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Cattle Baron's
Ball a Texas-sized success
By MICHAEL BOYLAN
mboylan@TheCitizenNews.com
The goal of the American Cancer
Society’s Cattle Baron’s Ball, which took place at the Kiwanis
Exhibition Hall in Fayetteville last Saturday, was to raise $35,000 for
local programs and research. They almost raised that much just from the
auction.
More than 400 people attended the first Cattle Baron’s Ball and enjoyed
dinner, drinks and dancing along with both a silent and live auction,
pig races and a spin on the mechanical bull.
In addition to the $29,000 raised by the auctions, the event raised $50,000
from corporate sponsorships. The grand total netted by the event was $95,000,
and Sherri Waynick, fundraising chairperson for The American Cancer Society
in Fayetteville, was just blown away.
“It was unbelievable,” said Waynick. “I’m very happy
that the citizens of Fayette County showed what they were made of.”
Waynick credits the efforts of the committee members and the support of
businesses and individuals in the community for the tremendous success
of the event. Among the committee members Waynick mentioned were Karen
Jackson, who was responsible for the decorations; co-chairpersons John
and Mary Sue Goza, who got a lot of corporate backing for the event; Saralyn
Burton, Bob Dees and Susan Stitt and Jean Armbruster, who created the
“Cattle Baron’s Cookbook,” which was given as a gift to
all who attended.
“We are so blessed to live in the county we live in. Everyone is
very giving,” said Waynick, who stated that they received a number
of $100 donations from citizens who were not able to attend the event
but wanted to help out.
Much of the proceeds will go towards local programs such as “Reach
to Recovery,” which has volunteers who have been through cancer call
new patients; “Road to Recovery,” which provides rides to and
from chemotherapy treatments and “Look Good...Feel Better,”
which offers cancer patients cosmetics and tips when dealing with some
of the after-effects of chemotherapy. The remainder of the proceeds go
towards cancer research and educational programs.
Plans are already in the works for next year’s Cattle Baron’s
Ball, though a date has yet to be determined. The next big event for the
American Cancer Society in Fayetteville is the Relay for Life May 7, 2004.
If you would like to get involved with committees for either event, phone
The American Cancer Society at 770-460-8920.
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