PAINT the Town was presented by the Parkinson Foundation of Northwest Ohio on Sept. 26, at the Toledo Country Club overlooking the Maumee River.
Parkinson’s disease is a chronic, progressive movement disorder that affects the lives of about one million people across the United States with approximately 60,000 new cases diagnosed each year. In Ohio alone, over 30,000 people are afflicted with PD.
Red and fuchsia lighting and tulip arrangements set the festive scene which included fine cuisine, lively music, a silent auction of “experience” packages, and a curated art auction by the Toledo Artists’ Club. Mmm ... there was a buffet of scampi, smoked salmon, oysters Rockefeller, beef tenderloin and more.
The signature complimentary “Pink Tulip Martini” with Tito’s Handmade Vodka, an event sponsor, was the perfect compliment as the Rick Luettke Jazz Quartet played cool tunes.
Manning the guest check in was a family affair with Colgan Karcher and his dad, Dick Karcher.
Guests were greeted by Honorary Chairmen Shelly Wagener-Konz and husband Tom Konz.
Diagnosed 22 years ago with PD, Shelly has long been a Parkinson Foundation champion.
Experiences on the auction included “Who’s Your Caddy,” “Splendor in the Grass,” “Touch Me All Over,” and “Attention Tree Huggers,” among others.
Aaron Bivins, whose art works are in corporate and private collections around the country, painted on site for all to see and many bid on his painting, a field of tulips representing all those affected by Parkinson’s disease.
The lucky bidder was Matt Kripke of Kripke Enterprises, Inc and the Kripke / Friedman families, both event sponsors in honor of Matt’s father, Larry Kripke who battled Parkinson’s.
The Toledo Artists’ Club (TAC) works not sold at the silent auction are still available online at toledoartistclub.com/special-events. A portion of the proceeds is being donated by the artists and TAC.
President of PFNWO Jeremy Harle welcomed guests and thanked all of the individual and corporate supporters.
Major sponsors included Kripke Enterprises, Inc. and the Kripke / Friedman families, Area Office on Aging, Blue Sky, Buckeye Broadband, Comprehensive Center for Pain Management, Hollywood Casino, Huntington, Morgan Stanley, UToledo Health, University of Toledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences, Rudolph Libbe Group, Lyden Oil, Friends of Wood County Committee on Aging, Andrea Gibbons, and family and the family of Blanche Lavery.
Among the 120 plus guests were Matt and Jill Kripke, Dana and Doug Friedman, Stacey and Harley Kripke, Sharon and Bobby Kripke, Drs. Larry Elmer, Alaistair Hoyt, and Noor Pirzada, Phil Dannewitz of Medtronic, Jennifer Archer, Marv Robon with long time friend Bob Stump, Frank and Donna Glinka, Barb and Terry Hoening, Robert, Susan Ann, and Antoinette Lesinski, and the entire Wagener family in support of Shelly Konz’ passion for fighting Parkinson’s.
Over $50,000 was netted thanks to corporate and family sponsors and individual ticket purchasers.
The Parkinson Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that funds Parkinson’s research, education, advocacy, and free services for those living with the disease. Its mission is to establish optimal quality of life through awareness, education, and care, providing comfort to those living with Parkinson’s and their caregivers, said Stacey Dunbar, foundation treasurer.
Resources include support groups, an annual symposium, and programs.
PFNWO’s supports funding to entities including ProMedica’s Neuroscience Foundation and the UTMC Gardner McMaster Center for Parkinson’s Research.
Visit pfnwo.org or call 800.438.5584, ext.1.
BINGO! was yelled as excited players won a round and therefore a designer purse. All the fun was during the Designer Purse Bingo presented by the Sight Center of Northwest Ohio and the Sylvania Lions Club Sept. 26 at the Joseph Diehn American Legion Post in Sylvania.
It was a nice night out with friends while playing for purses by designer brands including Kate Spade, Tommy Hilfinger, Coach, and Michael Kors. Tickets at $50 per person were sold to 236 attendees.
Guests, who had to be at least 18 years old as required by Ohio law in order to play, played 16 games of bingo.
Attendees also had three chances to win a pebbled black Kate Spade handbag and matching wallet during the intermission cover-all round.
Executive director Tim Tegge was the caller, assisted by Jim Collins who confirmed the numbers drawn by Merry Cook.
Silent auction baskets, door prizes, and a 50/50 raffle with the 50/50 winner taking home $480, were also fun. Paws Smoke’n Grill Food Truck was available for refreshments and
Main Street Sweets provided tasty cookies to all.
Sponsors included GBQ Partners, ProMedica, Arrow Print &Copy, Main Street Sweets, Westgate Residential, and Quality Family Eyecare.
The over $13,000 raised benefits the Sight Center and the Sylvania Lions Club.
The Sight Center of Northwest Ohio, founded in 1923 as the Toledo Society for the Blind, is a non-profit, 501(c)3 agency that provides clinical and in-home services to residents in an 18-county region in Ohio and Michigan. The center, the only comprehensive low-vision resource center in the entire region, offers Its programs and services to help people of all ages work, learn, play, and live independently with permanent vision loss. Visit www.sightcentertoledo.org or call (419) 720-3937.
The Sylvania Lions Club, a non profit organization with the motto We Serve, has a main focus of helping the visually impaired. Helen Keller, while visiting Cedar Point nearly 100 years ago, asked the Lions to be shepherds for the blind. Call 419-309-0574 or visit www.facebook.com/SylvaniaLionsClub.
First Published October 6, 2024, 10:00 a.m.
