Riverside Community Care Honors Michelle Garfinkel of Weston and Laura Olton of Wellesley

Newton, MA – More than 500 people gathered at Riverside Community Care’s 25^th Annual Appreciation Evening at the Newton Marriott Hotel on Monday, May 9, 2016 to celebrate the accomplishments of people served by the behavioral healthcare and human services nonprofit, its employees, and friends of the organization.

Wellesley resident Laura Olton and Weston resident Michelle Garfinkel were recipients of the Friends of Riverside award honoring them for their longtime contributions to the organization, both as individuals and working together most recently as co-chairs of the enormously successful Blue Jean Ball at the Wellesley Country Club last fall. Garfinkel and Olton were instrumental in the execution and success of that event—which sold out five weeks early and raised more than $220,000 for Riverside’s mental healthcare and human services in Massachusetts. Riverside raised more money than ever from the annual Blue Jean Ball and now will move to a new venue for next year to accommodate the increased interest in the event.

Garfinkel currently serves on Riverside’s Board of Directors; Olton is a former Board member. Garfinkel said, “I am honored to receive this award and to be a part of Riverside, which provides such important mental healthcare and human services to individuals and families.” Olton added, “I think I can speak for both myself and Michelle – we’re incredibly humbled to be honored by Riverside. We certainly didn’t expect this and are just doing what we can to make sure that people who need Riverside’s services can get them.”

About Riverside Community Care

Riverside Community Care makes a difference in the lives of individuals, families, and communities by delivering compassionate, locally-based, integrated behavioral healthcare and human services. We believe that people possess the ability to grow and change, and that’s why we provide comprehensive and responsive services that support both individual and collective community goals. Each year, more than 40,000 people across Massachusetts depend on Riverside for mental healthcare, developmental and brain injury services, specialized youth and early childhood programs, trauma response, and more. Riverside has built an outstanding reputation, based on providing the highest quality of care to everyone who chooses us. We make a difference—locally, every day.