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Gift for Life to Honor Ron Jedlinski and Mary Engelbreit
Presentations to be made at Anniversary Party, May 22, 2006
ovember 2, 2005 - Gift for Life (GFL), the gift and home decor industry's
volunteer group raising funds for AIDS research and education, will honor
Ron Jedlinski, founder of Roman Inc., and artist Mary Engelbreit at the
GFL 14th anniversary party, May 22, 2006, in New York City.
Ron Jedlinski, who founded his company in 1963, will be honored with GFL's
Chuck Yancy Lifetime Achievement Award. The company, which began by
importing religious figurines, was named Roman's Religious Goods in honor
of Jedlinski's father, a gift shop retailer, who'd given his blessing and
assistance (and an office in back of the store) to the venture. After
establishing his niche in the religious articles marketplace, Ron
Jedlinski expanded into wedding, anniversary, baby, christening, and
retirement giftware. Over the years, his eye for product development,
business acumen, and supplier relationships turned Roman Inc. into one of
the largest privately owned and operated firms in the giftware industry.
Ron and his wife, Diane, who live in a Chicago suburb, are the proud
grandparents of two girls. Their daughter, Julie, is married to Dan
Loughman, a Roman Inc. vice president.
Mary Engelbreit, known throughout the world for her colorful, detailed
designs, will be honored with GFL's Award for Outstanding Industry
Contribution. With a compulsion to draw ever since childhood, Mary took
her first job in a St. Louis art supply store immediately after high
school. A trip to New York in 1977 led to an art director's suggestion
that she try her hand at illustrating greeting cards. Miffed at first, she
soon saw merit in the advice, and today her work adorns more than 14
million greeting cards and a million calendars sold each year, as well as
gifts and home accents sold by thousands of retailers, including The Mary
Engelbreit Store in St. Louis. Mary's art has come to life through the
children's animated video based on her illustration of The Night Before
Christmas. She is also editor-in-chief of the magazine Mary Engelbreit's
Home Companion. Mary and her family live in St. Louis.
Gift for Life's 14th anniversary party will take place in New York,
Monday, May 22, 2006, from 6-10 p.m. Tickets start at $125; sponsorships
are also available. Proceeds from the event will benefit the American
Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR). For more information, contact
Franklin Fry, (212) 806-1611, or at franklin.fry@amfar.org.
Photos of honorees available: contact franklin.fry@amfar.org
ABOUT GIFT FOR LIFE
Gift for Life, the gift and home decor industry's volunteer group raising
funds for the American Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR), was founded
in 1992. Since then, Gift for Life has raised nearly $4 million for
support of amfAR's work through special events, cause-related marketing,
promotions, and from corporate and individual donations. Numerous research
projects nationwide have been funded by the group's amfAR-directed grants.
Franklin G. Fry
Associate Director, Events
amfAR
120 Wall Street, 13th Floor
New York, N.Y. 10005
tel: 212.806.1611
fax: 212.806.1601
e: franklin.fry@amfar.org
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