PokerWorks

Poker pro Jennifer Harman never shies away from a cause that is important to her. Whether it is the Nevada Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, for which she hosts an annual Las Vegas fundraiser , or the National Kidney Foundation, an organization which is close to her heart because of her own experience with kidney failure and transplant, Harman knows how to throw a successful fundraising event. The March 11th Jennifer Harman Charity Poker Tournament was no different and was said to have raised $111,000 for the National Kidney Foundation.

The event kicked off at the Grand Sierra Resort and Casino in Reno, Nevada, with a Masters Forum Poker Academy on March 10, which was open to the public. The $125 price tag, all of which would go to benefit the cause, gave customers hours of poker instruction from Linda Johnson, Jan Fisher, Andy Bloch, Layne Flack, and Marsha Waggoner. That was followed by a party at Pearl Nightclub, which was extremely well-attended by all of the poker pros and event participants scheduled to take part in the following day’s tournament.

First on the March 11th agenda was the red carpet welcome to the invited guests, which preceded the main event - the Jennifer Harman Charity Poker Tournament. Tournament director Matt Savage served as the TD and the emcee, and players lined up to pay the $200 + $30 NLHE poker tournament. And no one seemed to shy away from the $50 rebuys and $50 add-on that brought extra chips to players and extra funds for the National Kidney Foundation.

Overall, the two-day extravaganza was said to have raised $170,000 for the organization. And according to the National Kidney Foundation, its Northern California and Northern Nevada Director Christopher Kelley assured Harman that 90 percent of all proceeds would be dedicated to free patient programs, patient and family assistance, children’s dialysis camp, and research.

Harman’s involvement with the National Kidney Foundation had its roots in her childhood, as she suffered the loss of her mother when Harman was only 17. But she has had her own battles with kidney disease, which required a kidney transplant as a young woman and another in 2004. Her personal struggles have led her to become a staunch advocate for organ donor causes as well as the NKF.

The National Kidney Foundation is an organization broken down into state and local chapters, all of which are dedicated to the same cause - seeking to prevent kidney and urinary tract diseases, increasing the availability of all organs for transplantation, and improving the health and lives of individuals suffering from kidney diseases and their families. Through educating the public, helping to shape state and national health policies, expanding patient services, and supporting research, NKF strives to help the 20 million people with kidney disease in the United States and the other 20 million people who are said to be at risk. For more information on the organization avidly supported by Jennifer Harman, visit www.kidneynca.org.