Posted on Oct 06, 2017

It was a fun and festive evening! We want to thank everyone who helped make our Celebrate Rise Fundraising Gala a huge success! Generous corporate and individual sponsors, 500-plus guests, and donors helped us raise much-needed funding so that we can assist people in living life as a great adventure.

These crucial funds will enable Rise to “unlock possibilities” by providing creative solutions and customized support for people with disabilities and other challenges as they strive to live a life filled with pride and purpose.

The gala was held October 5 at the Minneapolis Marriott Northwest in Brooklyn Park. Kate Raddatz, a new reporter from WCCO-TV, emceed our dinner program at which we recognized and honored some great people and business partners.

Rise salutes our Community Partners of the Year:

• AMC Coon Rapids 16 Theaters
• LSG Sky Chefs
• rms Surgical / CRETEX Medical

 

Congratulations to this year’s Rise’ing Stars:

• Kevin Arriaza
• Stacy Dziedzic
• John Fleagle, and Julie Forslund
• Ken Johnson
• Tom Quinn
• Seann Thomas
• Dustin Trudeau.

 

We honor our Champions of the Mission:

• Austin Beatty, Minnesota Employment Center team lead
• Kristen Enghusen, Creative Partnerships North case manager
• Kathy Frank, Employment Exploration & Connections case manager
• Donna Klaphake, human resources generalist
• Milcart Robert-Clerge, DT&H super sub
• Chit ThaiThai, Industrial Production Services team lead-Electrolux.

 

We thank our generous sponsors:

• Premium Sponsor: Pentair
• Gold Sponsors: Cummins Power Generation, Federal Premium Ammunition, and Jack & Jan Grunewald
• Silver Sponsors: Dan’s Complete Automotive, Electrolux Major Appliance, Hays Companies, and Sheila Minske & Erin Peterson
• Bronze Sponsors: Alerus, Amcon, Hoglund Bus Company, Liberty Carton, Medica, Northeast Bank, and Wells Fargo
• Special thanks to Gala Committee Co-Chairs Jenny Poyorena and Angie Franzen for their creative and skillful leadership. They relied on a fabulous team of volunteers who helped plan the event, set up, ran the games during the social hour, and made sure all our guests had a great time.

If you were not able to attend the gala, but would still like to make a contribution, you can do so online or contact Samantha Schoen, Rise’s fundraising manager at 763-792-2450.

A complete overview of Celebrate Rise will be featured in the December issue of Rise Reporter magazine. Check out our Facebook page where you’ll find fun photos from the evening.