YMCA Giving Gala Raises Record-Breaking $140K

After selling out two weeks beforehand, the Greater Joliet Area YMCA’s Giving Gala welcomed a record-setting 500 guests into the Bolingbrook Golf Club on Saturday, February 28.

By night’s end, a whopping $140,000 was raised—the most in the event’s eight year-history. Those in attendance were not only treated to an elegant dinner and top-notch entertainment, but were also invited to bid on a number of silent and live auction items, including signed sports memorabilia, exclusive getaways and premiere golf packages.

The Greater Joliet Area YMCA has been serving families, regardless of age, income or background, from throughout Will County and its surrounding areas for more than 85 years. Since its inception, the Giving Gala has raised more than $450,000 to benefit families within our community, helping to ensure that that no one is turned away from the Y due to the inability to pay.

For the second consecutive year, the Gala featured a “Best of Live” Raffle, where, for only $50 a ticket, guests could win a live auction item of their choice without even lifting their bid paddles. This year’s winner took home a destination package that included a two-week stay in a beautiful condo on the Big Island of Hawaii. Fred and Maria Bliznick, the generous donors of the Hawaii package, subsequently donated an additional two-week package, which was then auctioned for $4,000.

Twelve more live auction items were up for bid, including a foursome of tickets to this summer’s Taylor Swift concert and a hockey stick signed by the 2014-15 Chicago Blackhawks, the latter of which was also sold for $4,000, making it the top-grossing item (along with the Hawaii package).

The evening also included a tribute to Giving Gala co-chair, Tim Stetenfeld, who unexpectedly passed away just weeks earlier. A portion of the funds raised at the 2015 Giving Gala will benefit the Timothy M. Stetenfeld Memorial Fund, which was established to ensure that Mr. Stetenfeld’s legacy will live on for generations to come through YMCA programming.

This year’s Giving Gala volunteer committee was co-chaired by Margie Bonuchi (Plainfield) and Tim Stetenfeld (Plainfield). Committee members included: Fiona Alston (Oswego), Judy Avery (Plainfield), Kathy Blessent (Plainfield), Lori Carlson (Plainfield), Kelly Eagan (Naperville), Rob Epley (Plainfield), Kathy Kazmar (Plainfield), Steve Leclair (Naperville), Maria Macris (Joliet), Nick Macris (Joliet), Victoria Matway (Plainfield), Julie Mellencamp (Plainfield), Mary Olson (Morris), Greg Schaefer (Minooka) and Marge Watts (Plainfield).

Elite Sponsors of the 2015 Giving Gala included:

PREMIUM SPONSORS

Central Steel & Wire Company and Ron & Kathy Kazmar

PLATINUM SPONSORS

Caterpillar, Inc.

Rousonelos Lean Pork Producer LLC

WeatherTech

BAR SPONSOR

Diageo

CASH RAFFLE SPONSOR & DIAMOND SPONSOR

Edward Jones – Office of Tim Stetenfeld

DIAMOND SPONSORS

Bill Jacobs Auto

BMO Financial Group

Continental Audi of Naperville

Edward – Elmhurst Healthcare

First Community Financial Bank

First Midwest Bank

Grundy Bank

Heartland Bank and Trust Company

Hometown National Bank

Midland States Bank

Plainfield Area Chamber of Commerce

Rod Baker Ford

BID PADDLE SPONSOR

Mahoney, Silverman & Cross Law Firm

ENTERTAINMENT SPONSOR

Ahoyt Family Dental

GOLD SPONSORS

Roger and Margie Bonuchi

Brent Hassert Consulting, LLC

Bridgeview Bank Group

Coilplus- Illinois

D’Arcy Buick GMC

Friedrich-Jones & Overman-Jones Funeral Home & Cremation Services

Joliet Bank and Trust, A Branch of Old Plank Trail Community Bank

L. DeGeus & Associates, Inc.

Rathbun, Czervenyak & Kozol, LLC

The Summit Center for Mental Health

The ninth annual Giving Gala will be held on Saturday, February 27, 2016. For more information about the Giving Gala or if you’re interested in joining the Giving Gala Planning Committee, please contact Carolyn Hamilton at chamilton@jolietymca.org.

Source: Greater Joliet Area YMCA

Photo 1: Representatives from Bill Jacobs Auto, a 2015 Giving Gala Diamond Sponsor.

Photo 2: Members of the 2015 Giving Gala planning committee.

Photo 3: Plainfield residents Kathy and Ron Kazmar, Premium Sponsors of the 2015 Giving Gala.

Photo 4: Gala Committee member Rob Epley and Gala Co-Chair Margie Bonuchi, of Plainfield.

Photo 5: Joliet residents Jim and Kim Roolf pose for a photo with Lockport residents Angela and Pete Colarelli.