VOL. 25 NO. 8
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AUGUST 2025
Boca Helping Hands Bowling For Bread Will Support The BHH Backpacks Weekend Meal Program Boca Helping Hands (BHH) will hold its annual Bowling for Bread event on Sunday, August 24 from noon to 2 p.m. at Lucky Strike, 21046 Commercial Trail, Boca Raton. BHH brings kids from local children’s charities to attend at no cost to enjoy an afternoon of bowling, food and fun. Proceeds from the event will support the BHH Backpacks weekend meal program for kids in area schools. The children’s charities invited to participate include 4KIDS of South Florida, Inc.; Achievement Centers for Children & Families; Adopt a Family of the Palm Beaches, Inc.; American Association of Caregiving Youth; Boys & Girls Club of Boca Raton; Family Promise of South Palm Beach County; Fuller Center; HomeSafe; Place of Hope; PROPEL; and Pearl City Cats.
Members of the community are encouraged to sponsor a child for $100, sponsor a lane for one of the children’s charities for $500, or make a donation of any size to support the Backpack program to feed kids in our area schools. Boca Helping Hands has operated the BHH Backpacks children’s meal program for the past 14 years, providing food-insecure students with nonperishable, easy-to-prepare meals every Friday to ensure they get enough to eat on the weekends. During the 2023/24 school year, BHH Backpacks helped over 1,100 students in 13 local schools, providing 181,362 meals and 60,454 snacks to elementary students in Boca Raton, Delray Beach and Boynton Beach. Boca Helping Hands Bowling For Bread on page 2
Carrie Rubin Named Honorary Chair For Junior League Of Boca Raton’s 38th Annual Woman Volunteer Of The Year Namrata Israni And Racheal Petullo Named Event Cochairs The Junior League of Boca Raton’s (JLBR) 38th Annual Woman Volunteer of the Year Luncheon will be held on Friday, Nov. 21 at The Boca Raton, 501 East Camino Real, at 10 a.m. Carrie Rubin has been named honorary chair and Namrata Israni and Racheal Petullo will serve as event cochairs, as announced by JLBR president Victoria Matthews. The Woman Volunteer of the Year Luncheon celebrates outstanding women in the community nominated by nonprofit organizations throughout Palm Beach County and Northern Broward County for their dedication and expertise as
Racheal Petullo, Victoria Matthews, Carrie Rubin, Namrata Israni
volunteers, as well as the work they do to further the missions of the organizations they serve. Proceeds benefit the Junior League of Boca Raton. The much-anticipated event includes a runway fashion show by The Boca Raton, the iconic resort and private club. Honorary Chair Carrie Rubin is a member of the Junior League of Boca Raton and cochaired the organization’s Thrift Shop event, as well as the Tree Lighting event. She sat on the boards of Fuller Center, The Boca Raton Museum of Art, and the Boca Raton Police Foundation. She helped start Impact 100 PBC and served on the inaugural board of directors. She is currently the longest-serving board member besides the Carrie Rubin Named Honorary Chair on page 2
15th Annual ‘Cocktails For JARC’ Fundraiser Set For August 19th At Delray’s Good Night John Boy Get ready to “Shake Your Groove Thing” for a great cause. JARC Florida, a nonprofit organization based in Boca Raton that provides programs and services to educate and empower individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities including autism, will host its 15th Annual Cocktails for JARC on Tuesday, August 19th, from 6 to 8 p.m. This year’s retro-themed celebration will take place for the first time at Good Night John Boy, the new 1970s-inspired nightclub and restaurant in Downtown Delray Beach.
The event is presented by The Sibling Society, a group within JARC that offers support and community for siblings of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Proceeds from the event will support JARC’s Community Works Program, which provides vocational training and employment opportunities for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. State funding for the program was cut by nearly 75% in Florida’s newly released 2025-2026 Fiscal Year budget. “As a sibling of someone with special needs and proud member of The Sibling Society, to host Cocktails for JARC this year is incredibly meaningful to me,” said Jordyn Gechter. “It’s more than a fundraiser; it’s a celebration of inclusion, independence and the amazing community that JARC has built. I’m proud to support an organization that gives individuals like my sister the chance to live full, empowered lives.”
The ticket cost—$40 in advance, $45 at the door—includes two drink tickets and bites. Tickets are available at: https://jarcfl.org/event/cocktails-for-jarc-2/. Sponsorships are available. For more information, contact Vanessa Freer at VanessaF@jarcfl.org. About JARC Florida. JARC Florida, a non-sectarian or-ganization based in Boca Raton, provides programs and services to educate and empower individuals with intellec-tual and developmental disabilities including autism. The organization’s vision is to remove barriers to independ-ence allowing persons with developmental and intellectual disabilities including autism to reach a person’s potential. JARC currently operates ten group homes in the Boca Raton and Delray Beach area for adults with developmen-tal disabilities. JARC offers apartment living for those who do not require 24-hour supervision as well as voca-tional training in the Mel & Elaine Stein Living and Learning Center. The organization was created in the mid-1980s in response to the needs of families with adult children with developmental disabilities.