Chris Schlesinger, of East Coast Grill, Jody Adams, of Rialto, Christopher Coombs, of DeuxAve in Boston, and Boston city councilor Mike Ross attend a May 5 fundraiser for the Cambridge-based charity Heading Home.

More than $600,000 was raised at an event last month to supportย programs to end family homelessness, said officials from Heading Home, a Cambridge-based charitable group of real estate professionals.

The Housewarming event, held May 5ย at The State Room in Boston, is the nonprofit groupโ€™s largest annual fundraiser.ย This yearโ€™s event brought together area chefs and restaurants, local business leaders and philanthropists for an evening of networking and fundraising, with 20 restaurants offering tastings of signature dishes for more than 650 attendees to enjoy. An auction offered the chance to be an extra in a Mark Wahlberg movie (to be filmed in Boston this summer), front row Red Sox vs. Yankee tickets, and a star chefโ€™s catered dinner for 10, among other prizes.

โ€œHeadingย Home relies on the generosity of its committed supporters to raise the funds needed to help individuals and families end the homelessness cycle,โ€ said Tom Lorello, executive director of the group. โ€œWe are immensely grateful to our dedicated event chairsย โ€ฆ as well as to ourย committed sponsors and generous restaurant partners who made our Housewarming event a tremendous success.โ€

Robert Beal, of The Beal Cos. LLP, and Robert Griffin, of Cushman & Wakefield, chaired the event; Chris Schlesinger, owner and chef of Inman Squareโ€™s East Coast Grill & Raw Bar, served as restaurant chairman. ย Other participating Cambridge restaurants includedย Green Street Grill, Lord Hobo and Rialto.

On any given night, there are more than 7,000 homeless people in Greater Boston, say officials for the group, and the average age of a homeless person โ€” and Heading Home client โ€” is just 8 years old. Not since the Great Depression have so many families been homeless, they said. Last year, Heading Home helped more than 2,000 homeless families and individuals in Greater Boston by providing homes and services intended to create self-sufficiency.ย For information, click here.

This post was written from a press release.

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