It’s become known as the premiere event in Minto and one of the most sought after venues in the wider area.
The Starlight Gala is set for May 25 at the Palmerston Community Centre with money raised from the event earmarked for Palmerston District Hospital through its hospital foundation.
The Gala has grown in leaps and bounds and has become a major fundraiser for the hospital, raising over $1 million in the past 12 years. And organizers are looking to up the ante with the 13th annual event.
MaryLou Brown remembers when the event was just an idea over a cup of coffee. The retired nurse, who worked in the hospital emergency room, recalls when the idea for a fundraiser first took shape.
“A group of us (nurses) were sitting around for coffee at the hospital and thought we should do something for nurses week which was in the middle of May,” she said.
“We thought we’d have a fundraiser or a party. We envisioned a fancy event and reception to celebrate nurses week.”
She said a Drayton Festival Theatre fundraiser helped inspire the first committee of 14 to initiate a fundraising venture. A group of organizers got in touch with Helen McFadzean who agreed to cater the first event. It was enough to get the ball rolling. The call went out for donations to be auctioned off as part of the fundraising efforts.
Brown recalls the response was phenomenal.
“We ended up with a variety of things donated with different value,” Brown said.
“We had a balloon draw for things that were $20 or less and people would buy a balloon for $10, open it up and there was a tag inside which would be what you got.”
The “English Garden Party” theme was chosen by the nurse and hospital staff volunteers who planned and put together the first gala.
Brown said the intention was to make the evening an elegant affair – out of the ordinary from other community events where people would dress up, meet and greet and donate money.
Tickets for the first gala were $50 and the event raised about $37,000 with about 130 people attending.
The vision of an elegant evening was shared by Brown’s husband Paul, who would eventually become a member of the foundation and serve as its president.
“The surprising thing was this started out as a dress up evening to make some money,” Paul said.
The success of the event prompted the foundation to take it on as a fundraiser. Paul recalls the idea of hosting an annual fundraiser overseen by the foundation was brought up by Mapleton politician and foundation president at the time John Green, who acted as master of ceremonies at the inaugural event.
Since its inception, the Starlight Gala has grown, with about 575 people expected at this year’s gala, according to Josie McLaughlin who is co-chairman of the gala committee along with Brad Watts.
This year’s theme is “Hollywood glamour” and will have all the pomp and pageantry associated with the Oscars. The evening will feature a red carpet, an Oscar award chosen from donors, walk of fame for gala sponsors and a large Hollywood sign erected inside the arena.
McLaughlin said the gala will be catered by Alex Petter of Listowel, who catered the event last year. McLauglin expects there will be about 13 items up for grabs at the live auction conducted by Grays Auction house auctioneer Barry Gray. On the silent auction side, she is expecting about 250 items.
Tickets are being sold for $100 per person and can be purchased over the internet at tyschieck@gmail.com or by contacting foundation development officer Dale Franklin at dfranklin@nwhealthcare.ca.
McLaughlin noted tickets sell quickly with sponsors picking up blocks of tickets.
The gala committee sells sponsor tickets at $1,500 for emerald sponsors, $2,500 for diamond sponsors and $5,000 for crystal sponsors.
The final decision on what band will play the venue is still undecided, but McLaughlin said the music will have a decidedly “Beatles” flavour.
MaryLou Brown noted the variety and scope of the auction items are the result of community involvement in the fundraiser, which was evident from the first event and has grown since then.
Money raised from this year’s event has not been earmarked for any particular piece of hospital equipment, McLaughlin added. That decision will be made by the foundation once the event proceeds are known.
However those attending can donate to specific needs of the hospital ranging from small pieces of equipment like a stethoscope to a weed trimmer.
“There’s an actual wishlist so you can make a donation from the list,” McLaughlin added.
Paul Brown said the work over the years has been helped by a small army of volunteers who help organize and set up the event. They are divided into separate committees taking care of everything from decorations to auction items.
For the place settings and linens, the gala committee has employed Chairman Mills out of Toronto to supply everything needed for elegant dining, including the chairs, fine china, and wine glasses, Paul added. The company usually arrives about two days prior to the event with three trucks.
It’s a far cry from the initial event, for which MaryLou said the committee had to go out in the community to “scrounge everything” from tables to chairs.
Paul credits set designer Richard Snider for providing items to match the theme of the event. The decorations have given the evening a “wow” factor, he said, adding a past event with a Roman theme featured “two huge Trojan horses.”
“People come to see how we’ve transformed the arena,” Mary Lou added.
Set up and tear down takes about a week for the one-night affair, Paul said.
One person who has attended the event said when all the decorations are in place it is difficult to recognize the event is being held in an arena with black drapery covering the exterior of the area.
“Every year we did more and more and continued to grow,” Paul said.
MaryLou noted part of the event’s success is that people are willing to attend an event that raises money for their local hospital
That philosophy has helped the hospital purchase much needed equipment such as a dialysis machine. It has also secured money for window and heating upgrades at the Palmerston hospital.
Paul estimated the event has netted the foundation between $120,000 to $140,000 over the past few years.
“The hospital foundation is responsible for the bricks and mortar and equipment,” Paul said.
MaryLou added, “We’ve raised over $1 million and for a small town that’s pretty darn good … All hospitals need to raise money. We’re all in this mess of (government) cutbacks. Every department (at the hospital) has benefitted” from the gala.
McLaughlin said the gala committee is expecting another successful event when dinner is served around 6pm on May 25.
“It’s been a profitable coffee break,” MaryLou said of the initial fundraising plan.
