Fulfillment Fund Honors CEO of Legendary Pictures with MK Shannon Custom Awards

Los Angeles, CA. Each fall, the Fulfillment Fund hosts one of the largest Los Angeles area benefit events, raising over $2 million to assist economically disadvantaged students graduate from high school and college. The STARS Benefit Gala honors a leader in the entertainment industry for his or her extraordinary generosity and philanthropic involvement.

The Fulfillment Fund selected three custom awards designed by MK Shannon to recognize their honorees. This year the honoree is Thomas Tull, Chairman and CEO of Legendary Pictures. This year also includes a special presentation of the Gitnick Visionary Award to Shelley Freeman, Regional Vice President of Wells Fargo Bank, and the Inspiration Award to Andrea Cockrum, Founding CEO of the Fulfillment Fund.

The STARS Gala is a popular Hollywood celebrity event. Leading celebrities serve as entertainers and presenters, and have included Ben Stiller, Jamie Foxx, Steve Martin, Vince Vaughn, Warren Beatty, Annette Bening, Roger Daltry, Calista Flockhart, Kate Hudson, Salma Hayek, Quincy Jones, David Hyde Pierce, Sidney Poitier, Denzel Washington, Stevie Wonder —and many, many more. This year the Master of Ceremonies was Ryan Seacrest, John Fogarty provided entertainment, and Kate Beckinsale and Christian Bale were speakers, along with others.

We Received Our Own Recognition

We are MK Shannon Awards & Rewards are delighted to have been chosen by the Fulfillment Fund to provide their recognition awards for 2008. They selected Dream Maker, Excellence Grand, and Enlightenment for these awards. Because they were recognizing three honorees at the event, it was good to select three different awards that enabled each recipient to feel special in their own right. Working with Stacy Seligman Kravitz, the Director of Special Events for the Fulfillment Fund to make all this happen, here’s what she had to say about her experience:

"Working with MK Shannon Awards gives you the opportunity to present a unique piece of art to an honoree. The sculpture tells a story and embodies a value that you are expressing to the recipient. What a meaningful way to show your appreciation at an event! We were very pleased to work with you."

Stacy met us at last year’s Association for Fundraising Professionals conference. She said she was blown away by the uniqueness of the awards displayed in our booth. She immediately recognized that our awards stand out from the rest and would have more meaning to their recipients. “Your sculpted awards are pieces of fine art,” she said. She also loved the idea that each piece had the artist’s notes about the inspiration for the piece and that they were quality awards that people would prominently display in their homes or offices. She knew that it would be important for their organization to present something beautiful and unique, not just a piece of glass or crystal.

After the STARS gala, Stacy visited the home of their CEO who had been recognized for the legacy she has given their organization. Stacy knew the CEO collects art and she wanted to give her a special award that would make an imprint. She was pleasantly surprised to see the award displayed prominently on the woman’s piano for all to see. “It was good to see that she had found a place of meaning for the award.”