Presented by GEEARS: The Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students

GEEARS' Annual Fundraising Luncheon - 2025

Registration has ended

About This Event

GEEARS: Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students is excited to invite you to our annual fundraising luncheon! 

Join us on Thursday, October 23rd, at Zoo Atlanta, in Savanna Hall, with a close view of the elephant habitat during feeding time. As a beloved spot for early childhood discovery, the zoo is the perfect place for the GEEARS community to reaffirm our commitment to young children and families.

Our keynote speaker will be (hang on to your Slippery Soap, folks) Steve Burns! That’s right. The actor, musician, and beloved former host of Blue’s Clues will share about the magic that happens when you truly listen to young children with respect, sensitivity, and patience. He’ll probably check in on how we’re doing, tell us we look great, and maybe make us a little weepy

As if meeting an early childhood icon isn’t exciting enough, we have other reasons that you should secure your event tickets today:    

  • You’ll connect with business leaders, elected officials, and others who care deeply about our state’s early childhood ecosystem.
  • We'll honor key early childhood advocates, including Speaker Pro Tem Jan Jones, Gwinnett Building Babies Brains, and the Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta.
  • It’s GEEARS’ 15th Anniversary, and we want to celebrate this milestone with you!

If you’re looking to make a greater impact, we invite you to become a sponsor.  

Our annual luncheon is always fun and engaging, giving us an opportunity to gather with our amazing community to celebrate our mission for Georgia's youngest kids, their families, and educators.

About This Event

GEEARS: Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students is excited to invite you to our annual fundraising luncheon! 

Join us on Thursday, October 23rd, at Zoo Atlanta, in Savanna Hall, with a close view of the elephant habitat during feeding time. As a beloved spot for early childhood discovery, the zoo is the perfect place for the GEEARS community to reaffirm our commitment to young children and families.

Our keynote speaker will be (hang on to your Slippery Soap, folks) Steve Burns! That’s right. The actor, musician, and beloved former host of Blue’s Clues will share about the magic that happens when you truly listen to young children with respect, sensitivity, and patience. He’ll probably check in on how we’re doing, tell us we look great, and maybe make us a little weepy

As if meeting an early childhood icon isn’t exciting enough, we have other reasons that you should secure your event tickets today:    

  • You’ll connect with business leaders, elected officials, and others who care deeply about our state’s early childhood ecosystem.
  • We'll honor key early childhood advocates, including Speaker Pro Tem Jan Jones, Gwinnett Building Babies Brains, and the Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta.
  • It’s GEEARS’ 15th Anniversary, and we want to celebrate this milestone with you!

If you’re looking to make a greater impact, we invite you to become a sponsor.  

Our annual luncheon is always fun and engaging, giving us an opportunity to gather with our amazing community to celebrate our mission for Georgia's youngest kids, their families, and educators.

About Steve Burns

Steve Burns is an Emmy-nominated actor best known as “Steve” from Nickelodeon’s Blue’s Clues and the Paramount+ feature film Blue’s Big City Adventure. As a musician, he released the critically acclaimed album Songs For Dustmites, and as one half of SteveNSteven (with Flaming Lips multi-instrumentalist Steven Drozd), recorded Foreverywhere, later adapted into an Audible Original named one of the year’s best audiobooks by Audible’s editors.

Steve also wrote and performed the theme song for the hit ABC sitcom Young Sheldon, where he appears as a recurring guest star.

In Fall 2025, Steve will launch ALIVE, a new podcast exploring the intersection of wonder, memory, and the human experience—offering a heartfelt, often unexpected look at what it means to be alive.

He continues his decades-long voiceover career from his home in Upstate New York, where he also writes and directs for Blue’s Clues & You!.

Getting There

Zoo Atlanta - Savanna Hall
800 Cherokee Avenue SE
Atlanta, 30315
United States

Check out last year's luncheon!

Annual Luncheon 2024

*Important Notice*

Ticket sales will close on Monday, October 13th, at 11:59 pm.

Host Committee

Jen Bennecke

Meagan & Tim Davies

Brigitte Peck

Erin Meyer

Rashida Winfrey

Chelsea Ulrich Tarnoff

SPONSORS

PREMIERE SPONSOR

The Liz Blake Giving Fund

TODDLER ALLY

The Junior League of Atlanta, Inc.

Primrose Schools in Georgia

NEWBORN PROPONENT

Dr. Jay & Jackie Berkelhamer

Candor & Co Consulting

Beth & Tommy Holder

Ty Huggins

Steve & Sheri Labovitz

Tabernacle Child Development Center, Inc.

John & Maria Upchurch Foundation

BRAIN BUILDER

Rabbi Peter Berg

Georgia Foundation for Early Care & Learning

Kimberly Jackson

The Schenck School & ReadSource