Schools
BHEF Receives $28,000 Donation From 'The Taste' Festival
The nonprofit foundation also reported that it donated $1.4 million to schools during the 2010-11 school year.
The earned more than $28,000—one of its largest single donations received in 2011—from a partnership with food and wine festival held Labor Day weekend, the BHEF said this week.
“We were surprised and thrilled to get the check late last month,” BHEF Chairman Jonathan Prince told Patch. “They paid us on time and gave us more than we expected.”
The four-day festival took place in Beverly Hills, Hollywood and downtown Los Angeles from Sept. 2-5. It was sponsored by the Los Angeles Times and Food & Wine magazine, and produced by Best Events. The festival benefited five charities, including the BHEF.
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During an October City Council discussion about the festival, several residents complained that festival organizers had not honored their commitment to BHEF. A subsequent Dec. 2 article in the Beverly Hills Courier also said that BHEF had not been paid as promised by Taste organizers.
Those residents and the Courier had not spoken directly to BHEF about the donation.
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“They [Best Events] promised to pay us within 90 days, and they did,” Prince said.
The BHEF, which raises money for all five city schools, received $15 per ticket sold, which translated into a larger donation than in 2010 when a similar Taste festival donated a percentage of its profits.
Prince praised producer Jeffrey Best for insisting that even VIPs who received complimentary tickets to the Beverly Hills events still donate the $15 for BHEF.
“In my opinion, this is a good business partnership [for BHEF] as the festival will continue to grow,” Prince said, adding that he expects BHEF to participate in the next Taste festival tentatively scheduled for the Labor Day weekend of 2012.
The $28,000 donation was announced Wednesday in BHEF’s first online newsletter. At the same time, the BHEF said it had donated $1.4 million to city schools during the 2010-11 school year. The total—which was higher than usual because of this year’s —represented a significant part of the overall Beverly Hills Unified School District budget of $52 million.
The newsletter also outlined the BHEF’s 2012 fundraising initiatives and sponsorship opportunities. To receive a copy, email the foundation’s Tracy Platt. For more information about BHEF or to make a donation, visit its website.
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