Heather Latter
The Riverside Foundation for Health Care’s annual fall gala—this year entitled “Mobsters and Dames”—surely was the bee’s knees.
The event held Saturday night at the Fort Frances Curling Club raised a record-breaking $44,000, which topped last year’s total by more than $5,000 and far exceeded its $30,000 goal.
“Thirty thousand dollars is still a pretty high goal but somehow we were able to go above and beyond that,” enthused Foundation director Samantha Manty.
“All of the hard work of the Special Events committee has paid off, and all the generosity of the community, the sponsors, and everyone who donates and comes out, it really has paid off and helped us to exceed our goal by far,” she remarked.
“I think I’m still in shock because it’s an astronomical amount,” Manty admitted.
“It really is amazing.”
Due to having a larger venue this year, there was room for about 100 more attendees than the Foundation has been able to accommodate the past few years.
“It was really nice to see familiar faces, but also have a lot of space for new guests to come out and see what the gala was about,” Manty noted.
“It was really great because I would say probably 70 percent of the guests were dressed up—dressed to kill—and really went with the theme,” she added.
“So that really made things fun. It felt like you stepping back into a speakeasy.”
The evening featured a “meal fit for a mobster” prepared by local chef Todd Moxham of Cater 2 U, including appetizers located at antipasto bars, an entrée of Chicago-style “Chicken Capone” with mushroom marsala sauce, and cannolis at the sweets bar.
Other delectable dainties also were provided and sponsored by local businesses.
As well, there was musical entertainment provided by Christina Campagna, a penny table, silent auction, a live auction with auctioneer Robin McQuaker, and a photo booth with two old-fashioned cars (photos taken by Shine Photography).
Blitzes and games at the Cat’s Meow “Casino,” featuring a shooting gallery, higher or lower game, big dice, and a dizzy drinks game, rounded out the activities.
Manty said the Foundation also has been trying to bring in signature games to their event, with their big “Heads or Tails” game.
“People really seemed to really enjoy it and get into it,” she enthused.
Larry Cousineau was the winner—walking away with $650, with the Foundation also receiving the same amount.
Meanwhile, this year’s grand-prize draw, won by Norma Bohn, also was a huge hit.
“We switched things up a little bit,” Manty explained. “We normally have a trip draw as our grand prize, but this year we did a barrel of hooch to go with our theme.
“And it went over really well with the crowd,” she noted, adding guests were able to buy one or three wine corks to enter the draw for $1,000 worth of booze sponsored by La Place Rendez-Vous, with a barrel wine cabinet donated by Green’s Brand Source.
“And with that draw, we made an extra $1,000 compared to what we normally do with the trip draw, so it went over very well.”
Manty attributed the success of the event to the Special Events committee.
“Those ladies are unbelievable,” she lauded of the committee, which included Janice Cousineau, Karen Woods, Diane Gibson, Natalie DeGagne, Lynne Savage, Sandy McKinnon, Livia Lundon, Rochelle Duchnicki, Grace Cridland, Jan Abbott, Diana Kangas, Cindy Manty, and Samantha Pearson.
“They are so dedicated and they work so hard,” she stressed. “They’ve been planning this event for pretty much a year.
“They are so committed to supporting health care and they bring such great ideas to the table with such enthusiasm.”
Manty said there are so many small details they include to really allow people to feel a part of the theme.
For instance, there were specialty cocktails, a painted backdrop for the photo booth, “wanted” posters hanging in the front entrance, and fun signs on the bathroom doors.
“I think it goes a long way because people walk in and they are just wowed,” she noted.
“We also couldn’t do this without the generous support of the community,” Manty stressed, referring to the long list of sponsors and donors located on each table.
“The Rainy River District continues to blow me away with how much they support health care and how much they support the important projects the Foundation has going on,” she enthused.
All proceeds from this year’s gala will support a complete “refresh” to the Special Care Unit at Rainycrest Long-Term Care here.
“These dollars are really going to make a difference at Rainycrest, not only for the residents but for the staff and for families who have someone in the Special Care Unit,” Manty said.
While they’re still working on the plans, she noted the aim of the update is to make the unit safer, more comfortable, and to offer a more “homey” atmosphere for residents.
Some of the ideas include improvements to the courtyard, purchasing more comfortable furniture that meets the infectious control standards, brightening up the nooks, and adding wall hangings, murals, and different things for sense memory.
“They’ve been getting input from families and other long-term care residents to try to build a plan on what they are going to do,” Manty said.
She hopes the funds raised Saturday night will go a long way to help with the improvements, which will benefit a lot of people.
