The Wooden Floor, a Santa Ana arts-based youth development organization, netted $141,500 at its 5th Annual Keep the Promise Wine Tasting Benefit at Big Canyon Country Club this month.
The sold-out event saw a 63% increase in attendance, and welcomed 315 Orange County wine enthusiasts and community supporters to raise a glass to raise funds for The Wooden Floor’s mission to break the cycle of poverty through generational change. Guests tasted a selection of 14 exquisite and hard-to-find wines from the Rhône region of France – all graciously donated by Premier Sponsors John and Janice Markley.
Explaining his passion for The Wooden Floor, Markley said, “I’ve never seen anything like it. I just can’t believe the success they have.”
In addition to being introduced to spectacular wines, event attendees gained a deeper knowledge of The Wooden Floor’s 28-year old mission and tremendous outcomes. Guests enjoyed remarks from Wooden Floor principals and, most importantly, from alumna of The Wooden Floor Class of 2009, Jessica Camacho, who currently attends Wellesley College in Massachusetts majoring in American Studies.
Since 2005, 100 percent of graduates from The Wooden Floor have completed high school on time and enrolled in college, outperforming their socio-economic peers three-fold.
Photos by Nick Koon
