Upward Bound Hosts “Welcome Home” with Artist Ruth Leaf

Upward Bound House presented The Ritz Carlton, Marina del Rey with its Corporate Spirit Award and Ruth Leaf and Dr. Jane Spiegel with its Humanitarian Award at its annual Welcome Home Celebration on Thursday, October 20th, 2011. The event was hosted by Sony Studios on their lot in Culver City.

Christopher Ford, Vice President of Asset Management for Host Hotels and Resorts, Inc. presented The Ritz-Carlton, Marina del Rey with its award, citing how the hotel has supported Upward Bound House through a number of high-impact initiatives, including Upward Bound House’s ‘Adopt-an-Apartment’ home makeover program, teaching life skills classes for the parents at Upward Bound House, collecting and donating linens, toiletries, and bikes for the kids, and even hosting a Spring brunch on-site at Upward Bound House.

Ruth Leaf is a prominent artist whose work has been exhibited at prestigious galleries across the country and has received numerous awards and accolades, including the Library of Congress -Purchase Award. In 2007, Ruth Leaf approached Dr. Jane Spiegel and offered to donate 100% of the proceeds of her artwork to support Upward Bound House’s mission.

Dr. Spiegel, a long-standing Board Member at Upward Bound House and internist at St. John’s Hospital, has sold Ruth’s work at art shows, receptions, and even converting her medical office into a gallery. Dr. Spiegel and Ms. Leaf have generated over $100,000 in support for Upward Bound House!

The evening’s theme was a ‘Night in New Orleans’ and featured tasting menus from leading Los Angeles restaurants, including Acadie, Akasha, Always’s Cookin’ Catering, Barney’s Beanery, Cake Divas, Coral Tree Café, Fogo de Chao, Friandise Pastries, jer-ne, Louise’s Trattoria, Pama, Pitfire Pizza, Pop Candy, Round’s Premium Burgers, Sakura’s Gourmet Cupcakes, Uncle Darrow’s, Urth Café & Wolfgang Puck.

Event sponsors include Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, California United Bank, CorpInfo Services, Ernst & Young, Gang Tyre Ramer & Brown, Inc., rbz, llp., Related of California, and Sony Pictures Studios.

Upward Bound House is a leading non-profit agency headquartered in Santa Monica. Since 1997, more than 1,200 individuals – including over 750 children – have graduated from Upward Bound House and are no longer homeless. For more information about Upward Bound House, please visit www.upwardboundhouse.org.