On July 25, the MacDella Cooper Foundation will host a multi-part event in the Hamptons to benefit the MCF Academy. Join MCF for a polo match, followed by a high-fashion evening at Four Seasons Caterer Southampton. Click here to purchase tickets.

The event will raise funds for construction of the MCF Academy, which is designed by world-renowned architect Winka Dubbeldam and is scheduled to open in the fall of 2010. The MCF Academy will be the first school in post-war Liberia to offer free education, including room and board, to 200 orphans and abandoned children.

RESERVE YOUR TICKETS TODAY 4pm-6pm: Join MacDella and friends at the "Super Saturday" Bridge Hamptons Polo Match (VIP ticket holders only) 7pm-8pm: Red carpet arrival of celebrity guests, host committee, and VIP ticket holders at Four Seasons Caterer Southampton. Cocktails will be served. A silent auction begins, featuring designer fashion, four-star dining packages, and priceless art. Throughout the night, enjoy music by DJ Dusko Justic. 8pm: General ticketholders arrive and enjoy cocktails and dinner by the bite. VIP ticket holders are served dinner in exclusive seating area. 9pm-10pm: A presentation of the Academy by the renowned Winka Dubbeldam. Followed by an exclusive runway show of the 2009-2010 collection of Lalesso, a prestige African swimwear line, as seen at Capetown Fashion Week, in international editions of Harper's Bazaar and Vogue, and in UK's Topshop.

Meet our host committee:

Matt Dillon (Academy Award-Nominated Actor, Director)

Richard Bo Dietl (Bo Dietl & Associates, Former NYPD Detective)
Brandon Short (NFL Linebacker) Richard Klein (Surface Magazine, Publisher)
Lisa Soloway (20/20, Producer) Nicole Basabe (Tribal Societe, Owner)
Kerry Cassidy (Socialite) Trevor Freeland (Deutsche Bank, Director)
Ian Gerard (GenArt, Founder) Libby Langdon (HGTV, Interior Designer/Author)
Maria Cucciniello (The Hip Event, Founder/President) Barbara Hair (DEVLINHAIR Productions, Principal)
Danita King (PR Noir, Founder/Principal) Gianni Russo (Actor/Singer)
Anna Sabino (Lucid New York, Owner/Designer) Peg Samuel (Social Diva Media, Founder/President)
Ainka Shackleford (Blindie.com, Founding Editor) Mario Singer (Singer & Sons, Vice President)
Rashaun Williams (Dixsville Partners, Managing Partner)

Meet our master and mistress of ceremonies:

Brian Custer is an Emmy-Award winning sports anchor, who joined SNY in 2006.  He is the host of “The Wheelhouse” and all of SNY’s Jets shows, including “Jets Postgame Live and Jets Nation.” In 2007, he won an Emmy Award for his reporting on baseball in Africa.  Prior to joining SNY, Custer was the sports anchor at CBS-11 in Dallas for eight years.  He began his television career in his hometown of Columbus, Ohio.  He is a life member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity and a graduate of Hampton University. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cali Carlin is the national correspondent for CBS News Interactive. She anchors news updates and reports stories for new media platforms including the Web, mobile phones, and IPTV-based networks. She also Hosts the 'Backstage Live' webcast in correlation with the Saturday Early Show.  

Cali covered the 2008 Democratic National Convention for CBS and reported on the Young Vote in the 2008 Presidential Election. She also wrote a paper on the youth vote for the Brookings Institute. 

Prior to CBS, Cali worked as an anchor and correspondent for Channel One News, the in-school news broadcast watched daily by almost 7 million teenagers across the country. At Channel One she covered major stories such as Hurricane Katrina, the Virginia Tech shootings and the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy. She also reported in-depth on teen and international issues. Among her favorite works are a series on Iraqi refugees in Jordan, U.S. service men and women serving in Iraq and the persisting malaria problem in parts of Africa. While at Channel One, Carlin also interviewed a wide range of notables such as Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, First Lady Laura Bush, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, NASA astronaut Buzz Aldrin, actor and activist George Clooney, Olympians Shaun White, Michael Phelps, and numerous other notables.  

Cali has volunteered extensively with Special Olympics and is involved with her church's youth program as a mentor and leader.

Special thanks:

Thank you to our generous sponsors, including The Segal Family Foundation; beverage sponsors Diageo North America, Frederick Wildman and Sons, Hint Water; dessert sponsor The Petite Cafe; media sponsor Hamptons.com. We are also grateful for the support of our many auction sponsors seen here.

Traveling logistics:

Polo Match: 849 Hayground Road, Bridgehampton, NY

Dinner: 15 Prospect Street, Southampton, NY 11968

Reserve your tickets for the Hamptons Jitney here.

Reserve lodging in the Hamptons here.