I HAVE A DREAM Foundation - Los Angeles to Host 'Dreamer Dinner' This Weekend

The I HAVE A DREAM Foundation - Los Angeles is pleased to host the Annual Dreamer Dinner, honoring champions of education in the Los Angeles area. The event will take place on Sunday, March 8 at 5pm at the Skirball Cultural Center's Ahmanson Ballroom, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd. in Los Angeles. Honorees include Chris Selak, Bradley Bredeweg & Peter Paige, Jerry Fink & David Kim, and Jason Collins. Presenters for the evening include Lionsgate TV Chairman Kevin Beggs and Rosie O'Donnell.

The I HAVE A DREAM Foundation - Los Angeles (IHADLA) helps at-risk youth and their families become empowered members of society by providing a long-term program of academic enhancement, mentoring, tutoring and cultural enrichment with an assured opportunity for a scholarship for higher education. Debra Fine serves as the organization's CEO and Executive Director.

ABOUT THE CEO/EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR DEBRA FINE - She is a Member of Young President's Organization and is a moderator for WIN (Women's International Network) Lean In (Sheryl Sandberg's women on boards movement) and Regional Chair for the Disadvantaged Kids and Musicians Network. Debra was awarded Female Entrepreneur of the Year in the Children's Educational products space. She was also named one of the top 50 most influential women in entertainment for her role as CEO of Cloud9 Interactive, as one of the few women in technology. Fine has had over 20 years of experience in strategic planning, capital raising, marketing, operations and business development/strategic alliances. On June 7, 2013, Debra Fine survived a mass shooting in Santa Monica, California. She is anominee for the Carnegie Medal of Honor for saving the lives of others by putting herself between the shooter and two community members. Debra was shot four times. Ms. Fine has started the Fine Line Foundation to help victims of violent crimes. She speaks at Corporations, Chambers of Commerce, Colleges, Empowerment Seminars and Conferences. She recently was a featured speaker at Digital Hollywood on Women in Technology, "Creating Your Personal and Company Brand."

ABOUT THE HONOREES:

CHRIS SELAK, Executive Vice President, Lionsgate Television spearheads all creative development and programming, including the development of new content for traditional and new media platforms, as well as overseeing all current television series, animation, and long-form programming. Since joining Lionsgate in 2011, she has led the studio to its most active development and production period in history with: ABC's Nashville; Netflix's Orange is the New Black; E!'s first scripted series The Royals, starring Elizabeth Hurley; the Charlie Sheen-starrer Anger Management; WGN America's Manhattan, which received a straight-to-series order helmed by Thomas Schlamme; Hulu's Deadbeat; as well as Lionsgate's first animated pilot Harold and Kumar, based on the popular film franchise. With a portfolio that also includes the critically-acclaimed series Mad Men and Nurse Jackie, Selak is currently overseeing the production of Jason Reitman's first foray into television with Casual at Hulu, as well as an adaptation of Clan of the Cave Bear at Lifetime, executive produced by Ron Howard and Alli Shearmur. And with an aim to expand into new networks, Lionsgate will produce Oprah's first scripted series on OWN, Queen Sugar, as well as Epix's first original program, Graves, starring Nick Nolte. Prior to her tenure at Lionsgate, Selak served as Senior Vice President at John Wells Productions ("JWP"), where she oversaw programming for some of the most-honored series in television history: ER and The West Wing. She produced the ER special retrospective, "Previously On," that aired in the time-period immediately preceding the series finale. In addition, she was behind the development of JWP's Shameless, a dark, comedic family drama starring Bill Macy and Emmy Rossum that currently airs on Showtime, as well as TNT's Southland, a series about the diverse lives of those serving in The LosAngeles Police Department. Prior to JWP, Selak was Vice President at Mandalay Television, a Peter Guber company. There, she was producer on the Showtime series Rude Awakening, starring Sherilyn Fenn and Lynn Redgrave. She also oversaw the development and programming of the ABC series Cupid, starring Jeremy Piven and The WB's Young Americans, starring Kate Bosworth.

BRADLEY BREDEWEG & PETER PAIGE, principals of BLAZING ELM ENTERTAINMENT,have been working together since 2007, setting up an impressive breadth of projects in both television and film. On the small screen, the pair have written pilots for Warner Brothers Television and The CW, USA/UNIVERSAL CABLE, ABC FAMILY, E!, and aMOW for ABC FAMILY. They are currently the Creators and Executive Producers of the ABC FAMILY original series, THE FOSTERS, alongside Jennifer Lopez. THE FOSTERS received the 2014 Outstanding Drama Series award from GLAAD and has been recognized by numerous organizations including HRC, Planned Parenthood, the Family Equality Council and Raise-A-Child, as well as the Television Critics Association and the Television Academy. Bradley and Peter recently finished writing the epic six-hour miniseries KING TUT for SpikeTV and Muse Entertainment (PILLARS OF THE EARTH, THE KENNEDYS), for worldwide distribution across multiple platforms. In addition, they have feature films in development at various production entities, including REPEAT AFTER ME (produced by Mary Pat Bentel) to be directed by Paige. They are represented by ANDY ELKIN and GRANT KESSMAN at CAA, and attorneys KARL AUSTEN and ROBERT KOCH.

JERRY FINK & DAVID KIM - Jerome A. Fink is a co-founder & Managing Partner of The Bascom Group, LLC. Bascom has completed over $9.0 billion in multi-family and commercial value-added transactions since 1996 including more than 240 multifamily properties and 70,000 units. Bascom's subsidiaries and joint ventures include the Southern California Industrial Fund, Rushmore Properties, Bascom Portfolio Advisors, Shubin Nadal Associates, Spirit Investors, REDA Bascom Ventures, MHF RM Holdings, and the Realm Group. Bascom's subsidiaries also include Premier Business Centers, the largest privately held executive suite company in the US. Prior to founding Bascom, Mr. Fink acted as Senior Acquisitions and Sales Manager from 1991 to 1995 for Pacific Mutual Life Insurance Company. His responsibilities included market assessment, property identification and negotiation, and the acquisition and disposition of real estate investments. Mr. Fink holds a Bachelor of Science in Electrical and Computer Engineering and a Master of Business Administration in Real Estate and Finance from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is a member of the Institute of Real Estate Managements (IREM) and Turnaround Management Association (TMA). Mr. Fink is a licensed real estate broker in the state of California, a Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM), a Certified Property Manager (CPM), a Certified Mergers & Acquisitions Advisor (CM&AA), and a Certified Turnaround Professional (CTP). He has appeared as a guest speaker at various functions, including those for the Urban Land Institute, University of California Los Angeles and Irvine, University of Southern California, and other assorted industry events. Mr. Fink previously served on the Board of Directors for the Wisconsin Real Estate Alumni Association and is currently a member of the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate Executive Committee. He is also a member of the Young Presidents Organization (YPO) and serves on the local chapter's board as well as the Real Estate Network's Executive Committee.

In 2004, Mr. Fink was awarded the Apartment Executive of the Year by the Real Estate Conference Group, the industry's largest and most prestigious multifamily conference on the West Coast, and was later awarded the Rising Star award by the University of California Irvine Center for Real Estate in 2008. Mr. Fink was also recognized in the 2011 Multi-Family Executive Magazine.

Mr. Kim oversees the development, portfolio management and overall operations for The Bascom Group. His responsibilities include supervising The Bascom Group's portfolio team in key revenue growth initiatives and expense programs, as well as lender and equity relationships, new ventures, market expansion, and business development. Mr. Kim led the business development of Bascom subsidiary organizations, including: Bascom Arizona Ventures, Bascom Northwest Ventures, Premier Business Centers, The Realm Group, Southern California Industrial Fund, Spirit Bascom Ventures, Shubin Nadal Associates, and REDA Bascom Ventures.
Mr. Kim has led the company through the repositioning of over 230 property sites totaling $800 million in renovations over the firm's 18 year history. He has developed and refined the extensive system of financial reporting and oversight for achieving operational goals for each property and investor portfolio. Other key business development initiatives include social outreach, focused on Health, Wealth, Education and Lifestyle, in an effort to increase a competitive advantages for its residents at the neighborhood and community level. In conjunction with these social outreach programs, Mr. Kim created region-specific performance incentive programs, or "PIP", aimed at enhancing managers good will, and an enhanced sense of relevance and purpose. Prior to founding The Bascom Group, Mr. Kim served as a Senior Analyst and Development Associate, from 1989 to 1995, for the Disney Development Company, awholly owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, where he was responsible for business development and analysis of more than $400 million in retail, office, entertainment, and residential projects. In addition, prior to joining the Disney Development Company, Mr. Kim served as Portfolio Associate with the State of Wisconsin Investment Board, a multi-billion dollar pension fund, investing on behalf of state employees.
Mr. Kim holds Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Real Estate & Urban Land Economics and in Marketing from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and has attended executive level programs at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He often serves as guest lecturer guest speaker at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Colorado, University of Southern California, University of California Los Angeles and Irvine. Mr. Kim previously served as a director and treasurer for the Wisconsin Real Estate Alumni Association. In 2004, Mr. Kim was awarded Apartment Executive of the Year by the Real Estate Conference Group, the industry's largest and most prestigious multifamily conference on the West Coast. Mr. Kim is currently amember of the Young President's Organization (YPO) and the University of California, Irvine Board of Advisors for the Center for Real Estate where he received the distinguished Rising Star award in 2008. Mr. Kim currently serves on the Southern California Board for UNICEF and is on the board of the Rattle Building Corporation and University of Colorado Center for Real Estate. Mr. Kim was a recipient of the 2010 Orange County Business Journal's Entrepreneurship of the Year Award and was recognized in the 2011 Multi-Family Executive Magazine. Mr. Kim is a sponsor of the 2015 World Games for Belize.

JASON COLLINS is a retired American professional basketball player of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Collins attended Stanford University, where he was an All-American in the 2000-2001 season. He was also named to the All Pac-10 First Team and awarded the NABC Pete Newell "Big Man of the Year" Award. He finished his college career ranked first in Stanford history for field goal percentage and third in blocked shots. Upon graduating with a B.A. from Stanford, Collins was selected in the first round of the 2001 NBA Draft with the 18th overall pick. Now a 13-year veteran, Collins has played center for six teams including New Jersey, Memphis, Minnesota, Atlanta, Boston, Washington and, most recently, the Brooklyn Nets (formerly the New Jersey Nets). Doc Rivers, who coached Collins during his time with the Boston Celtics, said of Collins: "He's the best. He literally is one of the best guys I've ever had in the locker room, player or coach." In his 13 years in the league, Collins' teams earned 10 trips to the playoffs including 2 NBA Finals appearances.

After the 2012-13 NBA season concluded, Collins publicly came out as gay in acover story for Sports Illustrated, becoming the first male active player in any of the four major American professional sports to announce that he is gay. President Obama expressed his gratitude to Collins for his courageous announcement and said he "couldn't be prouder" of Collins, recognizing this as a point of progress for the LGBT community, and one more step in America's goal to treat everyone fairly and with respect. Collins has traveled the country with the mission of empowering people to live their lives as their true selves, and has become an active member of numerous charities, foundations and organizations. In 2013, GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network, honored Collins with the Courage Award at the GLSEN Respect Awards. In 2014, Logo TV honored Collins with its inaugural Trailblazer Award. Also in 2014, the Matthew Shepard Foundation honored Collins with its Making a Difference Award at its annual Honors Gala. In January of 2015, the National Civil Rights Museum honored Collins with a Sports Legacy Award. In April 2014, Collins was featured on the cover of Time Magazine's "100 Most Influential People in the World." He currently serves on the President's Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition, which works to motivate Americans to adopt a healthy lifestyle via physical activity and nutrition. Collins resides in Los Angeles, California.

ABOUT THE HOST:

MELISSA PETERMAN - Growing up in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Melissa Peterman first made a name for herself when she was cast in the local production of "Tony and Tina's Wedding." She went on to perform in over 600 shows and became a staple on the comedy and improv scenes. Currently starring as Bonnie Wheeler in ABC Family's hit comedy series "Baby Daddy," Melissa is best known for her starring role as Barbra Jean on the hit series "Reba." She also starred in "Working Class," "Retired at 35," "Surviving Suburbia," "Rita Rocks," "Just Shoot Me," "Cedric," "Living in Abandon," "The Pitts" and "American Dad." Her first televised comedy special, "Melissa Peterman: Am I the Only One?," aired on CMT and she also starred in "Dusty Peacock," the online series created for Crackle.com.

Melissa has hosted several competition shows, including the fourth season of CMT's "The Singing Bee," ABC Family's reality comedy clip show "Dancing Fools," and will host another season of ABC's primetime game show "Bet on Your Baby." Melissa made her feature film debut as Hooker #2 in the Coen Brothers' Oscar-winning movie, "Fargo." Other film credits include "40 is the New Dead," "Here Comes the Boom" and "Dirty Politics." This past year she toured with Reba McEntire, Kelly Clarkson, George Strait and Lee Ann Womack. Peterman is committed to many charities, including Muhammad Ali's Celebrity Fight Night, Habitat for Humanity, The Red Cross and the non-profit Buzzworks Theatre Company. She currently resides in Los Angeles with her husband and son. Follow Melissa Peterman on Twitter at Followtheblonde and on Instagram at melissapeterman.

The I HAVE A DREAM Foundation - LA - Dreamer Dinner will take place on Sunday, March 8, 2015 at 5pm at the at the Skirball Cultural Center's Ahmanson Ballroom, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd. in Los Angeles. Honorees include Chris Selak, Bradley Bredeweg & Peter Paige, Jerry Fink & David Kim, and Jason Collins. Presenters for the evening include Lionsgate TV Chairman Kevin Beggs and Rosie O'Donnell. Hosted by Melissa Peterman.

Ticket prices begin at $500. For tickets or sponsorship opportunities, call Emily Houdeshell at (213) 572-0175 or visit www.ihadla.org.

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