Kiddo Ramps Up With Auction, Art and Gala

Fresh on the heels of for 2010, is ramping up its 2011 campaign, launching an online auction today and getting ready for its 2011 Spring Gala later this month.

The 29-year-old nonprofit foundation’s online auction goes live today at 10 a.m. and closes next Wednesday at 10 p.m., with a range of items for bid, including dinner for two at the French Laundry, a two-hour airplane flight for three and a week at an oceanfront condo in Maui.

And as it sets out on its 2011 campaign, Kiddo is also displaying the fruits of its labor, as students from all six schools will be showing off their artwork at the , starting with a reception tonight from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. The reception is in conjunction with Mill Valley’s First Tuesday Artwalk.

Kiddo funds 100 percent of the district’s art programs, and also covers the district’s music, drama, and poetry programs, as well as the first through fifth grade classroom aides, library aides, teacher mini grants and a significant portion of technology funding.

Kiddo continues to serve as a vital source of funding for Mill Valley’s public schools a continuing dismal state budget, its board chair Lori Coopersmith said in announcing the group’s fundraising success earlier this year.

“In 2010, Kiddo had to respond to unprecedented state budget cuts to our public schools,” Coopersmith said. “Thanks to exceptional community support we are able to maintain our arts programs and significantly increase funding for additional programs that are no longer funded by the state.”

The organization has scheduled its Spring Gala for March 12 at the community center, hoping to raise as much as $250,000 from one of Mill Valley’s biggest events of the year.