LOS ANGELES – Children Uniting Nations (CUN), a leading non-profit organization dedicated to providing quality mentors and advocates for foster and at-risk children, will honor philanthropist Aubrey Chernick, the 2015 “Lifetime Legacy Award” recipient, for his service to youth and unveil the details of a new pilot program in Los Angeles schools at the Great Gatsby-themed celebrity gala.

“Through Joyce and Aubrey Chernick’s continued support, our mission to empower foster children and at-risk youth through CUN's academic mentoring programs has flourished,” said Mykesha A. Robinson, executive director of CUN. “Hundreds of thousands of young people will find the building blocks to achieve their American dream through the programs the Chernicks make possible in Los Angeles schools.”

Chernick, Robinson and others will unveil details of the new pilot program, The CUN2.0 Upgraded Initiative, expanding on the organization’s 16 years of service to at-risk and foster youth. CUN2.0 empowers at-risk and foster youth students through a new Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math (STEAM) center and a new celebrity mentorship program.

“Just like education itself, providing authentic access to quality arts and technology for all children is our new civil rights struggle,” said Dr. Gustavo Ortiz, Los Angeles Unified School District Principle, Normandie Avenue Elementary.

WHO: Chaka Khan, The Great Gatsby Dancers, The LA Mass Choir and TJ Wilkins from NBC’s “The Voice,” and others. Joyce and Aubrey Chernick, Los Angeles philanthropists (www.aubreychernick.com)WHERE: Taglyan Cultural Complex | 1201 Vine St. Los Angeles, Calif. 90038WHEN: Sunday, June 28, 2015 | Red Carpet 3:00 p.m. - Dinner 4:00 p.m. 

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About Children Uniting NationsChildren Uniting Nations (CUN) was pioneered in Los Angeles in 1999 by Founder and Chair, Daphna Ziman. The mission of this organization is to create loving, tolerant, and capable world citizens, and to help children find their way to fulfill their dreams by empowering them through music and the arts. http://www.childrenunitingnations.org/. Video PSA: https://youtu.be/GnF6PZZnZYw

About Joyce and Aubrey ChernickLos Angeles philanthropists Joyce and Aubrey Chernick have supported causes and created programs that nurture vulnerable youth for over two decades. As Founder and CEO of Candle, Aubrey Chernick instituted a teen-apprentice program for over 50 inner city youth, many of whom attended college and built careers in the computer software industry. Since then, the Chernick family has supported academic programs that introduce young students, often living in economically distressed areas, to computer technology skills and the arts, including Children Uniting Nations, the Hobart Shakespeareans Program, and the Carson Scholars Fund. In 2014, Carson Scholars awarded Mr. Chernick with the Leadership Award for “positively impacting society with innovative ideas, accomplishments, and philosophies.” www.aubreychernick.com