The Education Fund

Miami, FL, May 2, 2006 — The creative process begins with recycled materials – everything from tools to milk jugs, scrap metal, cardboard tubes, tin foil, acetate, Styrofoam, music CDs and even thread from water hoses – all donated to The Education Fund’s Ocean Bank Center for Educational Materials and available for free to teachers to use in the classroom. Equipped with these recycled materials, or “found objects,” students and teachers use their creativity to convert them into works of art such as paintings, drawings, traditional sculptures, mixed-media and 3D pieces.

More than 150 of the artistic creations designed by Miami-Dade students and teachers will be sold at The Education Fund’s Art of Found Objects Silent Art Auction taking place at the Sonesta Beach Resort Key Biscayne (350 Ocean Drive, Key Biscayne) on Thursday, May 25, 2006; 6:30-9:30 p.m. The art auction, in its ninth year, is sponsored by Ocean Bank, The Education Fund, the Sonesta Beach Resort and Bacardi. Proceeds raised from the auction benefit art programs in Miami-Dade County public schools. Two major pieces being auctioned are Blue Ox ‘Ide on Brown Box-Side by teacher, Peter DeMercado (Banyan Elementary) and Tribute to Frida … A Celebration of the life of Frida Kahlo by 5th grade students at Jack D. Gordon Elementary, among many others.

“This event allows the community to support art education in our public schools,” said Linda Lecht, president of The Education Fund. “The artwork is beautiful, proving the amazing work students can create when they have the means and support.”

This year, striking pieces for the Art Exhibition at Ocean Bank were submitted by students from 19 Miami-Dade County Public Schools, a number of them in some of the county’s low-income neighborhoods. Participating schools included Banyan Elementary, Rainbow Park Elementary, Miami Norland High, and Biscayne Elementary, among many others.

“Ocean Bank has been involved with this art program for more than a decade,” said José Concepción, president and CEO of Ocean Bank. “The pieces being auctioned are truly impressive. We are committed to encouraging student creativity and supporting the arts in education.”

Ocean Bank has donated more than a million dollars since 1993 in support of The Education Fund’s Ocean Bank Center for Educational Materials and its art programs. This investment has leveraged in excess of $5.2 million in goods donated to the Ocean Bank Center by companies throughout South Florida and the United States. Teachers from nearly every public school in the district visit The Education Fund’s Ocean Bank Center on a weekly basis to obtain classroom materials such as paper, incentive items, books, tapes and art materials for their students.

The Ocean Bank Center for Educational Materials is a warehouse and distribution program sponsored by Ocean Bank and run by The Education Fund. The Ocean Bank Center collects surplus inventory and supplies from the business community and makes them available for free to Miami-Dade County Public Schools’ teachers for their students. The Ocean Bank Center is located at 6890 NW 76 Street in Medley, FL.

The Education Fund is an independent non-profit organization established in 1985. The Education Fund’s mission is to design and implement initiatives that involve the private sector in improving public education. Since its inception, The Education Fund has raised more than $28 million to support and improve our local public schools. For more information, visit www.educationfund.org.

Ocean Bank: Chartered in 1982, Ocean Bank is the largest independent commercial bank headquartered in Florida. It operates a network of 21 branches throughout Miami-Dade and Broward counties. The community bank is recognized as a leader in fueling South Florida’s economic growth by providing its customers with quality financial products like commercial real estate lending, corporate lending and small business lending all of which have attributed to growth and new employment opportunities in our community. With more than $5.8 billion in assets and $5.1 billion in deposits, Ocean Bank is a true local bank that reinvests 100 percent of local and foreign deposits in South Florida. It has received numerous recognitions for its support of local charitable organizations and for its commitment to helping those who are most in need. For more information, visit www.oceanbank.com.