December 2007
Candlelight Dinner Raises $300,000
Vincent & Gillian Fernandes and Sita & Vijay Vashee
More than 300 PACE supporters filled the Hyatt Regency Bellevue on November 3, 2007, for the 4th annual Candlelight Dinner sponsored by the members of Act One Guild for Performing Arts Center Eastside (PACE). Richard Foley, formerly with KOMO-TV, served in a dual role as Master of Ceremonies and Fund-A-Need Auctioneer for the event. In total, the event raised nearly $300,000.
Bob Wallace shows his support for the Grand Drape Fund
The main fundraising attraction of the evening was the Fund-A-Need for the Grand Drape Fund at PACE. Nearly $146,000 was raised, in part by two separate gifts of $25,000 each from Chuck and Karen Lytle and Kemper and Betty Freeman, Co-Chairs of the Campaign For PACE, and a gift of $10,000 from Skip and Debra Rowley. "We are delighted to have surpassed our goal of $100,000 for the curtain by nearly half again as much money," said Nancy Walker, President of the Act One Guild. "This was an exciting and glorious evening."
Performance by dancers from the Arthur Murray Studio
An impressive list of private individuals and corporate sponsors attended the 2007 Candlelight Dinner – "Come Dance with The Stars," which featured a special performance by professional ballroom dancers from the Arthur Murray Studio and dancing to the music of Keith Baggerly and the big band sound of Roadside Attraction. Four accomplished dance couples from the Studio combined their artistic and athletic talents to perform several styles of competition ballroom dancing throughout the evening.
Guests dance into the evening
Since its inception in 2003, the Act One Guild, which promotes the mission of PACE through their philanthropic endeavors, has given nearly $700,000 to PACE through the four annual Candlelight Dinners. According to Suzanne Hutchinson, Director of Guilds for PACE, "next year the Candlelight Dinner will be held on November 1, 2008 and the Guild's sights are set on reaching the $1,000,000 milestone in our fundraising for PACE."