Ebersole, Cerveris, Dilly and More Attend Cookbook Release Party, May 16

A book party celebrating the release of Ya Tibya Lublu: Recipes of Love for Orphans of Eastern Europe--featuring recipes favored by some of Broadway's brightest stars--will be at held Tuesday, May 16 at 5:30 p.m. in the Adler Study of the New York Society for Ethical Culture (2 West 64th Street at Central Park West). In addition, a number of Broadway celebrities will attend the book party.

Ya Tibya Lublu is expected to be released in mid-April 2006. Cookbook Editor Lisa Finneran and Celebrity Coordinator Jane Waldman will be on hand with their children (adopted from Arkhangel'sk, Russia) as will Linda Perilstein, Executive Director of Cradle of Hope Adoption Center, which handles adoptions in Russia, China and Latin America.

Celebrities featured in Ya Tibya Lublu (which means "I Love You" in Russian) include: Ukrainian Olympic Gold Medalist Oksana Baiul, Russian comedian Yakov Smirnoff, actress and adoptee Kristin Chenoweth (Wicked) and actresses and adoptive mothers Christine Ebersole (Grey Gardens), Donna Mills and Tony Award-winner Donna Murphy (Wonderful Town). Among those expected to attend the May 16th event are: Christine Ebersole, Michael Cerveris (Sweeney Todd), Erin Dilly (Chitty Chitty Bang Bang), Donna Hanover, Linda Dano, Jill Larsen and Bobbie Eakes.

In 2005 there were more than 700,000 orphans in Russia alone. Only a small fraction will be adopted. All of the proceeds from the sale of Ya Tibya Lublu will go to the forgotten children in Akrhangel'sk, Russia.

In conjunction with the release of Ya Tibya Lublu, LeapFrog will donate educational toys to orphans in Eastern Europe who are part of Cradle of Hope Adoption Center's Bridge of Hope Program. LeapFrog products are used in schools across the United States to help educate children. They have also been extremely successful in teaching internationally adopted children English. LeapFrog products are available in six different languages at major retailers in 25 countries around the world.

Cradle of Hope Adoption Center is a non-profit company founded in 1990 by adoptive parents. In the last 15 years Cradle of Hope has placed more than 2,500 children from Russia, China and Latin America.

Ya Tibya Lublu Editor Lisa Finneran and her husband Michael adopted twins Nicholas Peter and Elena Marie from Arkhangsl'sk, Russia, in April of 2003. Coordinator Jane Waldman and her husband Mark Braverman adopted their daughter Elaina Frances from Arkhangel'sk in December of 2005. Finneran and Waldman completed their adoptions with the help of the Cradle of Hope Adoption Center and returned from Russia with a commitment to help the children they left behind.

For more information on the Cradle of Hope adoption center, visit www.cradlehope.org.