Cancer society gearing up for annual gala

The local branch of the cancer society is promising a fun-filled evening of entertainment with the hope of raising thousands of dollars for cancer programming, research and advocacy through its annual gala event.

This year, the theme for the Canadian Cancer Society's gala night in Grand Falls-Windsor on Nov. 23 will be a Christmas cruise on board the HMCS Daffodil. Tickets for the night are designed with a boarding pass in mind, and the hall at the Royal Canadian Legion on Queen Street will be decorated to resemble a cruise ship.

"We're trying to keep this a little upscale, but still with a theme that everybody is comfortable with because we want everybody to attend," said Ron Smith, who is chairing the event for the second year in a row. "We want to do a different theme every year to keep it fresh, and this year we came up with a cruise ship, which I thought was great."

Guests can expect a cocktail hour before a gourmet dinner is served, which will feature such culinary delights as Caesar marina salad with baby shrimp, breast of chicken Borneo stuffed with fresh asparagus and Swiss cheese, broccoli- and sour cream-infused duchess potatoes, green beans with red peppers and almonds, along with wild blueberry cheesecake with chocolate filigree and berries, all prepared by chef Gary Callahan.

They will then be able to participate in raffle draws, an auction and games of chance before dancing the night away to the sounds of the Exploits Jazz Band.

The goal for this year's event is to raise $17,000 for the Canadian Cancer Society, with the majority of funds raised staying in Newfoundland. Last year, which was the first time the local branch held its gala night, the group was able to secure $10,000 but they are hoping to build on that amount.

"With the new things that we're adding this year to the event, we're very confident we'll reach that amount," said Penny McDermott, community resources co-ordinator with the local branch of the CCS. "We have an awesome committee in place and they're working very hard to make that happen."

Mr. Smith added, "I think that people as a community as a whole should support this particular project. Cancer is devastating to families, it's devastating to friends. It's not a disease we have a cure for, so I think it's incumbent on society to put all of our effort into trying to deal with this particular and awful disease."

Mr. Smith also pointed out that the night will be a celebration of those people who have lost their battles with cancer.

"We want to do it in such a way that people that come are going to get a return for what they spend through a good social time with everybody," he said. "We want to keep it so that everybody can get involved, but it's really important to us that everybody has a good time while they're helping out this cause and then when they leave that they look forward to next year."

And with a jam-packed night of entertainment planned, it's no wonder the cancer society has over half of its tickets for the event sold already. The organizing committee is encouraging anyone who has yet to book their tickets to do so as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

The cost of tickets is $45 single, which includes a $20 income tax receipt. Interested people can contact the CCS at 489-5822. The organizing committee is also reminding those people who have booked tickets already to pick they up at the cancer society office on Pinsent Drive before Oct. 31.