Joan O’Connell and Toni O’Brien, co-chairs of the ninth annual Grandma’s Angels Holiday Luncheon, recently announced that Dr. Heidi Schaeffer will serve as the event’s honorary chair. Schaeffer has previously been a presenting sponsor of the luncheon and serves as one again this year.
Schaeffer is a nationally recognized human trafficking awareness and intervention expert and is passionate about supporting causes that serve abused, neglected and abandoned youth. She earned her bachelor’s degrees in biology and psychology at Barry University. In 1998, she graduated from the University of Miami School of Medicine before training in internal medicine at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami.
Licensed to practice medicine in Florida since 1999, Schaeffer has worked with private and public healthcare organizations. She is president emeritus of the Human Trafficking Coalition of the Palm Beaches and serves as an executive board member of ChildNet and the FLITE Center. She was named the State of Florida’s Human Trafficking Advocate of the Year in 2017.
Olivia Knowles, founder of Olivia’s Hot Cocoa Stand, will be the featured speaker at the event. Knowles, now 14, began her remarkable journey in philanthropy at just six years old when she set up a hot cocoa stand to raise funds for “children who did not have as much as she did.” She and her friends proudly raised $81 in that first year, and the tradition has grown every year since, transforming into a vibrant community event that draws neighbors, friends, teachers, classmates and even strangers, all united in the spirit of giving.
The luncheon on Tuesday, Nov. 19 at the Sailfish Club starts at 11:30 a.m. with a wine reception and a fabulous silent auction. During lunch, there will be a small live auction. Local CBS 12 news anchor Liz Quirantes has once again graciously agreed to serve as the celebrity emcee.
The auction proceeds benefit Royal Palm Beach-based Grandma’s Place, which provides shelter and loving care to children who have been removed from their homes due to abuse or neglect, and also provides respite care for young children with disabilities while offering support to their parents/caregivers to maximize each child’s safety and success.
Tickets are $225 per person or tables for $2,250. To receive an invitation, donate an auction item, purchase a ticket, place an ad in the event program or sponsor the event, call Roxanne Jacobs at (561) 376-0488, e-mail roxanne@grandmasplacepb.org or visit www.grandmasplacepb.org.
