Wine, Dine, Help Environment At Osa Peninsula Fundraiser

Diners at a fundraising event Nov. 17 at Club Union in San José will not only sample a five-course meal with California wines, but also provide funds for organizations working to strengthen conservation efforts in the Southern Zone’s OsaPeninsula.

Half of the funds from the event, cosponsored by the Corcovado Foundation and Osa Campaign, will go to the foundation’s educational program in DrakeBay; the other half will go toward the Osa Campaign’s Trust Fund. The campaign, which began in 2003, seeks to establish a $10 million endowment fund by the end of 2007, with the interest on the fund to be used to “provide a stable, permanent, private and apolitical source of income to finance both public and private conservation activities in the Osa Peninsula,” Sandra Fraga, the campaign’s marketing and fundraising director, told The Tico Times in an e-mail.

“We have an end date – that’s why it’s so important to raise funds,” Fraga said of the 2007 goal. So far, the campaign has raised about $1 million, she said.

The campaign is a project of the Costa Rica-United States of America Foundation (CR-USA), which has promised to match the first $3 million raised.

The “exceptional gastronomical experience” described on the invitation will include a California wine with each of the courses, including a Cuvaison pinot noir, Coppola merlot, J. Lohr chardonnay, Domaine St.Michelle champagne, Raymond cabernet sauvignon and J. Lohr riesling.

The cocktail-attire event is scheduled for 7 p.m. and costs $75 per person, including a raffle. Contact Francisco Delgado at 297-3013 for more information.

To learn more about the Osa Campaign, visit www.osacampaign.org.

For more on the Corcovado Foundation, visit www.fundacioncorcovado.org. The foundation, created by DrakeBay community members, supports CorcovadoNational Park and the Osa Conservation Area.