On Friday, August 21, Ghirardelli held the inaugural Pie the Leader fundraiser to support homeless youth! For three weeks, Associates donated funds to vote for the Ghirardelli leader they wanted to see get a pie in the face. Friday was the Zoom call, where Associates joined a live auction to vote for the leader they wanted to see get a pie-ing!
It was an incredibly close race, as all of our leaders received numerous votes, and in the end not just one…but FIVE leaders, Caroline Wynne, Alain Charles, Aaron Prchlik, Charlie Hayler, and Raewyn Butcher, got a pie thrown in their face!
The Pie the Leader fundraiser was a great success, as Ghirardelli Associates raised a grand total of $5,750 dollars, with all proceeds going to the Marysville Joint Unified School District Homeless Education Program!
A HUGE thank you to all of our Associates who participated and donated to the Pie the Leader fundraiser – we couldn’t have done it without you! A special thank you to our leaders Paul Bews, Mustafa Hosseini, Caroline Wynne, Alain Charles, Aaron Prchlik, Charlie Hayler, Raewyn Butcher, and Randy Bruner for their participation in the pie-ing competition!
To learn more about the support that the MJUSD Homeless Education Program provides to our local community, please read below.
The Marysville Joint Unified School District’s Homeless Education Program functions as an advocate for homeless children and youth and their families. They work with school sites to protect the educational rights of over 10,000 students experiencing homelessness allowing them to enroll in, attend, and succeed in school. Schools define homelessness very broadly as children and youth who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence.
The Homeless Education Program works to remove barriers to education. Through grant funding and generous community support, they provide school supplies, clothes, shoes, and hygiene items.
MJUSD enrolls students in the free lunch program, arranges for home to school transportation, and connects families with school programs – preschool, English learners, special education, Title I services, career technical education, and after school programs. MJUSD also refers families to community health, mental health, dental, and other health and welfare services.