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Phoenix House Fashion Dinner Raises $1 Million to Support Teen Drug Treatment

Bloomingdale’s and Theory Executives Honored with Phoenix House Fashion Award

NEW YORK, NY, April 27, 2006 -- Phoenix House, the nation’s leading non-profit drug treatment organization, raised in excess of $1 million last night at its 2006 Fashion Award Dinner. Proceeds from the dinner – which honored Frank Doroff, senior executive vice president and general merchandise manager of Bloomingdale’s and Andrew Rosen, president and founder of Theory – will go to support Phoenix House’s treatment programs for adolescents in nine states.

The dinner, which was held at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Manhattan, was co-chaired by Anne Keating, senior vice president of public relations, special events and corporate philanthropy for Bloomingdale’s, and Melissa Gellman, Director of Public Relations for Theory. Click here for photos from the event.

Major figures from the fashion industry and other notable attendees include: Michael Gould, Chairman and CEO of Bloomingdale’s, Paul Charron, Chairman and CEO of Liz Claiborne, Michelle Ateyeh (Lambertson Truex), Andrew Jennings (Saks Fifth Avenue), Larry Burstein (New York Magazine), Glen Senk (Free People), Jackie Nemiroff (Polo Ralph Lauren), Eugenia Ulasewicz (Burberry), Chris Spiradella (Birger Christensen), Beth Rudin DeWoody, Brooke Neidich, Dr. Harold Koplewicz and designers Mark Badgley, James Mischka, Norma Kamali, Kenneth Cole, Catherine Malandrino, Carmen Marc Valvo, Rebecca Taylor, Neil Cole, Kay Unger, Rickie Freeman, Lyn Devon, James Perse, and Leon Max.

“Thanks to the incredible generosity of the fashion industry, we will be able to further improve our teen treatment and expand access for young people in need,” said Mitchell S. Rosenthal, M.D., president of Phoenix House. “ America faces a large treatment gap for teens and we also know that Phoenix House has a proven treatment method that helps kids get their lives back on track,”

“Since the earliest days of Phoenix House, we have enjoyed enthusiastic support from the fashion industry,” said Dr. Rosenthal. “Frank Doroff and Andrew Rosen, as community and industry leaders, have given thoughtful and generous support to substance abuse treatment, prevention and education. They have helped marshal the power and influence of the fashion industry to address this and other pressing social issues.”

The Phoenix House Fashion Award is presented to leaders in the fashion and retail world to honor their commitment and dedication to serving the community. Past recipients include the late Kalman Ruttenstein of Bloomingdales, Burton Tansky and Joan Kaner of Neiman Marcus, and Katherine Betts of Harper’s Bazaar.

In addition to remarks from both honorees, the event featured an emotional speech by Jessica, an 18 year-old graduate of the Phoenix Academy of Westchester – one of 11 residential treatment high schools operated across the country by Phoenix House. The Academy model has been proven effective in a study by the RAND Corporation, one of the nation’s most trusted research organizations.  Its recent study found that teens treated at a Phoenix Academy demonstrated substantial reductions in drug use and unlawful behavior and an improvement in psychological well-being – and that the Phoenix Academy outperformed other adolescent programs in these areas.

“Phoenix House has helped me to get in touch with who I am as a person and helped me decide what I want to strive for in life,” said Jessica. “They taught me how to live life and made me believe that I should not be afraid of success.”

Phoenix House is the nation’s largest non-profit provider of substance abuse treatment and prevention services, operating nearly 100 programs in nine states.  Phoenix House has served communities in New York since 1967, helping thousands to overcome the problems associated with substance abuse and lead healthy, productive and rewarding lives. Some 2,500 adults and teenagers receive treatment each day through more than 20 Phoenix House programs in New York City, upstate New York, and Long Island.

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Media Contact:

Justin Bernbach

(646) 505-2094