to do,” Sadaka says. “Then a few days later, I get a call from Howard Dvorkin about Parkland Cares. I said, ‘Whoa, this is perfect.’ It’s inspiring.’'
Dvorkin is Chairman of the financial solutions company Debt.com and a 30-year Parkland resident who created Parkland Cares. And that’s how the idea for the April 25 fundraiser came to be.
Sadaka is encouraging his donor list to exceed the $240,000 he and Taylor raised last year. “We are giving 100% of proceeds above $225,000 directly to Parkland Cares because we are committed to making a significant contribution. Our goal this year is to raise over $300,000,” said Sadaka.
For his part, Dvorkin has offered to match that amount. “I hope I have to donate a lot of money that night,” says Dvorkin, who’s already committed $250,000 to Parkland Cares, which he launched shortly after the Valentine’s Day tragedy. “While I’ve donated to mental health causes in the past, and I’ve sat on the board of mental health agencies, nothing is more important to me now or ever than Parkland Cares.”
Anyone who donates $1,000 receives exclusive event invitations, including the April 25th event at the home of Sadaka, as well as a June 5th private event at Smoke on the Water Cigar Bar in Weston, Fl. Jason Taylor will be present at both events, and the April 25th event will include students from the bluapple Poetry Network performing spoken word.
For event tickets go to https://www.flipcause.com/secure/fundraiser/Mjk3ODI=/14456 or to donate visit Parkland Cares.
For questions/information, contact Heather Roberts at 954-385-8595 or hroberts@stevendouglas.com.
