The annual Starlight Soirée is back for another year, taking place on Thursday, Feb. 20 at 7 p.m. at the Golden Civic Centre.
The event is the main fundraiser for the year for Golden’s Women’s Resource Centre, with the money raised being distributed throughout the year to various different programs run by the centre. The centre has set a goal of raising $20,000 this year, after raising that amount last year, an increase from previous years.
This is the 14th edition of the event, which has been ongoing since 2006.
“It’s really just a nice get together to celebrate the women of Golden and the community of Golden,” said Kelly Sudsbury, the fundraising coordinator of the Golden Women’s Resource Centre. “It’s about awareness for the centre as well, I’ll talk to people who didn’t know that Golden had a women’s centre and we do so much for the women of the community and providing that community for them.”
At the event, the centre will unveil their Woman of the Year award. Currently the centre is accepting nominations.
The award is decided via raffle, with all nominations having an equal chance of winning Woman of the Year. Nominations can list 100 reasons why the nominee should win or zero, all nominations will have the same chance to win. Sudsbury said they do it this way to make sure the decision isn’t political or partisan.
“The highlight of the night is woman of the year,” said Sudsbury. “It’s not a popularity contest, it’s not who you know, but everyone gets an entry.”
Sudsbury describes the night as a cocktail party, with guests encouraged to get gussied up for the event. As with previous years, there will be a silent auction featuring local art, a helicopter tour provided by Alpine Helicopters and three hours of office cleaning provided by Kicking Horse Janitorial. There will also be a toonie raffle and photo booth station.
New this year, there will also be a psychic medium Melissa Frisby throughout the night for guests to visit, as well as an exclusive soap called “Warrior Wash” created by Kathy Lind at Apple Island. The soap will be unveiled at the Soirée and will be a limited edition soap for the event.
There will also be a cash bar staffed by Good Liberations.
“It’s just a fun night,” said Sudsbury. “It’s a great way to get out and meet other people in the community.”
As well, this year they’ve moved the event to February from its traditional date in November, in order to avoid any overlap with holiday parties and the community awards. And while it’s an event put on by the Women’s Centre, it’s an event for all, with men encouraged to come out and participate in the festivities.
“Dudes, do not be afraid to show up and support and have fun,” said Sudsbury. “The night is to celebrate women of our community, but it’s an event for everyone.”
Tickets are $15 and can be purchased at the Women’s Centre.
