Kenny Hooker | S&K Photography

Surry Arts Council’s Arts Ball benefit for cultural arts programs in local schools will be held this Friday at Cross Creek Country Club. Last year’s event, pictured, was a great success, helping the Surry Arts Council to reach more than 10,000 students with free programming from October through April.

slideshow

The annual Arts Ball, a Surry Arts Council benefit for school cultural arts programs, will be held Friday night at Cross Creek Country Club.

Events for the evening include a silent auction, passed hors d’oeuvres and soup, a seated dinner, a live auction, live music by Band of Oz and dancing.

Also, there will be a live auction at 8:30 p.m. of a surprise vehicle donated by Patterson Automotive.

Last year’s Arts Ball broke several records, including highest attendance, highest bid on an auction item for the golf cart donated by Patterson Toyota, and the largest number of silent auction items donated, at 470.

This year, according to S.A.C. Executive Director Tanya Jones, more than 500 items already have been donated for the silent auction, which sets a new record for the Surry Arts Council.

“We have a wide variety of items donated from schools, individuals and businesses, including meals hosted in individual homes, which is an interesting and unique dining experience. Last year, the meals were very popular.”

The silent auction items are divided into categories: For Men, Looking Fabulous, Come Hungry, Art for Art’s Sake, Furniture and Accessories, The Great Outdoors, Relax, Collage of Favorites, Adventure, and Children and Family.

Each school in the county donated items or worked on a special project for the silent auction.

Some of the interesting items donated for the silent auction include:

• Multiple baskets donated by the Surry County Basket Makers Guild, some used as containers for other donated items

• Donations of food items, including a whole beef tenderloin from Mount Airy Meat Center, homemade cinnamon rolls each month for three months, boxes of Girl Scout cookies, three months of summer fruit from Levering Orchard, four Boston butts with homemade barbecue sauce, a 6- to 8-pound Boston butt from Porkey’s, meals in local resident’s homes, delivery of homemade food, as well as many other food items

• Art lessons and private painting parties with artist Lizzie Morrison

• A large amount of artwork, photography, and handmade items from local artists

• A wooden chair covered in Sunday Comics and hand-painted tote donated by Pilot Mountain Middle School

• A potted tree “blooming” with gift cards from local businesses and restaurants, as well as table accessories, donated by Pilot Mountain Elementary School

• Two donations of a one-hour private yoga class, donated by yoga instructors Sara Bailey and Amy Johnson, as well as three private yoga lessons at Sacred Space donated by Melody White

• A “What Every Woman Wants” gift basket donated by Mount Airy Junior Woman’s Club, filled with wine, socks, chocolates, books, tea, and beauty/spa products

• A hand-crafted wooden stool and two season passes to local home games, donated by Mount Airy High School.

• Two-night stay at a White Sulphur Springs cabin

• One-night lodging at Great Wolf Lodge in Concord, for up to six people, plus a $250 gift certificate, donated by Meadowview Middle School

• A birthday party package for 12 from Starlite Skate Center

• Many more items, including but not limited to gift certificates, salon and spa treatments, gift baskets, jewelry, and decorative items

Jones said that the budget for decorations is zero, thanks to local florists who donated the centerpieces. The florists were coordinated by Steve Scott with Airmont Florist and Gift Shop. The centerpieces will be auctioned during the silent auction.

Julie Adams is the chair for the Arts Ball and is working with acquisitions. Adams said that the event is a “whole community effort — businesses, individuals and schools working together.”

Sonia Dickerson is the liaison for Surry County Schools. Joe Reid will oversee the checkout process at the event.

One-hundred percent of the proceeds raised through the last year’s Arts Ball helped to provide free cultural arts programs for students in 24 schools in Surry County Schools, Mount Airy City Schools and Millennium Charter Academy. All of the 10,000 students in the schools benefited from attending the free programs offered from October through April.

Friday’s Arts Ball will raise proceeds that will fund free cultural arts programs for the 2013-2014 school year. The amount need to fund the programs is $50,000, which comes from Arts Ball proceeds, as well as the funds raised from the Mayberry Days’ Bake Sale, grants and other earmarked contributors.

Proceeds from last year’s Arts Ball brought multiple free cultural events to the schools, including presentations by Mike Wiley about Mark Twain, Shakespeare and Brown vs. Board of Education; a “Harriet Tubman” production; “Gift of the Magi” play; “The Nutcracker” ballet; “The Littlest Angel” play; “Legend of Sleepy Hollow” play; “A Thousand Cranes;” monthly free movies; in-school traditional music instruction in two schools; numerous band concerts; student theatre presentations; workshops; and more.

Tickets for the Arts Ball are $75 per person and are available to purchase at the Surry Arts Council’s website at surryarts.org or by calling 786-7998.

Those who purchase tickets are invited to attend an optional silent auction preview at Cross Creek Country Club from noon to 6 p.m. on Friday.

Reach Jessica Johnson at jessicajohnson@civitasmedia.com or 719-1933.