“IFS Spring Luncheon – Save the Date”
IMAGE FOR SUCCESS, a local clothing program for low-income women, children, and men, is announcing DEBORAH SANTANA, author of Space Between the Stars, will be the keynote speaker at the spring luncheon.
“Deborah Santana, through the Milagro Foundation, has supported the IFS KIDS program in the past.” says Deirdre Sheerin, IFS executive director. “We are thrilled to have her presence at our fundraiser.” The 6th annual luncheon will be held Friday, May 23, 2008 at the Embassy Suites in San Rafael. Two former clients will be honored. There will be a silent auction, lunch, raffle prizes and the keynote address. Early bird tickets $60 to May 5th, $65 to day of event. Reservations encouraged.
Donations of new and clean nearly-new clothing, shoes, and accessories are be accepted on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 9:00 a.m. to noon, or by appointment. The program provides wardrobes to clients referred by over 60 social services agencies and schools in Marin County. For more information, call 472-5855 or go to www.imageforsuccess.org.

Legendary musician and philanthropist Carlos Santana will be the special guest performer for Samsung's seventh annual Four Seasons of Hope gala dinner on June 16, at New York's Cipriani Wall Street. The event will raise funds for Santana's non-profit Milagro Foundation - which serves under-represented children worldwide in the areas of health, education and the arts - and other charities affiliated with Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope.

Santana will help Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope honor sports legends Dan Marino, Boomer Esiason, Joe Torre, Arnold Palmer and Wayne Gretzky, as well as former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani for their continued philanthropic efforts with their respective charities.

"Santana brings such excitement and passion to every performance, we are thrilled to have him join us at our 7th annual gala," said D.J. Oh, President and CEO of Samsung Electronics America. "Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope applauds Carlos Santana for his passion and dedication to the Milagro Foundation. We are so proud to support his efforts and help raise money for such a wonderful cause." "I am honored to have been invited by Samsung to participate in the Four Seasons of Hope gala," Carlos Santana said. "Hope is something that we all truly cannot live without, and having the opportunity to help bring more of it into the world by performing for the important charities benefited by this event is a blessing.

Knowing that so many children and families will receive much needed support is inspiring to me, and I hope others are encouraged to give back as much as they possibly can." Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope gala attracts a star-studded roster of celebrities from the worlds of sports, entertainment and politics. The event will feature a silent auction of sports memorabilia and other items to raise funds for each participating celebrities' charities and foundations.

Guests and fans will have the opportunity to bid on an "Ultimate" Santana package that will include tickets and backstage passes to the Santana concert in San Francisco, three night stay in the Carlos Santana Suite at The Hotel Triton and an autographed Santana Guitar from Paul Reed Smith Guitars, which will be on display at the Samsung Experience in the Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle.

The highest bidder will also receive Carlos Santana strings, picks and an amp to complete the Santana experience. For those not attending the gala, you can bid online at www.gocharity.com/samsung until June 16.

Information about purchasing tickets for the seventh annual Samsung Four Seasons of Hope gala can be found on www.fourseasonsofhope.com.

About Samsung Electronics America, Inc.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in semiconductor, telecommunication, digital media and digital convergence technologies with 2007 consolidated sales of US$103.4 billion. Employing approximately 150,000 people in 134 offices in 62 countries, the company consists of five main business units: Digital Media Business, LCD Business, Semiconductor Business, Telecommunication Business and Digital Appliance Business. Recognized as one of the fastest growing global brands, Samsung Electronics is a leading producer of digital TVs, memory chips, mobile phones and TFT-LCDs. For more information, please visit www.samsung.com.
About Samsung Electronics America, Inc.
Headquartered in Ridgefield Park, NJ, Samsung Electronics America, Inc. (SEA) markets a broad range of award-winning consumer electronics, information systems, and home appliance products; and oversees Samsung's North American operations, including Samsung Telecommunications America, LP, Samsung Semiconductor Inc., Samsung Electronics Canada, Inc. and Samsung Electronics Mexico, Inc. Its parent company, Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., ranks #5 in the 2006 Consumer Electronics segment of the Fortune Magazine "America's Most Admired Companies," and ranks # 20 in the BusinessWeek "The Best Global Brand 100 2006." Samsung Electronics Co, Ltd. is a top patent holder, ranking second overall in the U.S. in 2006. Please visit www.samsung.com for more information.

The Milagro Foundation was established in 1998 by Deborah and Carlos Santana to globally serve under-represented and underprivileged children and youth in the areas of the arts, education and health. Milagro means "miracle," and the image of children as divine miracles of light and hope - as gifts to our lives - is the meaning of the name. Since its inception, the Milagro Foundation has granted nearly $3 million to non-profit programs making a difference in the lives of children in the Bay Area, across the United States, and around the world.

On October 9th, Shelley and Carlos along with Gerald Jampolsky and Diane Cirincione visited with Milagro supported families at National Hispanic University. NHU is the only accredited Latino college in the United States. President, Dr. David Lopez' vision is to want to grow the tiny, 600-student college on the East Side of San José, California and turn NHU into an elite school for the nation's future Hispanic leaders Milagro awarded $5000 scholarships to four deserving students.

Markham Vineyards will be holding a benefit honoring The Milagro Foundation. This special event will be held at Markham Vineyards in Napa, California on November 8, 2008. Check back with us soon for new details and ticket information.

Shahram and Brittany Bijan were married September 23, 2007. In lieu of wedding gifts Brittany and Shahram asked their wedding guests to donate to Deborah and Carlos Santana's Milagro Foundation. Their guests have donated over $5000 to date. The Bijans are the owners of Ora & Toast Restaurants in Mill Valley, CA. They also own the wine bar, First Crush in San Francisco. The Milagro Foundation is grateful for the Bijan wedding guests' generosity. We thank Brittany and Shahram for their compassion for children and their thoughtfulness in helping to make this donation happen. Congratulations Shahram and Brittany!

Carlos Santana believes in universal compassion. Deborah and Carlos Santana's Milagro Foundation partners with child-and youth-based programs in the U.S. and abroad to help at-risk and vulnerable populations receive what they need to survive and thrive. Right now, critical focus is the AIDS crisis in South Africa, where 1600 people are dying every day, and Los Angeles' Violence Intervention Program, which rescues child victims of abuse and neglect.

CARLOS SANTANA TO SPEAK AT THE CHALLENGE FUTURE PEACE CONFERENCE JUNE 30 AND PERFORM AT THE BENEFIT CONCERT ON JULY 1 IN BOCHUM, GERMANY CONFERENCE PATRONS ARE ARCHBISHOP DESMOND TUTU, ISRAELI VICE PREMIER SHIMON PERES AND BOCHUM LORD MAYOR OTTILIE SCHULZ PROCEEDS TO BENEFIT MILAGRO FOUNDATION AND DESMOND TUTU PEACE CENTRE June 30, 2007: Musician, philanthropist and world citizen Carlos Santana will attend the first annual Challenge Future Peace Conference in Bochum, Germany on Saturday, June 30 and perform at a special benefit concert the next day, Sunday July 1. Conference patrons are South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Israeli Vice Premier Shimon Peres – both Nobel Laureates – and Dr. Ottilie Scholz, the Lord Mayor of the City of Bochum. The Challenge Future organization and its sponsors will bequeath donations to, and concert proceeds will benefit, the Bay Area-based Milagro Foundation, founded by Carlos and Deborah Santana, and the Desmond Tutu Peace Center in Cape Town, South Africa.

Beginning at #AM on June 30, the Challenge Future Peace Conference takes place in the historic Jahrhunderthalle in Bochum, a city in the Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia in western Germany’s Rhine-Rhur region. The Conference was conceived to stimulate multi-cultural and inter-faith dialogues and address global issues including initiatives to end poverty, spread social justice, strengthen children’s and women’s rights and protect the environment. Discussions will also center on Europe’s role in the world and the role of artists as peacemakers internationally. The intent is to make this the first of a yearly series of prestigious forums. In addition to the aforementioned patrons, among the dozens of dignitaries and world leaders whose attendance is confirmed are Mikhail Gorbachev, Lech Walesa, U.N. Secretary General Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Prince Hassan of Jordan and German Parliament President Norbert Lammert.

Carlos Santana, who will introduce Archbishop Tutu at the Challenge Future Peace Conference, said, “I am deeply grateful and supremely honored to be part of this superbowl of consciousness. To be in the company and in the presence of all these luminaries and entities of compassion, mercy and forgiveness fills my heart with hope that the Supreme One has a divine master plan for the highest good of life, people and the planet.”

Challenge Future’s benefit concert is set for 8PM on July 1 at Bochum’s Ruhr Congress. Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Carlos Santana will sit in with acclaimed Beninese singer-songwriter Angelique Kidjo and German music superstar Peter Maffay. Yusuf Islam (Cat Stevens) is also scheduled to perform, among other acts. Both the concert and main conference are under the direction of Challenge Future founder Sascha Hellen, who is partnering on logistics with World Vision, an international charitable organization overseeing projects globally.

Concert proceeds benefit The Desmond Tutu Peace Centre, a landmark institution aimed at using the experience of the South African people and the example of Desmond Tutu to inspire a new generation of visionary peace builders, and the Milagro Foundation. Since the Santanas established Milagro in 1998, it has granted over $2 million to agencies and programs worldwide serving children and youth in the areas of health, education and the arts.

For more information, log on to www.santana.com

Solving medical and ecological problems by bringing fuel-efficient stoves to the indigenous people of Guatemala

The Milagro Foundation Board voted to fund 10 of our existing agencies and 3 new agencies by granting $137,580.00 this month.

These are some of the agencies we have funded: Hand in Hand- bilingual bicultural schools for Jewish and Arab children in Israel; Loving Paws-provides trained dogs for disabled children; the Canal Alliance Youth Development tutoring and mentoring program; Felecia Gaston's Performing Stars in Marin City; the Duffy Hughes Memorial Stove Project in Guatemala which builds safe ventilated stoves inside the huts of poor families; Shared Hope which buys back children who are sold into prostitution and sexual slavery by their families, educates and houses them in India, the Dominican Republic, Fiji, Jamaica and South Africa.

New grantees include Ingwavuma Orphan Care in South Africa which Deborah and Carlos visited. We are supplying them with 100 water rollers. Circulo Vida in the Bay Area provides counseling services for Latino children who have parents with cancer.