On the Town: Hospital guild shifts from fashion show to music, comedy and dancing for fundraiser
Breaking with its long-standing tradition of presenting a fashion show for its gala spring fundraiser, the Providence St. Joseph Medical Center Guild staged a program of music, comedy and dancing in the grand ballroom of the Sheraton Universal Hotel this past Sunday.
Co-chaired by the organization’s president, Donna Mahoney, and long-standing guild member Ollie Vick, this year’s gala, billed as “That’s Entertainment,” was emceed by ABC-7 Eyewitness News entertainment reporter George Pennacchio.
The day-long event began with a cocktail reception, boutique shopping, and lunch before the show commenced with the comedic stylings of NBC4 News weathercaster Fritz Coleman, and a performance by the AMAX Dancers, under the direction of Alysha Wheeler.
Sunday’s main event culminated with a concert by the day’s featured performer, “Tenor of the Americas,” Maximo Marcuso.
Following the show, Vick thanked the event committee that included Marian Enos, Marla Balke, Jo Massimini, Lupe Llamas, Kristine Reiter, Charlene Greene, Maureen Walsh, Patricia Scully, Patricia Cimo, Sharon Reid, Terry Campbell, Kathleen Marsden and Lori Riela.
Along with the committee, this year’s gala, the guild’s first major event since pledging $1 million to the Providence St. Joseph Foundation’s emergency services campaign, was also made possible by 36 top donors, headed by Ed and Murphy Romano and Nat and Alma Rubenfeld.
The campaign, launched in 2018 as a five-year project, will raise funds to construct new state-of-the-art emergency and urgent-care facilities at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, which serves more than 68,000 people annually.
The campaign’s goal of raising $70 million will build facilities that will improve triage to reduce wait times, double the amount of treatment rooms that will include isolation rooms, and provide faster diagnostic information to doctors by the use of the latest communications technologies.
Among the many special guests who enjoyed the gala were Darin Goss, chief operating officer of Providence Health and Services, and his wife Gabrielle, as well as Susan Dolbert, who serves as the chief development officer and president of Providence Foundation Southern California, and actress Kelly Stables, best-known for her roles in “Two and a Half Men,” “The Exes” and “Superstore.”
To learn more about the emergency services fundraising campaign, upcoming events, the work of the foundation and committee, how you can become involved and donate or to take a tour of the current emergency facilities and see what is planned, call (818) 847-4673.
David Laurell may be reached by email at dlaurell@aol.com or (818) 563-1007.
