Valley area businesses and civic-minded people pledged more than $164,000 Tuesday morning to support Discovery Cube Los Angeles. Discovery Cube, located near the Hansen Dam in the eastern San Fernando Valley, teaches children science through fun activities and interactive exhibits. It held a breakfast to kick off support for its benefit gala, which is to be held March 14, what’s come to be known as Pi Day. About 95 attended. A number of businesspeople and individual benefactors lined up at an erasable board to pledge their support. Those promising $25,000 each were Chevron, Southern California Gas Co. and Dr. Pedram Salimpour, a physician who is chair of Discovery Cube’s board as well as president of the Los Angeles City Fire and Police Pensions Board. Among others pledging support: American Airlines, Bank of America, California Resources Corp., Gaspar Insurance Services, NBCUniversal, PCS Energy, US Bank and Wells Fargo. Wendy Greuel, a Discovery Cube L.A. founding board member and vice chair, was among the individuals who committed to donate. Alex Padilla, the California Secretary of State and a Discovery Cube founding board member, announced that $164,500 had been pledged Tuesday morning. That’s more than half the $300,000 goal for corporate sponsorship for the gala. The breakfast also celebrated the fifth anniversary of the opening of Discovery Cube in the Valley. Earlier, it had been in downtown Los Angeles. Joe Adams, chief executive of Discovery Cube, said the organization projected 764,000 children would visit in the first five years, but 934,000 have done so, which is 22 percent above expectations.
