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Photos of this event - click here
The Van Loon Ballroom at the historic Worthington Inn was the place to be November 3 as members and guests of the Central Ohio IFMA Chapter gathered for the annual President’s Dinner.
While the event has many purposes—an evening of great food, drink and camaraderie; recognition of sponsors; and tribute to the past president to name a few—it is primarily looked upon as an opportunity to raise money through raffle and auction to support the chapter’s Adopt-a-Family program.
And what an opportunity it was, as $4,266 was raised through the raffle and auction. This sum plus a $1,000 donation from the Citizen-Journal Adopt-A-Family Fund that is administered by the Columbus Foundation will be used throughout the year under the direction of the chapter’s Community Service Committee co-chaired by Christine Robertson and Steve Niswonger.
The major benefactors will be a number of needy but deserving families who will undoubtedly have their most memorable Thanksgiving and Christmas celebrations. Last year the chapter supported four families—16 people—relocated to Columbus because of the destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina, and probably will provide for as many families again this year.
The families are usually selected by officials at St John Community Center. Chapter members receive a wish list from the families and then shop to fill their stockings. The gifts are wrapped by the shoppers and collected at Chemical Abstracts Service on Olentangy River Road for distribution a few days before Christmas.
Members of the Community Relations Committee also provide Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners for each of the families. Last year, each dinner consisted of a 10-12 pound turkey, two pounds of stuffing, one pound of gravy, three pounds of mashed potatoes, one pound of cranberry relish, a 10-inch pumpkin or apple pie, and a dozen dinner rolls.
Chapter President Justin Murphy welcomed the members and guests to the event, and praised Dorothy Leachman and Eileen Smith, both former presidents, for their efforts in the past two years to strengthen and help grow the chapter, which now exceeds 200 members.
Murphy also presented Leachman, immediate past president, with a $100 gift certificate, and commended Sandy Stayrook and Matt Frost, Program/Social Committee co-chairs, and Robertson and Niswonger for their work in making the evening a success.
An added attraction at this year’s dinner was an appearance by John Locke, speaker and author, who features himself as “An Englishman Abroad.” Locke captivated his audience with his tongue-in-cheek look at the similarities and differences between the USA and the UK, and the hilarious things that have happened to him since his arrival in the “Colonies.”
Locke, now a Worthington resident, also conducted the auction that raised $3,326, and included his services as a speaker as a biddable item. Lock was “purchased” by Niswonger for $175.
Other coveted items donated for bidding, their donors and winners, and the amount bid are:
Items that were raffled for a total of $1,940 and their donors included: