West Hartford, CT - Head Coach Geno Auriemma, who has led one of the most beloved women’s sports teams in the country for 24 seasons, will headline the 7th annual VISIONS, men’s fundraising dinner for the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford, Wednesday, April 29, 2009. More than 500 men will meet and hear Mr. Auriemma, the “man behind the legend”, announced Judith Schlossberg, 2009 Annual Campaign Chairman. VISIONS co-chairmen include Jeff Bash, Joe Fox, Gary S. Starr and Brett Wasserlauf. VISIONS ’09 will be held at Emanuel Synagogue, 160 Mohegan Drive, West Hartford, CT.
Geno Auriemma, now in his 24th year as Head Coach at the University of Connecticut, has redefined the meaning of success in college basketball. His success includes six national championships and complete dominance in the Big East Conference, where the Huskies have garnered an eye-popping total of 32 combined Big East regular season and tournament titles since his arrival in 1985. This unmatched success was recognized with Auriemma’s 2006 inductions into both the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame. Auriemma is the author of “GENO: In Pursuit of Perfection” and has found success beyond the college coaching ranks. He represented the United States at the Summer 2006 Sydney Olympic Games as assistant coach of the gold medal winning Olympic Team. He has served with national basketball organizations and provided WNBA broadcast analysis for ABC and ESPN.
As Vice President of the WBCA (Women’s Basketball Coaches Association) he created Geno’s Cancer Team to benefit the V Foundation for Cancer Research. His commitment to charities and higher education has benefited the American Heart Association, the Connecticut Arthritis Foundation, National Mortar Board honor society and the UConn Club. Auriemma is a 1981 graduate of West Chester and resides with his wife Kathy in Manchester, Connecticut. They have three children Jenna, Alysa and Michael.
Corporate Sponsors for VISIONS 2009 (as of 4/22/09) include The Connecticut Bank and Trust Company, The Hartford Courant, St. Francis Hospital & Medical Center, TD Banknorth, Bank of America, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Farmington Savings Bank, Gene and Anja Rosenberg, The Rosenberg Toro Family and The Bricker Family, Hartford Hospital – Helen and Harry Gray Cancer Center, Hartford Magazine, Herz Financial, LAZ Parking, People’s United Bank, Price Chopper’s Golub Foundation, USI Connecticut, Webster Bank, Brescome Barton Inc., Connecticut Jewish Ledger, McCarter & English, LLP, Omar Coffee Company, Artfxsigns, Blum Shapiro, Bozzuto’s Inc., Citizens Bank, Connecticut Children's Medical Center, Credit Insurance Management Corp., Cricket Press, Inc, Edens and Avant, Haggett Longobardi, A Division of J. H. Cohn LLP, Hub International/William Shipman, Kaoud Oriental Rugs, Kostin, Ruffkess & Co., LLC, MJP Associates, Inc., Reid and Riege, P.C, Rosenberg Orthodontics, S&S Worldwide, Security Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York/Phil Growick, Shipman & Goodwin LLP, Simsbury Bank, Sonitrol, Suburban Pharmacy And Home Medical, Superior Energy, LLC and Alan & Marianne Friedman and Victor Advertising Service.
For more information and reservations visit www.JewishHartford.org or contact Alysa Yale, Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford, Zachs Campus, 333 Bloomfield Ave., West Hartford CT, 06117, 860-727-6123, ayale@jewishhartford.org . Kosher dietary laws will be observed at the dinner. The cost to attend VISIONS is $75 couvert per person, plus a minimum tax-deductible gift of $365 to the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford’s 2009 Annual Campaign.
Through its Annual Campaign and long-term philanthropy programs, the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford funds and maintains a local and global network of social service agencies, schools, medical and wellness programs and cultural institutions which save and enrich Jewish life in 32 Greater Hartford towns, Israel and 60 countries. Federation’s committees and agency partners also advocate for Israel, promote social justice and interfaith relations, fight anti-Semitism, improve literacy and train emerging community leadership. The Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford was founded in 1945.
