MSED Celebrates Education With $7,000 Donation to Focus: HOPE

TROY, Mich., Sept. 28 -- Marketing & Sales Executives of Detroit (MSED), held its annual Education Night recently and presented Focus: HOPE with a $7,000 donation for its Center for Advanced Technologies (CAT) program, a successful work/study program for manufacturing engineering students.

The meeting was held at Focus: HOPE's Center for Advanced Technologies in Detroit, Mich. and featured keynote speaker, Laurie Harbour-Felax, formerly of Harbour Consulting.

The donation was funded by proceeds from MSED's professional programs throughout the year including the 13th annual black-tie gala, which was held in May to honor top area sales achievers and auto industry executive Richard E. Dauch, founder, chairman and CEO of American Axle and Manufacturing.

"As part of our commitment to the community and education, we are pleased to provide Focus: HOPE with this donation to support this innovative program and provide opportunities for advanced education and direct industry experience to outstanding future leaders," said Richard Marsolais, who served as volunteer chair of the MSED gala event and is business development manager for Honigman, Miller, Schwartz & Cohn.

The Focus: HOPE CAT program, a unique blend of academic preparation and practical experience, allows students to get hands-on training in a manufacturing environment while working towards their engineering degrees. Students do not pay tuition and earn a salary. Programs like CAT and others are made possible through donations, industry support and academic partners.

According to Eleanor Josaitis, chief executive officer and co-founder of Focus: HOPE, MSED's donation will give more students the opportunity to advance in the industry.

"Through the generosity of the Marketing & Sales Executives of Detroit, we will be able to expose our engineering students to more professional development opportunities. When Father (William) Cunningham and I started our Center for Advanced Technologies, we wanted to give our engineering students hands-on learning experiences as well as opportunities to network with professionals in the industry," said Josaitis. "Today, we graduate more African-American manufacturing engineers than any other comparable program in the country, and our graduates have unique insight into their fields because of the opportunities they have while studying here. We are grateful to MSED for helping to make these opportunities available."

About Focus: HOPE

Focus: HOPE is a nationally-recognized civil and human rights organization in Detroit. It was founded in 1968 after the city's devastating 1967 riots, by the late Father William Cunningham and Eleanor Josaitis, who now serves as chief executive officer. In addition to its educational and career training programs, Focus: HOPE offers a food program that provides nourishing meals to 43,000 seniors, mothers and children each month; Montessori-based child care; business conference facilities; community arts and community development initiatives and other outreach programs. Through Focus: HOPE, thousands of individuals -- especially women and minorities -- have become financially independent. For more information, go the Web site at http://www.focushope.edu/ .

About MSED

Founded in 1988, the Marketing & Sales Executives of Detroit (MSED) is a non-profit organization for marketing and sales management professionals in southeastern Michigan. MSED provides members with an ongoing platform for idea exchange, professional development and new business opportunities. The organization conducts approximately 15 meetings, seminars and educational events each year for networking, professional development and scholarship fund-raising purposes. For more information, visit MSED online at http://www.msedetroit.org/ or call Cheryl Dry at (248) 643-6590.

NOTE TO EDITORS: Electronic image of MSED check presentation available by e-mailing jbianchi@bianchipr.com or calling Jim Bianchi at 248-269-1122.