Sirott, Murciano to host annual CASA gala

Veteran broadcast duo and WGN AM 720's afternoon hosts Bob Sirott and Marianne Murciano will headline CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) Lake County's CASABLANCA 2014.

This annual gala marks the nonprofit organization's 20th anniversary. The event will begin at 6 p.m. Saturday, May 10, in Ravinia, 418 Sheridan Road, Highland Park. More than 350 guests are expected to attend for an elegant evening of cocktails, a silent and live auction, dinner and dancing.

This will be a special evening for Steve Pemberton, who will receive the 2014 Terri Zenner Award for extraordinary service to children in the community. He is a division vice president and chief diversity officer at Walgreens.

Pemberton spent much of his youth in foster homes as an abused child and ward of the state. He wrote a book titled "A Chance in the World: An Orphan Boy, a Mysterious Past, and How He Found a Place Called Home."

All proceeds from the gala will support the CASA Lake County child advocacy program. The nonprofit organization is committed to recruiting, training and supervising volunteer advocates to fight for the best interests of abused or neglected children in the juvenile court and foster care system.

CASA has nearly 300 volunteer advocates who serve 600 abused or neglected children in Lake County. CASA advocates, who are appointed by the judge and assigned one case, visit foster homes, schools, agency offices, day care and preschool facilities to ensure that these children get the medical, psychological and educational services they need to heal and thrive.

To make reservations, call Lake County CASA at (847) 383-6260, ext. 217, or visit www.casalakecounty.com.

If you are interested in becoming a CASA volunteer or in donating to CASA Lake County, visit www.casalakecounty.com or call (847) 383-6260, ext. 217.

Sirott and Murciano are popular broadcasters, who are married and parents of four children. They formerly hosted Fox Thing in the Morning from 1993 to 1999. From 2002 to 2005, while Sirott hosted WTTW's Chicago Tonight, Murciano often joined him for interview segments with well-known Chicagoans in a unique setting - the home of the celebrity.

Sirott returned to Fox to anchor the evening newscast alongside Robin Robinson, where he stayed from 2010 to 2013. Today, the couple co-host "Bob Sirott and Marianne Murciano" weekdays from noon to 3 p.m. on WGN AM 720.