Photos capture the fun and excitement of Hats and Hooves!

Our wonderful Hats and Hooves Derby Affair photographer, Garrett Anderson of Anderson Photography, did a great job of capturing all the fun and excitement of this year's event!

To see more photos, click here to visit our Facebook album showing lots more great photos from the event.

We're so thankful to all of you who helped make our event a success, which resulted in our raising $73,000 to help keep kids in school in Coweta County!

Success story: CIS students at ECHS all graduate on time!

We are so pleased to announce that all 14 students being served by CIS of Coweta County at East Coweta High School graduated this year! Above, sisters Aukeon and Ausjuan Barnes try on their caps and gowns before graduation this past Saturday at ECHS.

"CIS worked with Aukeon this year, and she is excited that she caught up on classes and was able to graduate on time," said Denise Buchanan, Site Coordinator. "We are so proud of this young lady and her sister."

Coming on the heels of our hugely successful Hats and Hooves Derby Affair fundraiser, success stories like these are proof that CIS and its supporters are truly making a difference in the lives of students here in Coweta County!

CIS shares community-written commencement speech

The national CIS community stepped up with words of advice, humor, cheer and more to celebrate the achievements of all of our 2015 CIS graduates across the country. These words of encouragement and wisdom were compiled by CIS friends during the #CISGradAdvice campaign, and the result is a community-written commencement speech shared by the national president of CIS, Dan Cardinali.

The wisdom shared in the speech includes:
• Continue to aim high and recognize that you've accomplished something great. 
• Know the difference between running toward what you want and away from what you don't want. 
• Remember that nothing on the internet is ever erased, meaning your digital footprint is really your digital tattoo.

And of course the always popular:

• Call your mother.

Thanks to all who participated in this campaign! If you'd like to read the full speech for yourself, click here.

Silent Auction nets double the goal at this year's Hats and Hooves!

We have some exciting news to report from the Silent Auction at this year's Hats and Hooves! Executive Director Gina Weathersby says she is thrilled to report that the Silent Auction "exceeded our goal of $5,000-$6,000 significantly! We raised over $13,000 in the Silent Auction." Weathersby said she thanked organizers Lisa McDonald and Sally Hensley for leading the effort as well as all of those who procured items for the auction. "I'm proud to be a member of such an awesome team!" Gina said.

And there's more great news yet to come about the event totals for the 2015 edition of Hats and Hooves! A wrap-up meeting is planned for May 27, 2015.

Gina said she congratulates everyone for the success of the event, and she is grateful to all those who've provided leadership and commitment to Communities In Schools of Coweta County.

Still celebrating a fabulous Hats and Hooves!

CIS of Coweta County Board Member Garnet Reynolds and Executive Director Gina Weathersby are all smiles thanks to the successful Hats and Hooves we had last week! We're busy sending out thank-you's and tending to all the follow-up details on this year's event, and soon we'll be sharing some exciting news about just how successful an event it was. We think you'll be as thrilled as we are!

Here, one of CIS's greatest supporters, Chairman of the Board Dennis McEntire, addresses the crowd at the McRitchie-Hollis Museum on Saturday evening, May 2, 2015. We're hearing greet feedback on this year's event and already looking forward to 2016!

Thanks to generous donations, CIS had a great silent auction!

Saturday's Hats and Hooves Derby Affair at the McRitchie Hollis Museum was a huge success! We're busy totaling all the ticket sales and donations and will be sharing some exciting news about this very soon. Meanwhile, we'd like to thank the many volunteers and our board members who worked so hard on this event. It was a fun evening for all who attended, and we're already hearing from those looking forward to next year's event! We heard lots of great comments about the items in this year's Silent Auction. Sally Hensley and Lisa McDonald did a fantastic job of organizing the Silent Auction, and the donations included a variety of original artwork …

And sports memorabilia and equipment.

And even a signed copy of the Congressional Club Cookbook!

We'll have more to share about our sponsors and volunteers in a few days, but meanwhile, if you'd like to relive some of the fun of Saturday's event, please visit our Facebook page and click here and here to see lots of great photos from Hats and Hooves 2015!