SoCal Smackdown Hosts 'Casino Night' to Benefit Make-A-Wish Foundation and the Pediatric Cancer Research Foundation

Anaheim, California (PRWEB) August 30, 2011

SoCal Smackdown, Orange County?s premier non-electronic gaming convention, is proud to announce they will be hosting a ?Casino Night,? with all proceeds benefiting the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Orange County and the Inland Empire, and the Pediatric Cancer Research Foundation on Saturday, September 3 at the Anaheim Marriott from 6:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.

Authentic blackjack tables, poker tables, a craps table and a roulette tables staffed by professionally trained dealers will be available at the event. Attendees will have the opportunity to win prizes in a big-ticket raffle. Please note, absolutely no cash prizes will be awarded.

Admission to the event is $ 25 and guests will receive $ 100 worth of playing chips. Additional chips will be available for purchase at the event. Chips can be exchanged for raffle tickets for a chance to win prizes such as: overnight stays at the Anaheim Marriott and Anaheim Hilton Hotels, as well as gift certificates to renowned Orange County restaurants, retail establishments and more.

To pre-register for the event, please click here, or guests can also register at the event.

"SoCal Smackdown is proud to be partnering with two amazing non-profits and we have set a fundraising goal of $ 5,000," said Henry Tremblay, co-founder of SoCal Smackdown. "We are committed to this goal just like we are committed to being the best non-electronic gaming convention in Southern California. We are a family-friendly convention based on having fun and playing games with friends, Casino Night is just a natural extension of our convention?s desire to support the local community.?

The four-day convention is the home of hundreds of different non-electronic gaming events, including board, role-playing, collectible card and miniature games. SoCal Smackdown is a family-friendly convention that brings friends together (new and old) with the mutual goal of playing games in a social atmosphere. SoCal Smackdown offers both competitive and non-competitive games for all audiences.

SoCal Smackdown will be taking place September 2-5 at the Anaheim Marriott, 700 W. Convention Way, Anaheim, CA 92802. Convention hours are from 5:00 p.m. on Friday night and run through Monday night at 5:00 p.m. This is 72 straight hours of fun and gaming.

For more details, including a full list of available raffle items, and to register, visit http://www.SoCalSmackdown.com. Online registration will close at midnight on Wednesday, September 1.

Follow SoCal Smackdown on Facebook and on Twitter.

For additional information or to speak with Henry Tremblay, please contact Adam Rosenblum at 714-401-1362, or adam(at)SoCalComm(dot)com.

About the Make-A-Wish Foundation?

The Make-A-Wish Foundation grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. Born in 1980 when a group of caring individuals helped a young boy fulfill his dream of becoming a police officer, the Foundation is now the largest wish-granting charity in the world, with 65 chapters in the U.S. and its territories and 33 international affiliates on five continents. The Foundation has granted 200,000 wishes in the U.S. since its inception in 1980.

Locally, the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Orange County and the Inland Empire has granted more than 5,000 wishes to children in Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties. To refer a child or to learn how you can help, visit the organization?s Web site at: http://www.wishocie.org. Phone: (714) 573-WISH (9474).

About the Pediatric Cancer Research Foundation

The Pediatric Cancer Research Foundation (PCRF), a non-profit organization located in Irvine, was founded in 1982 to improve the care, quality of life and survival rate of children with malignant diseases. Since its inception, PCRF has raised over $ 22 million dollars to fund cutting edge research that leads to medically sound treatment protocols for childhood cancers. Much progress has been made - for example, childhood leukemia, once almost certainly fatal, now has a 70% survival rate. But the battle is far from over, as cancer continues to afflict more children under 18 years of age each year than any other disease. Visit PCRF online to learn more: http://www.PCRF-Kids.org. Phone: (949) 859-6312.

About SoCal Smackdown (http://www.SoCalSmackdown.com)

SoCal Smackdown, Orange County?s premier non-electronic gaming convention, will be taking place on Labor Weekend 2011 (Sept. 2-5), at the Anaheim Marriott. This four-day convention is the home of hundreds of different non-electronic gaming events, including board, role-playing, collectible card and miniature games. SoCal Smackdown is a family-friendly convention that brings friends together (new and old) with the mutual goal of playing games in a social atmosphere. SoCal Smackdown offers both competitive and non-competitive games for all audiences.

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Verit??s Dan Viederman Named Social Entrepreneur of the Year in The U.S.by Schwab Foundation For Social Entrepreneurship

Amherst, MA (PRWEB) August 31, 2011

Dan Viederman, CEO of Verit?, the global NGO that works with companies, suppliers and governments worldwide to create and maintain fair labor conditions, was today named Social Entrepreneur of the Year in the United States by the Geneva, Switzerland-based Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship. Verit? is an international non-profit consulting, training, and research organization that has been a leader in supply social responsibility and sustainability for 15 years. Verit? solves the most difficult supply chain human rights problems to help the most vulnerable workers around the world.

The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship provides unparalleled platforms at the country, regional and global levels that highlight social entrepreneurship as a key element to advance societies and address social problems in an innovative and effective manner. The Foundation conducts an annual search for leading social entrepreneurs around the world and selects one from each of the countries identified to join the Foundation?s global network.

Selected social entrepreneurs participate and are actively involved at the regional and global meetings of the World Economic Forum. These meetings offer unique opportunities for social entrepreneurs to connect with corporate, political, academic, media and other leaders. Social entrepreneurs participate in Forum initiatives, the conversations shaping the future agendas of industries, and are experts for the Forum?s Global Agenda Councils. The Foundation works with selected companies to advance specific activities of social entrepreneurs or initiatives that support social entrepreneurship.

?This award is gratifying recognition of the impact Verit? has had over the past 15 years, ? says Viederman. ?It?s also an opportunity to get our solutions into the hands of more people who can use them--especially multinationals and their suppliers who have solvable problems in their supply chains.?

Viederman adds, ?The Schwab Foundation and the World Economic Forum attract impressive people who want to collaborate to solve social problems. They speak to the world?s governments, as well as businesses from all over the world?not just western multinationals. It?s a great place for Verit? to share the ways we can help companies, and workers, too.?

Verit??s business-focused approach enables factories and farms to be able to meet customers? and compliance standards in a way that complements the company?s business objectives.

Verit??s list of clients is a Who?s Who of the global economy, including Walmart, Gap, Apple, Levi?s, The Home Depot, Philip Morris International,Mars, Manpower, HP, Disney, Starbucks, the Electronics Industry Citizenship Coalition, the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, The US Department of Labor, the US Department of State, the Inter-American Development Bank, the NY City Employees Retirement System, among others.

"Verit?'s model of engaging the private sector in multi-stakeholder partnerships to improve conditions for millions of the world's most vulnerable workers ensures that global economic growth is truly inclusive growth," explained Katherine Milligan, Head of North America for the Schwab Foundation. "This is directly aligned with the mission of the World Economic Forum, making Verit? a valuable addition to the Schwab Foundation's community of leading social enterprises."

"Verit? is a trend-setter and innovator. In their work to ensure that all people around the world work under safe, fair, and legal conditions, they have consistently shown that businesses can do well by acting responsibly and doing good," said Randy Newcomb, president and CEO of Humanity United. "As a foundation committed to ending all forms of modern-day slavery and human trafficking, we are proud to not only support Verit?'s work, but to call them partners in a shared mission. Humanity United congratulates all of Verit?'s hard working staff on this prestigious honor."

About Verit?

Verit?'s mission is to ensure that people around the world work under safe, fair, and legal conditions. Today's complex supply chains pose challenges for implementing international labor standards at manufacturing and farm sites that collectively employ hundreds of millions of people. Verit? has extensive expertise in apparel, footwear, electronics, agriculture, toy, and heavy industry supply chains, working both with brands?the consumer-facing companies that sell a finished good?and their suppliers, which are mostly farms and factories in developing countries. The organization assists in the identification, analysis, and resolution of labor rights problems like child labor, forced labor, discrimination, sexual harassment, excessive working hours, poor safety conditions, and wrongful termination. For more information, visit http://www.verite.org.

http://www.facebook.com/Veritefairlabor

http://www.twitter.com/#!/VeriteNews

About the Schwab Foundation

The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship was co-founded by Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and his wife, Hilde. Since its inception in 2000, the Foundation has been identifying the world?s leading social entrepreneurs in over 50 countries around the globe. Social entrepreneurs implement innovative and pragmatic solutions to social problems by tackling the root causes and creating social transformation. Selected social entrepreneurs of the Schwab Foundation network participate in World Economic Forum events, thus providing unique opportunities for them to connect with business, political and media leaders. Learn more about the Schwab Foundation at http://www.schwabfound.org

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