Lauren and Emily welcome you to the 2010 Black & Gold Gala
It was really, really hard to go home empty handed at last night’s Black & Gold Gala. Between the swish weekend packages, gift certificates and wonderful art on offer, the evening was a blissful retreat into retail therapy and, as an added bonus, a cardio workout as one raced from desired item to item in an effort to capture the winning bid.
There were also opportunities to stretch creative muscles, including the hotly contested group challenge which invited each table to build a tower using the items provided. In an exciting and comical turn of events, additions like buns, utensils and even vegetables were incorporated into the precarious construction projects. In the end, three teams took home the special, Don’t Quit Your Day Job, Stroke of Genius and Size Does Matter awards.
Art activities, designed by volunteer educator Kate Carder-Thompson invited attendees to make their own Techno Corsage/Boutonnière, create a Techno Shape Print and play with a nifty Lightbrite interactive station. Volunteers manning the stations inspired, cajoled and demonstrated throughout the evening, making even those who felt creatively deficient comfortable.
What most in attendance may not have known was that the entire event was volunteer driven. Chair Sharon Morton, Gala committee members Pat Arsenault, Jane Breithaupt, Laurel Pedersen, Gail Wise, Rick Weiss, Lynne Wilson and KW|AG staffers Carolyn Ferguson, Eleanor Mueller and Caroline Oliver spent 11 months creating the evening; generating auction items and in kind donations, organizing logistics and filling the seats. Numerous other day of and prep volunteers, comprised of staff and community members helped to marshal partygoers, administer the auctions and do the things that need to be done at an event of this size. It is clear that without these dedicated volunteers the event would not have been such a roaring success.
So given the enormous amount of goodwill that goes into the creation of the event I felt justified in leaving the Gala with a few new additions (I also attribute it to the wonderful job done by MCs Rick Weiss and Laurel Pedersen who made each auction item sound like a must have). And judging by the very full trunks, bags and boxes carried out by other partygoers, I wasn’t the only one.
KW|AG and the Black & Gold Gala 2010 thank all of the evening’s sponsors including the Premiere Event Sponsor: RBC Wealth Management and RBC Phillips, Hager & North Investment Counsel and the Supporting Sponsor: Gowlings.
Note: The following photos are a pre-look at the evening, courtesy of my BlackBerry. Official photos will follow soon!
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