The Sharing Place is rolling out a new harvest-themed fundraiser just in time for the fall.
The food bank’s first annual Harvest Hoedown is set for Sept. 15 at ODAS Park and will feature a barbecue dinner, live country music by Lone Star Oasis, line dance lessons, and a cash bar for guests to enjoy.
“The core goal is to raise funds for the Sharing Place, but also to bring our incredible community together,” said Chris Peacock, Sharing Place executive director.
“We look forward to filling the room with amazing community folks that truly care about Orillia and have an awesome time.”
The hoedown is an evolution from the food bank’s previous annual Mac and Cheese Luncheon, which ran annually for over a decade to raise funds in support of its programs.
Peacock said the Sharing Place wanted to find a way to host a fun event that celebrates its commitment to healthy food and connections to local agriculture.
“We chose … an event that was more on brand and reflected the work we do, and we're very fortunate to have wonderful relationships with our local farming community and local gardeners,” he said.
“We're much more about healthy, nutritious food and leveraging our local environment to be able to grow food … and celebrating the local harvest is much more appropriate," said Peacock.
“We hope to get everyone out on the dance floor, or just at least be able to socialize, share good stories and just talk about how wonderful our community is.”
The number of Orillians seeking the Sharing Place’s services has grown dramatically in recent months, serving a record-breaking 2,387 people through its food bank in June.
The Sharing Place also serves the community through its School Fuel program, which provides over 4,500 students, across 23 local schools, with healthy food every day, among other initiatives.
“We (hope to) create kind of a fun, good time to celebrate all the hard work that our organization does and our supporters do, and in the process try to raise a bunch of money for our organization during some very difficult times,” Peacock said.
The Harvest Hoedown begins with cocktails at 6 p.m., followed by dinner and dancing at 7 p.m.
Tickets are $100 per person.
Ticket and sponsorship inquiries can be sent to [email protected].
