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St. Joseph's Academy Annual Auction New York, New York: An Evening with the Angels

Dinner, dancing, entertainment and the Big Apple—it's all there at St. Joseph's Academy annual fundraiser.

Mark your calendars for St. Joseph’s Academy 30th annual auction New York, New York: An Evening with the Angels on Feb. 25 on the campus of St. Joe. Open to the public, this event will put you right in the middle of the Big Apple with the theme this year: New York, New York.

The commons on St. Joe campus will transform to look like Central Park in New York City. Twinkle lights will dangle from the ceiling to look like stars. Students will perform like New York City street performers and Occupy Wall Street will occupy the commons. The red carpet will welcome guests as the paparazzi snaps a few photos. A bar made to look like Sardi’s in New York will be the place to go for a cocktail. Ask for a cosmopolitan, it's their signature drink. Caricatures will be displayed of famous people and those who are famous to St. Joe’s, such as the maintenance man and the librarian.

It will be an evening of fun and fellowship, dinner and dancing. A duo entrée dinner of steak and chicken will be catered by Russo’s Catering. There will be an open bar. Tom Kelly will entertain as he sings the sounds of Sinatra.

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The main focus for the evening is the annual auction, St. Joe’s largest parent-led fundraiser of the year. Since September the auction committee, composed of Beth Pelch, Julie Meersman, Bob Lane and Emily Mahon have worked tirelessly to secure fabulous items and to plan both the live auction and the silent auction. 

Mimi Basler Twardowski and Mary Barnes Sauer, both SJA graduates and current parents, are the live auction chairs. They have so generously donated their time, talents and treasures to ensure a successful event.

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“Our auction committee is here at school just about every day working on the event. Bob, Julie, Beth and all of our section chairs have worked countless hours securing donations, working with vendors and planning every last detail of the night. St. Joe is so grateful to be able to rely on such a supportive community of parent volunteers,” said Emily Mahon, director of community relations and graduate from St. Joe’s class of 1999.

Local businesses and St. Joe parents generously donated a variety of fabulous items. With more than 40 items from which to choose during the live auction, there is something for everyone. Up for bid are items such as a Wayne Gretzky Oilers jersey signed by the great Gretzky himself; a Sam Bradford jersey; a David Freese jersey; a diamond bracelet; a vintage mink fur coat; a St. Joe golf cart; tickets to sporting events; an instant wine cellar complete with more than 80 quality wines; photography packages by Strauss-Peyton Photography, Shana Watkins Photography, and Westrich Photography; and a duck hunting trip to Arkansas.

There will be a raffle for free tuition worth $11,000, or the winner can opt to take cash for the same value. A $100 donation gets you a raffle ticket. Fund-a-Need during the live auction is another way those in attendance can give to St. Joe. All funds raised from Fund-a-Need will go toward staff development. Last year, funds supported continuing education and conferences for staff members.

Julie Meersman shared how grateful St. Joe is to have all of the local support with the gift of so many wonderful and generous donations.

“We could not pull off an event like this without the support and generous donations from the SJA community and the business community in St. Louis. We have not had to spend any money on items for the auction. Everything in our auction was either donated outright or underwritten by our amazing donors,” Meersman said.

All proceeds raised from the auction will go toward school operations. Beth Petch talked about the importance of its success.

“The annual dinner auction is the largest parent-led fundraiser for St. Joseph's Academy. The money raised goes into the general school fund and is used to support the day-to-day operations of the academy. The success of the auction is critical to the operating budget of the school,” Pelch said.

As with any event of this size and caliber, it takes many hands working together. Bob Lane shared his thoughts on those who graciously have and will donate their time for New York, New York: An Evening with the Angels.

“It is very much a community effort. There will be more than one hundred volunteers helping the night of the event. It is all hands on deck. We will have students, parents, teachers, staff and alumnae working together to make this a success. It is many oars rowing in the same direction, and volunteers are necessary for a big event such as this,” Lane said.

For more information and to purchase tickets go to stjosephacademyauction.maestroweb.com. Reply is requested by Feb. 10. Jackets are required.

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