Severino receives Civitas Laurel Award

Michael Severino received the Civitas Laurel Award for community service during the Foundation for an Independent Tomorrow gala recently at Paris Las Vegas.

The foundation provides job training, support and needed skills for promising people seeking gainful employment. The award is presented to an individual who gives his or her talent to benefit the community. Severino is general manager of event marketing for Southern Wine &Spirits of Nevada.

Responsible for creating an unforgettable evening in honor of Severino, a New York native, event designers Joyce Sherman and Jim Nelson did a New York-themed evening for the 16th annual gala.

The reception featured cooked-to-order buffets such as smoked salmon on toasted pumpernickel, pigs in a blanket and knish as found in New York’s Lower East Side. Representing Little Italy’s Mulberry Street were pasta Pomodoro and meatballs with orzo pasta. Motts Street in Chinatown served soba noodle salad, char sui pork and dim sum. The Theater District gave out small plates of chopped salad, New York steak sandwiches and beef sliders.

Guests including Karen and Morgan Cashman, Mary and Don Ross, Dawn Gibbons and Jim Hooban, Sally and Richard Jost, Denise and Gustav Mauler, Jeffrey Cummings and Kate Zhong, and Anna and David Robbins participated in a stellar silent auction while noshing on the specialties of New York City.

Dinner was served in the Rivoli Ballroom, where the room’s walls and stage were draped in red and black satin and low hanging red lamps. Gary Anthony entertained as Frank Sinatra, opening the program singing “New York, New York.”

Robin Leach introduced a video about Severino depicting his life with family in New York, and since 1977, life in Las Vegas. Many notable people spoke about Severino’s commitment to our community, including developing UNLVino to raise funds for scholarships and other events, such as the Las Vegas Chapter of Chaine des Rotisseurs and Keep Memory Alive for the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health.

Severino was introduced by Camille Ruvo. Special recognition was also given to his wife, Denise, and son, Spencer. Janet Blumen, founder and CEO of Foundation for an Independent Tomorrow, and her husband, Andy Blumen, presented the Civitas Laurel Award to Severino.

Among the guests were Siegfried Fischbacher, Lynette Chappell, Patty and Richard Wright, Mari and Thom Landers, Laura Fritz and Mike Webber, Janet and Steve Linder, Victoria Otter, Judy and Jim Kropid, Beverly and Mike Mykisen, Parvin Modaber Jacobs, Nicole Manroe and George Harris, Sandy Peltyn, Paula and Joe Quagliana, Nancy and Jack Weinstein, Barbara Lee and Bruce Woollen, Juanita and David Wasserman, Florence and Gard Jameson, Heidi and David Straus, Amy and Barry Fieldman, Angie Ruvo, Bob Fisher, Irais and Robert Kolesar, Sharon and Howard Lynch, Natalie and Randy Knust, Ginger and Dan Anderson, Gae and Perry Basch, Terri and Mark Sterbens, and Mary and Seaton Curran.

Harbor Lights played for dancing.