The Latina Women's Council of Mercer County Inc. has been selected as the organization to receive the Mayors' Shining Star Award for 2003.

     The award is in recognition of the Latina Women's Council's high degree of commitment to the welfare of others, their impact on the community and lives of others, and their demonstration that service to the community can make a difference.

     The LWC is a non-profit organization that works on developing strategies and actions that will promote community pride, unity, and involvement which will benefit the individual, family and the community.  In essence, their work in evoking community unity, involvement and pride, highlights the fact that Latinos of our community are also vital, participating, and contributing members.

     The local LWC is very proud of having provided a Hightstown High School graduating student with a $1,000 scholarship for each of the last seven years.  In addition, for the last four years a Youth Conference has been coordinated in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month at the Hightstown High School.

     The Shining Star award will be presented at the Mayors' Shining Star Gala on Sunday, October 19, 2003 at the Ramada Inn.   The eleventh annual event will benefit Better Beginnings Child Care Center.  Since 1967 the center has been providing affordable quality child care, giving parents the opportunity to be self-supporting, contributing and involved members of the community, while providing their children with developmentally-appropriate learning experiences in a safe, healthy, nurturing learning environment.

Because of its quality, Better Beginnings was chosen as one of only thirteen organizations in the country to receive the La Promesa de un Futuro Brillante 2002 Award by the National Latino Children's Institute. This award is presented to "nonprofit organizations, schools, churches, and communities who provide services to Latino children and youth."  Per their statement, "It requires ingenuity, persistence, and sheer smarts to build a program that reaches out into the community and delivers culturally and linguistically appropriate services."   And locally, Better Beginnings was selected as 1 of the 3 best child care centers in Central Jersey by the reader's of the Packet Newspapers.

For further information about the Gala:  Luz Nereida Horta, 609-448-6226 or bbluzz@hotmail.com   For further information about the Center, www.princetonol.com/groups/bbcdc