CHILDREN
AT RISK
Invited Jay Leno
to Stand
Up and
Split A
Few
Sides
to Stop
the
Trafficking
and
Exploitation
of
Children
Benefit
Extravaganza
and Show
March
24,
2012,
Bayou
City
Event
Center
HOUSTON,
TX
– On
March
24,
2012,
Bayou
City
Event
Center
roared
with
laughter
while
being
entertained
by the
one and
only,
Jay
Leno.
“The
Tonight
Show”
host/comedian
thrilled
the
crowd
with
some of
the
material
he’s
famous
for, and
introduced
a few
new
twists
in his
repertoire.
“An
Evening
with Jay
Leno -
Standing
Up For
Our
Youth”
is an
event
that
will
bring
smiles
to the
faces of
Houstonians
for
years to
come.
Over 750
people
attended
An
Evening
with Jay
Leno,
which
benefited
CHILDREN
AT RISK
and its
Center
to End
the
Trafficking
and
Exploitation
of
Children.
The
event
raised
over
$410,000
and was
co-chaired
by Kathy
and Bob
Baker
(General
Counsel,
El Paso
Corporation),
Adrienne
Publicover
and Kyle
Jennings
(General
Counsel,
American
General
Life
Companies),
and
Pamela
and
Curtis
Frasier
(General
Counsel,
Shell
Oil
Company).
Major
benefactors
included,
American
General
Life
Companies,
Leslie
Alexander
and the
Houston
Rockets,
Jonathan
Blake,
Forethought
Financial,
American
Air
Liquide,
Momentum
Jaguar,
Sutton
Foundation,
and
Griffin
Americas.
U.S.
Senator
John
Cornyn
received
the 2012
Founders
Award
for his
efforts
to
advocate
for and
support
the
rights
of
children.
The
spectacular
event
also
featured
a VIP
reception,
and an
exclusive
live
auction.
Philanthropist
extraordinaire
Dr.
Carolyn
Farb, hc,
was
recognized
with the
First
Lady of
Philanthropy
award
for her
dedication
to
improve
the
lives of
children.
The
beautiful
awards
were
donated
by
Tiffany
& Co.
Michael
Cordúa
catered
the gala
which
began
with a
private
reception
featuring
cocktails
and
passed
hors
d’oeuvres.
Guests
dined on
spinach
salad
with
Bacon
Sherry
Vinaigrette,
Manchego
Beef
Churrasco
and
Chicken
Cordon
Bleu.
Emmy-winning
anchor
Dominique
Sachse
of
KPRC-2
News was
the
mistress
of
ceremonies.
Judge
Eric
Andell
did the
Big
Board
Auction,
while
Owen
Conflenti
of
KPRC-2
News
handled
the Live
Auction.
Before
Mr. Leno
exited
the
stage to
a
standing
ovation,
he
handed a
$10,000
check to
Dr. Bob
Sanborn,
president
and CEO
of
CHILDREN
AT RISK,
an
unprecedented
gesture
to the
work of
CHILDREN
AT RISK.
The
night
ended
with
benefactors
meeting
and
taking
photos
with the
star.
Following
the
post-reception,
Momentum
Jaguar
transported
Leno to
the
airport
where
his
private
jet
awaited.
Bayou
City
Event
Center
was
electric,
as
Leno’s
delivery
was “on
point”
throughout
the
evening.
The
original
“Stand
Up”
comedian
had the
crowd
standing
up to
stop
child
trafficking.
Trafficking
continues
to be a
real
problem
in
Houston,
the
fourth
largest
city in
the
U.S. A
child is
trafficked
somewhere
in the
world
every
two
minutes.
One out
of every
three
children
who runs
away
from
home
becomes
a victim
of
trafficking
within
48
hours.
The
Center
to End
Trafficking
and
Exploitation
of
Children,
at
CHILDREN
AT RISK,
is a
multi-disciplinary,
action-based
institute
that
works to
generate
solutions
to the
human
trafficking
crisis
through
policy,
advocacy,
education,
and
collaborative
programs.
CHILDREN
AT RISK
leads
the
fight in
Texas to
change
state
policy
on human
trafficking.
In the
last
legislative
session,
two
bills
encompassing
10 human
trafficking
issues
were
passed.