News Photo Anna Smith
A picture of the 11th Annual Bread and Roses Gala on Saturday.
asmith@medicinehatnews.com
Saturday saw the Medicine Hat Women’s Shelter Society’s 11th Annual Bread and Roses Gala, with the community coming out for an evening and an opportunity to support the necessary service.
Named after a poem written by James Oppenheim in reference to the women’s rights movement, executive director Natasha Carvalho estimated that there were roughly 300 people in attendance at the gala in the Medicine Hat Lodge Ballroom, and expressed her gratitude for the generosity of the people of the region.
“It’s our annual fundraising gala for the shelter, as always, we’re really thrilled by the community support,” said Carvalho. “So we have dinner and a dance and program and some speeches and really just to bring awareness to the issue of family violence and to let people know what programs and services we offer.”
The evening featured bands Taking August and the Hips Katz to provide live music, an impact speaker who had previously benefited from the shelter’s services, and both a live and silent auction.
“It’s on International Women’s Day, so that’s important for us as well, given the line of work that we’re in. But it’s just really wonderful. The community really came out, and we had a great silent auction and amazing items for the live auction,” said Carvalho.
In total, they raised approximately $135,000 over the course of the evening, which is in line with previous years and will go a long way to help with operational costs for the various programs and services they offer.
“I just want to extend a thank you to our title sponsor, the Smith Group, and a thank you to the community, because without them, we wouldn’t make this event happen,” said Carvalho. “We really rely on their donations and them attending the event to really make sure that we can go ahead.”
