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Health & Fitness

Shore House to host Kyleigh Sousa Foundation Benefit

Friends and family will gather together Thursday for a benefit at The Shore House to celebrate the life of Kyleigh Ann Sousa, who passed away one year ago on May 26.

The Shore House, along with the Kyleigh Sousa Foundation, will be hosting a benefit from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday at the bar and restaurant on Route 88 in Point Pleasant Borough.

Friends and family will gather Thursday to celebrate the life of Kyleigh Ann Sousa who passed away one year ago on May 26. She was 21.

There will be a $40 cover charge at the door that will include a three hour open bar, food and entertainment by a DJ. Plans for a band to perform outside have not been finalized. Half the proceeds will go to the Kyleigh Sousa Foundation.

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During the benefit there will be giveaways, raffles and prizes. Guests also will have the chance to purchase bracelets and T-shirts. Proceeds will go to the foundation.

Sousa, a graduate from Point Pleasant High School in 2007, was attending Arizona State University last spring when her life was tragically cut short.

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On May 26, 2011, Sousa and a friend were walking into an IHop in Tempe, AZ when a Dodge Charger pulled up to them. After a brief conversation, the driver of the car, 20-year-old Joseluis Marquez, attempted to snatch Sousa's purse.

Tangled, Sousa was dragged as the car sped off and eventually was let loose as her head fatally hit the pavement. She was kept on life support until her family could fly in to say their goodbyes.

Sousa's alleged murderer was on the loose for nearly seven months until he was captured in Tempe on Dec. 8, 2010. He awaits trial on charges of first-degree murder and robbery, set to begin in the fall.

Sousa's final gift was life. Several of her organs were donated.

In an effort to honor the legacy of their daughter and sister, the Sousa family started the Kyleigh Sousa Foundation.

"The foundation was created to raise awareness about traumatic brain injury, one of the least understood, least-funded medical conditions and what ultimately ended Kyleigh's life," said Bernie Sousa, Kyleigh's older brother.

The foundation also will provide financial support for families who have lost young adults or children to random acts of violence.

The foundation plans to make a large donation to Ryan Diviney, a West Virginia University (WVU) student who is now in a "vegetative state" and requires 24/7 care at home after suffering a traumatic brain injury in an attack in 2009.

Bernie, a WVU alumni, also opened two bars near WVU, where Sousa's younger brother Michael is attending, with an atmosphere and scenery capturing the essence of who Kyleigh was.

Bernie and his wife, Lauren Sousa, recently ran in the Pittsburgh marathon in honor of Kyleigh and raised more than $12,000 for the foundation in the process.

Tickets for the benefit can be purchased in advance at The Shore House, 2114, Route 88, and at the door.

For more information, call The Shore House at (732) 892-1699.

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