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Higher Achievement’s GoingPlaces! Benefit Deemed a Night to Remember!

October 8, 2009- More than 400 honored guests, scholars, families, and mentors gathered at the French Embassy for Higher Achievement’s second annual GoingPlaces! Benefit. Co-chaired by James Bennet, editor of the Atlantic, and Annie Linehan Czerwinski, of the CityBridge Foundation, the benefit was designed to honor Higher Achievement scholars and alumni.  Ron Suskind, Pulitzer Prize-winning author, was the evening’s honoree. Generously supported by Altria,Wilkie Farr & Gallagher LLP, and a host of other sponsors, Higher Achievement was able to raise over $300,000 for the support of their scholars.

Guests were inspired by the poise and wisdom of scholars and alumni who spoke and performed original poetry throughout the night. The night’s host was Dominique Jones, tenth grader at Sidwell Friends, while one of the featured speakers was eighth grade scholar Naomi Stanford, who captivated the audience with her original poem “This is Now”.

Honoree Ron Suskind called members of the audience to action as he spoke to his experiences and lessons learned from writing his acclaimed book “A Hope in the Unseen”. This remarkable text chronicles a young man’s journey from Ballou Senior High School to Brown University and brings Higher Achievement’s three guiding principles to life: talent is everywhere, intellect is built through effort, and opportunities matter.

The evening concluded with an impressive live auction of scholarships, fine jewelry, and a guitar signed by the legendary Bob Dylan. Higher Achievement sincerely thanks all who came out and showed their commitment to the organization, and more importantly, to the incredible scholars who inspire the communities they live in.