Foundation gala deemed ‘record-breaking’ success by executive director

"The Gonzales Healthcare Systems Foundation’s 'Laughter is the Best Medicine' gala last Saturday night was a record-breaking success thanks to the attendees." Foundation Executive Director Kelly Lindner said.

According to Lindner, Gonzales community and many other guests – who came from Houston, San Antonio, Austin and New Braunfels – spent several hours playing Plinko, spinning a prize wheel and played a fun game called Heads or Tails for nominal costs; but those games and the combination of the live and silent auctions and table sales brought in more than $300,000 for the non-profit organization.

Lindner said she and the foundation board are all overwhelmed by the generosity of the attendees.

“We sold trips to Spain, Greece, Ireland, Tuscany and more. Every trip we had, we sold,” Lindner said.

According to Lindner, the foundation's silent auction committee: Brian Fees, Janelle Lester, Carolyn Orts and Andi Seger – and Lindner – brought in items never seen at a gala before. For example, almost 100 people paid $20 each to play Heads or Tails for a chance to win a Tito’s Vodka copper cooler filled with Tito’s vodka and Tito’s paraphernalia – something Lindner wrote a grant for and waited months to hear whether it had been approved.

The foundation's live raffle drawing, raised a lot of money. Gonzales Healthcare Systems CEO Chuck Norris, his wife Polly and his Administrative Assistant Kristi Mercer won three of the five auction prizes, which included a pistol, a Big Bertha golf club and a trip to San Francisco.

During the gala two different photo booths were available for guest, with opportunities to get a picture in a traditional photo booth, or in a booth with a green screen that had a library of images such as a crazy clown or a Come and Take It flag as the background.

"The photos were gratis but several people wanted to make donations for them because they were such a fun giveaway," Lindner said.

Lindner also mentioned the most important part of planning the gala was making the event dollars stretch far enough for guests to have a good time, with plenty left over for the much-needed room remodel at Gonzales Memorial Hospital.

“With national charities being on everyone’s lips these days with all the horrific natural disasters and how much money the charities actually give back, we were extremely mindful that we needed to spend much less on extravagance and more on creating a fun atmosphere," Lindner said. "So instead of spending lots of money on an ice sculpture, we spent a couple hundred dollars on cans of silly string and that was a huge hit, at any given time during the night there was a silly string fight going on and for just a few minutes everyone forgot the stresses of the world."

Lindner said every one of her board members either donated items, purchased tables or volunteered and that made a big difference that night – and every day in the community.

“I’m so grateful for the working foundation board and the efforts so many of them put in,” Lindner said. "Board member, John Lamprecht made one of his signature German chocolate cakes and once again brought in a lot of money, though this time, the purchaser got a large knife and dozens of plates and shared the cake with the crowd, delighting everyone within reach. In addition to board members, a dedicated group of GHS staff members including the CFO pulled off the herculean task of helping 500 people enjoy themselves."