Jared Cohen to be KEYNOTE Speaker at the 5th annual Just Like My Child Gala “A Hand Up, Never A Hand Out”!

JARED COHEN, LAUDED BY HUFFINGTON POST AS “ONE OF TOP 100 GAMECHANGERS,” TO KEYNOTE JUST LIKE MY CHILD OCT. 13 GALA         (SAN DIEGO, CA) —

Please reserve your ticket today for a red carpet event benefiting the Just Like My Child Foundation: “A Hand Up, Never A Hand Out” building sustainability one family at a time!
One of the most dazzling young professionals in America, who rose to national prominence at the State Department, leveraged Twitter for free expression during Iranian protests in 2009, and now heads Google Ideas, will keynote the Just Like My Child Foundation annual gala Oct. 13. The gala will raise awareness for thousands in rural Uganda, where Just Like My Child supports health care, education, microfinance, justice, and other efforts.
Jared Cohen, the youngest person appointed to the State Department’s Policy Planning staff, served under both the Bush and Obama administrations. He has landed on top media, corporate, and public policy radars for advocating ways to use digital tools for diplomacy, especially among unemployed, often radicalized youth around the world. Cohen has traveled extensively in 65 countries and been featured on the Colbert Report, CNN, and in the NY Times, Business Week, Fortune, Huffington Post, Financial Times, The New Yorker, and other media.
Cohen will speak about why Africa is a focal point in achieving global stability, and why a stable Africa is imperative for our own national security. Cohen’s national star soared when, among other things, he asked Twitter CEO to keep the operations up when grassroots protests soared in Iran in 2009 just when Twitter planned to go down for routine maintenance. Cohen, who is fluent in Swahili, is also the author of Children of Jihad, One Hundred Days of Silence: America and the Rwanda Genocide and a much-buzzed book to be released with Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt.
“We couldn’t be more thrilled to have Jared Cohen share his exciting message of global connection and hope at our upcoming event. He’s an amazing and respected opinion-leader working to transform the world into a more stable and prosperous one for all, which is our mission in Uganda, as well. We, and our partners, reach up to 30,000 people living in extreme poverty and coping with HIV, malaria, illiteracy and so many other issues,” says Just Like My Child Executive Director Vivian Glyck.   The gala will be from 6 pm to 11 p.m. at the Historic Don Room in El Cortez. It will showcase Chuck Prada, a talented percussionist, who toured with Black Eyed Peas, and DJ Noel 2033 of Rezident Management Group. It will be MC’d by motivational speaker Joseph McClendon, III, who is Tony Robbins’ former lead trainer and presenter. The gala is managed by San Diego event company, MBK Associates.
JLMC works in a remote area of Uganda where few are working. It lifts entire communities up through education for girls, empowerment, microfinance, and health and justice solutions.
The gala will honor three amazing women, including two Ugandans, whose leadership and spirit embody JLMC:
• Monica Nyiraguhabwe, the leader of JLMC’s Girl Power Project, who has empowered hundreds of girls to protect themselves, find their voices and choose a poverty-, AIDS-, and illiteracy-free future.
• Judith Akware, the new JLMC headmistress at the Children’s Academy for the Collective Heart, one of six schools supported by JLMC. Judith has been teaching primary school in Uganda for ten years, where the ratio of students/teachers is often 100/1.
• Dr. Puja Shah, a San Diego-area dentist, who has spent weeks in Uganda treating hundreds of children, delivering supplies and equipment, and teaching hospital staff how to run their own sustainable dental clinic.
“We are so excited to honor these amazing women and showcase our accomplishments the past five years in an area of the world often overlooked and ignored. We expect an intimate gathering of celebrities, spiritual and personal development experts, and passionate supporters—and as always, a few surprise guests,” says Glyck, just nominated by San Diego Magazine as one of its “Women of the Year” to be honored at its upcoming “Women Who Move the City” event.
The VIP cocktail reception allows VIP-level guests to mingle with honorees and key celebrities. Tickets are limited to only 230 for the event and range from $250/guest to $5,000/table with VIP Cocktail Reception for 10 guests. For more information on ticket purchases please visit the Just Like My Child Foundation site here:  http://www.JustLikeMyChild.org/party.
For photos, foundation information, and more background on Vivian Glyck and the Just Like My Child Foundation, please visit: Just Like My Child Foundation.