Dear friends and donors:

Circumstances led Shaleasha Mcneal and Ashman Rubio to be admitted as children to The Ark Assessment Center and Emergency Shelter for Youth. 
Appreciation and gratitude are why they agreed to be guest speakers at The Ark Gala held Sept. 18 at the Richard M. Borchard Regional Fairgrounds. 
“I was at The Ark when I was 5,” said McNeal, who lived in several foster care homes before aging out at 18. “I never wanted to leave. It was a loving place. You know you’re loved and safe.” 
She recalled getting Christmas gifts at the shelter, adding: “I never got presents before then.” 
Now 29, the Del Mar College business major has a young son and aspires to open a business. 
Ashman Rubio was admitted to the shelter in 2003 and said she looks back on her time there with gratitude. 

Living there “allowed me the opportunity to feel safe and to be a child. I was able to attend one school dance. What was important was that I was included.”

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She prepared for her future by graduating in May from Coastal Bend College in Alice and is a practicing licensed vocational nurse at Windsor Calallen nursing home and rehabilitation center. 
“At age 36, I achieved a milestone. Today I find joy in helping others, just as The Ark did for me.” 
The gala, which had 531 attendees, celebrated the 25th anniversary of the first child admitted to the shelter — a 16-year-old girl — on April 7, 2000. 
Co-Masters of Ceremonies Rudy Treviño and Barbi Leo, KIII-TV “Domingo Live!” program co-hosts, opened the program portion of the event with the presentation of colors by the Tuloso-Midway High School NJROTC. 
Board Chairman Rene Esquivel introduced the Most Rev. Rene H. Gracida, D.D., bishop emeritus of Corpus Christi. 
Manuela Shull of Shull Piano Studio was presented with a certificate of appreciation for the back-ground music played by her students during 18 consecutive galas.  
A video featuring shelter volunteers made by Jay Sanchez, a former board member, was shown. 
The audience also saw a video message from the Most Rev. Wm. Michael Mulvey, STL, D.D., bishop of Corpus Christi. 
The invocation was given by the Very Rev. Paul A. Hesse, diocesan vicar general and pastor of St. Pius X Catholic Church. Centerpieces donated by Get Jeweled Productions adorned the tables. 
Nearly 500 silent auction items were available for bidding. 
The gala’s $134,850.95 net profit was only achieved with everyone’s bigheartedness, especially the following sponsors: 
Dove: Jack R. and Kathleen D. Baker, CITGO Corpus Christi Refinery, Gignac Architects, H-E-B, Elsa C. Jackson & Family (In Memory of Rosie T. Barrera), Profire Protection Inc., Valero Corpus Christi Refineries, and Mr. and Mrs. Tony Vera. 
Giraffe: Allison Flooring America, American Steel & Supply Inc., Healthy South Texas, The John G. & Marie Stella Kenedy Memorial Foundation, and You’re Welcome Dental. 
Leopard: Gonzalez Family Dentistry, Shull Piano Studio, Aguayo Family, In Honor of The Ark’s Children, In Memory of Matthew Balli & Arty  Torres, Chick-fil-A Calallen, Children’s Physician Services of South Texas, Everest Water, G.P. 
Transport Inc., W.O. Harrison Jr. Family LP, Adriana Hipólito-Lamont, IBC Insurance Agency Ltd., Knights of Columbus St. Jude Council No. 11238, Noe Lira M.D. and Thelma Lopez-Lira M.D. P.A., Los Amigos, Dr. and Mrs. Frank Eloy Martinez and Eloy Martinez Jr., Members First Credit Union, Order of the Incarnate Word and Blessed Sacrament, Johnny and Christi Perales, Sam’s Club #8267, St. Philip the Apostle CDA Court #2399 Mystic Rose, Texas Elite Trucking LLC, Walmart #791 – Alice, Walmart #458 – Aransas Pass, Walmart #464 – Calallen, Walmart #490 – Flour Bluff, Walmart #470 – Greenwood, Walmart #442 – Kingsville, Walmart #5460 – Portland, Walmart #5898 – Saratoga, Walmart #1494 – Staples, Weichert Realtors The Place of Houses, and Greg Ybarra and Patsy Benchoff. 
The live auction items and their generous donors were: Luau on the Beach: Island House Beachfront Condo Hotel, North Padre Island weekend stay with backdrop, plant stands, plant box, Captain Morgan basket, donors Cynthia Requenez, Rosy and Freddie Martinez; Hurricane decorative entry tan door with impact-resistant glass, thermally sealed panels, donor Window World; Dallas Cowboys Mania with four solid oak custom-made furniture pieces with logo, cooler, Dallas Cowboys items, snacks and Miller Lite 12-pack, donors The Ritz Family, Angelina and Jaime Requenez; 4-day/3-night stay at WorldMark Taos, N.M., or WorldMark Fort Lauderdale – Palm-Aire luxury resorts, donor Mike and Jennifer Brady; Handcrafted Works: Sister Milagros Tormo, M.J.M.J., created needlepoint chess design throw blanket, table runner, eight dinner settings, Holy Family puzzle in rustic frame, 10 Dickson ceramic figurines and hand-carved Nativity stable by Jose Moncada, two ladies’ shawls crocheted by Marisol Casado Tormo in Spain. 
Bob Montez was the auctioneer and oversaw the liquor basket raffle. The Hi-Fairnessee Girls Club sold tickets for the basket donated by the board of directors and Delma Trejo, the shelter’s executive director/administrator. 

Trejo, commenting on the agency’s 25 years of residents, said: “We are growing a little bit every year. We’re known as the baby shelter in Texas. 

“These little ones are very honest. They’ll tell you what it is not to have food. It’s hard to see we have so many children without food. They’ll eat anything you put in front of them.” On their birthday, they’ll ask: “Why do we have candles and a cake?” 

In his closing remarks, Esquivel told the attendees: “You’ve seen what your contributions do. We couldn’t do it by ourselves. We rely on you.” 

Sister Milagros Tormo, M.J.M.J., board president, summed up the evening: “What you did tonight is make a difference in a child’s life.”