Final numbers are still being tallied for the Child Advocacy Center (CAC) Celebrity Dinner benefit event held Friday at Rubydoo’s Vintage Event Center, but event organizer Kathy Smith said they will be big.
“It is safe to say this is the largest Celebrity Dinner to date in terms of revenue, attendance and celebrity support,” she said. Fourteen local “celebrities” and their guests packed the house for the fifth annual event, entertaining with a variety of themes, said Smith, who also serves as assistant development director for the CAC.
The 2017 event raised $15,000 after all expenses were paid, said at that time to be the largest amount ever raised in the history of the event.
“The fifth annual Celebrity Dinner was a great evening,” said Smith. “The support from the community is exciting.”
She listed some of the themes on display this year: Monopoly, Fabulous Flashback Frenzy, Sports/Zizzer Pride, True Friend of the Crown and Enchanted Forest. The dinner was replete with “great costumes, great participation and a lot of fun,” she said.
The winning theme was “Alice in Wonderland,” executed by celebrity Allison Wilson, general manager and managing editor of the Quill. Her guests dressed as characters from the children’s book and Disney film, complete with Alice, the Mad Hatter, White Rabbit, Queen of Hearts, Cheshire Cat, the Caterpillar, Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, and Wilson herself as the March Hare.
Second place in the theme contest went to Connie Schott of Ozarks Medical Center for her “Tropical Getaway” table.
Celebrities worked to earn “tips,” cash donations to benefit the CAC, by selling tickets to three giveaways and charming their guests into digging deeper into their pockets to give. Attorney Melissa Stewart was the celebrity who raised the most tips, earning herself the title of Celebrity of the Year and the possession of the traveling trophy.
Stewart joins the ranks of previous years’ winners: Russ Gant, 2014; Greg Beykirch, 2015; Tom Marhefka, 2016; and Mary Sheid, 2017.
Kimberly Bontrager won the “Where’s the Beef” giveaway of a side of beef processed by Zimmerman Processing of Summersville, valued at $1,400. The winner of the “Sweet Deal” package, Sam Riggs, scored four tickets to the St. Louis Cardinals, a Posey Patch gift certificate and pie for a year from Skillets, a total value of $550.
The “Family Get Away” giveaway featuring a one-night poolside room stay at the Ramada Oasis in Springfield, four passes to the Discovery Center and Andy B’s Entertainment gift certificates, and a rental from Wendy’s Canoe Rental with a total value of up to $400 went to Breanna Foes.
Other celebrities participating this year were Troy Bass of Great Rivers Distributing, Shelly Bradshaw of Landmark Bank, Andrea Crews of Arvest, Chris Green of Physical Therapy Specialists, District 141 Rep. Hannah Kelly, Ric and Tommie Kristeff of R & T Locksmith, Tyler Martin of West Plains Bank & Trust Company, John Mulford of West Plains R-7, attorney Steven Privette and CAC Executive Director Linda Saturno.
Proceeds from the Celebrity Dinner benefit the Child Advocacy Center South Central in West Plains, which serves an eight-county area, carrying out forensic interviews and medical examinations to assist with investigations of child abuse and neglect.
Entertainment was provided by Springfield soul musician Sean Munday and official event photos provided courtesy of photographer Mark Lewis of Edward Jones Investments. The dinner was catered by Rubydoo’s Vintage Event Center.
“A big thank you to our Celebrity Dinner planning committee,” said Smith, naming the committee members: Jack Bates, Rachel Cobb, Reta House, Renee Keith, Kim Pond, Kim Walker and Warren Wiedemann. “In addition a huge thank you to our celebrity assistants.” Celebrities were assisted in their duties by community volunteers and past and present students of Missouri State University-West Plains.
In 2017, 305 children were served by CAC in south central Missouri. Of those, 176 were in Howell County, where the regional office is located in West Plains. Fifty-five Wright County youth were served, 40 in Texas County, 31 in Oregon County, 16 in Shannon County, 15 in Douglas County and 11 in Ozark County. An additional seven children from outside the designated service area were also seen.
Celebrity slots are already filling up for the 2019 Celebrity Dinner to be held next March, said Smith. Anyone interested should contact her by email at [email protected].
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