INTRODUCTION

In the early and mid 1980s, the state of Washington saw an influx of refugees from Laos as a result of the Indochina War and the fall of South Vietnam. Since then there have been many community gatherings aimed at preserving and promoting our heritage - but few were a collaborative effort to raise funds to support common goals and programs to serve the community as a whole.

The Lao Veterans Organization, the Laotian Student Association at the University of Washington, and the Kinnaly Dance Troupe, have pooled resources to host a Gala Dinner whose purpose is to:

1. Generate funds for educational programs that will benefit not only the Lao community, but all individuals with interest in Laos and its people. Such programs are:

-          Scholarships for talented high school students to pursue higher education

-          Music programs teaching Khene (Lao national instrument) to encourage intergenerational interaction between senior musician mentors and younger American-born students 

-          Dance programs to preserve the arts of traditional performances

-          Technical trainings and workshops (such as computer and web usage) to promote advancement in the workforce

-          Other educational programs of interest to the Lao community and the community at large

2. Promote, showcase, and preserve the beautiful traditions of Laos through the exhibition of arts, artifacts, crafts, photography, live traditional music and dance, and showcase the diversity of Laos through the ethnic costumes fashion show
3. Uphold and celebrate the community’s attachment to our motherland Laos

Because this is the first event of this nature, we are anticipating a great turn out. This showcase of Lao history, culture and arts will host up to 600 guests, who will be exposed to the splendor of Laos and treated to an authentic Lao dinner.

In order to reach our target and raise enough funds to start and continue our programs, we need support from our community, local businesses, and generous individuals. There are many ways that you can help us meet our goals (see attached level of sponsorship):

-          by attending the event

-          donating items for the silent auction

-          becoming sponsors

-          and/or advertise in our program booklets

Your donation is tax deductible as we are a 501c3 organization.

Please make checks payable to our fiscal agent, the Lao Veterans Organization, and confirm your contribution/donation by February 28, 2007.

For more information and details, please feel free to contact us, Khamsene Sam Thaviseth @ (206)240-5715, McCoy Sengsi @ (206) 409-3133 or Pom Khampradith @ (206) 227-6394.   

We look forward to hearing from you and would like to thank you in advance for your contribution.

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