Richmond dinner to benefit Rosie the Riveter Trust 
          By  Chris Treadway, ctreadway@bayareanewsgroup.com 
Posted:   03/03/2016 04:32:27 PM PST | Updated:    5 days ago 
 
RICHMOND  -- National Park Service Ranger Betty Reid Soskin and veteran TV host Doug  McConnell will be the featured speakers at the annual Rosie the Riveter Trust  benefit dinner on April 9. 
 
The theme of the evening at the historic Galileo Club, 371  South 23rd St., will be Discover Rosie Everywhere, a variation of the National  Park Service centennial theme of Find Your Park,
            Soskin, 94, is a central figure at the Rosie the  Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historical Park, giving popular  presentations on her perspective of life in Richmond during the war, when she  worked in a segregated union office. She introduced President Obama at the 2015  National Christmas Tree Lighting in Washington, D.C., and was named Assembly  District 15 Black History Month honoree by Assemblyman Tony Thurmond. 
            McConnell was the 16-year host of the television travel  program "Bay Area Back Roads" and now hosts "OpenRoad," a  show that airs Sundays on NBC Bay Area. 
               
              Along with his remarks, McConnell "will also preview  segments from his current project, a film capturing the immense social changes  spawned by World War II and the home front experience as viewed by  Soskin," say event organizers. 
            The benefit dinner starts with a 6 p.m. social hour,  followed by dinner and the program at 7 p.m. There will also be a silent  auction. 
            "In the spirit of the evening and the World War II  Richmond home front era, 1940s attire is encouraged," organizers add. 
            Tickets are $150 each if purchased by March 21, or $175  afterward, available online at www.rosietheriveter.org.  
               
            Proceeds  go toward the trust's work to "expand educational programs for all ages  and preserve historical home front resources for the Bay Area and the nation.  This year, some of the proceeds will support efforts to bring fourth-graders  from local schools to the park's Visitors Center as part of the Every Kid in a  Park initiative."  |