BOCA RATON — More than 50 OPAL Awards committee members, Rotary Club of Boca Raton board members, sponsors, past OPAL honorees and 2011 OPAL honorees recently attended a “Meet and Greet” reception at Spanish River Library. The event was hosted by 2011 OPAL co-chairs Ingrid Fulmer and Neil Saffer and the OPAL Committee.
The OPAL honorees for 2011 are Dr. David Robbe (Education), Jerry Fedele (Healthcare), Emily Lilly (Civil Service), Arlene & Jim Sclafani (Private Sector), Marta Batmasian (Community Service), and a new category Lifetime Achievement Award; Flossy Keesely as Outstanding People 
And Leaders in the community.
“This pre-gala event has become a tradition for our OPAL committee where we have the opportunity to introduce the honorees to the committee, sponsors and board and take photos to promote the event”, noted Neil Saffer.
The Rotary Club of Boca Raton’s 14th Annual OPAL (Outstanding People and Leaders) Awards Gala will be held January 22 at Boca Pointe Country Club. A red carpet “Hollywood Style Awards Show” will be the theme for the annual fundraiser with proceeds allocated for scholarships that will be awarded to local college bound students in need.
The “meet and greet” included an overview presentation by Rotary President, Alan Kaye, introductions of the honorees by Neil Saffer and examples by Ingrid Fulmer of how Rotary provides mentorship and scholarships for specific students in the community. All the food for the evening was donated by Jamie Gulden and her restaurant Set The Table. The wine was donated by Neil and Trisha Saffer.
“We are repeating the very successful “chance to win” prize drawing as part of our fundraising efforts”, noted 2010 OPAL co-chair and this year’s president, Alan Kaye. Tickets are currently on sale and are selling briskly, he said, offering chances to win $10,000 cash, a piece of jewelry donated by Tiffany & Company or a two-night stay at the Boca Beach Club, donated by the Boca Resort & Club.
“Last year we were sold out with a waiting list and we are very enthusiastic about the response we are receiving from our club and the community for this year’s honorees,” noted 2010 OPAL recipient and 2011 Co-Chair Ingrid Fulmer. She added that the “highlights of the evening will include a lavish three-course dinner, dancing to the live performances of Carl Padilla, a live auction by Neil Saffer, professional auctioneer and the OPAL Awards Presentation.”
Current Community partners for the 2011 OPAL Awards include; All Star Engraving, The Duffey Law Firm, BB&T, Celebrity Cruises, Coca Cola, Ingrid & Fred Fulmer, HSBC Bank, Kaye Communications, Inc., Kaye Group/Commercial Real Estate, Flossy Keesely, Rosemary & Ben Krieger, Boca Color Graphics, Boca Raton Resort & Club, Boca Raton Magazine, Matrix Home Care, LLC., Miami Systems, General Contractors, Inc., Morton’s The Steakhouse, Multi-Image Group, Mummaw Associates, Inc., Richman Advisors, Tiffany & Company, Yaakov Heller, Uncle Tai’s, Zimmer Construction, Inc.
Providing college scholarships to worthy candidates has been the primary focus of the Rotary Club of Boca Raton who have been changing lives and building futures for more than twenty years. In 2010, the club awarded four-year college scholarships (including a laptop computer stipend) to eight deserving local high school students. These scholarships assist worthy young men and women in our community in the pursuit of their dreams. Proceeds from the OPAL Gala will again provide scholarships and laptops for deserving Boca Raton area students.