runDisney Celebrated Charity Spotlight: Caterina's Club

Caterina's Club is the celebrated charity of the 2024 Disneyland Half Marathon Weekend.

Many years ago, a young Sir Bruno Serato arrived in the U.S. from rural Italy with only $200 in his pocket and speaking no English. Through hard work, determination and a little luck, he advanced from a busboy to the owner of the critically acclaimed Anaheim White House restaurant, whose patrons included U.S. Presidents, sports stars, and celebrities.

However, his real-life mission began after he and his mother, Caterina, visited a local Boys and Girls Club where they witnessed a 7-year-old boy eating only a bag of potato chips for dinner. At that realization, Caterina instructed her son to head back to the restaurant and feed the children pasta. Inspired by that moment, Serato launched the nonprofit Caterina’s Club in 2005, and since then Chef Bruno and Caterina’s Club have continued this mission now feeding approximately 5,000 children daily.

But that was still not enough to make an effective change in Serato’s eyes. In 2012, he launched a second nonprofit program, “Welcome Home”, where we at Caterina’s Club provide qualified families living in motels with the necessary resources to be placed in permanent housing with safety and stability. The program helps provide families with required deposits, so that the tenants can focus on the monthly rent and other expenses. To date, over 200 families have been positively impacted by “Welcome Home” in the Orange County area.

Caterina’s Club also operates the Hospitality Program in partnership with local Anaheim High Schools to teach high school students in various hospitality and service industries, and provide them with hands-on training and tools to explore careers and paid internships in related fields. Since launch, over 800 students have been trained and graduated from this program.

It’s his fighting spirit, dedication and passion to help children in need that have earned Serato countless tributes including Humanitarian Award by U.S. Congress, CNN’s Top 10 Hero Award, a personal blessing from St. Francis and being knighted by the Italian government.

What started with a mother asking her son to feed a hungry child has transformed into over 8.5 million meals served, 255 families relocated into permanent housing, and 800 graduated students from the Hospitality Academy. Caterina’s Club is proud to be the celebrated charity for the return of the runDisney Disneyland Half Marathon Weekend presented by Honda, so that together we can raise awareness and much-needed funds to further the mission of Caterina’s Club to end childhood hunger and homelessness.

For more information on Caterina’s Club and to learn how to get involved, please visit caterinasclub.org.