Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
BY LAURIE HAHN, Times-Union Staff Writer
How can you follow up a wildly successful cookbook that has raised more than half a million dollars for breast cancer research?
You can plan an evening of music along with an auction of items donated by celebrities who were featured in the cookbook.
You can ask for - and receive - corporate underwriting for the costs of the event, including special room rates at the Ramada Inn and free use of the Wagon Wheel Theatre for the evening.
For the Catherine Peachey Fund, Oct. 11 will be "A Note-able Night," starting with a concert by the nostalgia rock 'n' roll group Sha Na Na.
The concert will be followed by an auction of items donated by local and national celebrities.
Items like a sweatshirt, CDs and cassettes from the Broadway hit "Victor/Victoria" and donated by Julie Andrews; a limited edition watercolor reproduction by local artist Terry Armstrong; a fragrance basket from Estee Lauder; three autographed cookbooks and an original hand-painted apron from Marcia Adams; a Canadian red fox fur coat; two tickets to the Indiana Twisters' pro indoor soccer season opener at Market Square Arena; a three-piece set of Vera Bradley luggage; autographed photos of Diane Sawyer and Bobby Knight, plus an autographed basketball from Knight; tickets for a Colts game, donated by WRSW; and three gift baskets from Avon.
And that's just for starters.
"These are things you can't buy," said Connie Rufenbarger, chairwoman for the event. "If we can come up with a good annual event that's do-able and exciting, this can ensure that the money won't run out."
The money made from the concert and auction will go into the Catherine Peachey Fund, which has already given out $185,000 in grants to medical researchers at the Indiana University Cancer Center.
And that grant money is just part of the more then $500,000 the fund has raised so far from sales of the "Just Peachey, Cooking Up A Cure" cookbook.
The Peachey Fund has developed a reputation for peer reviews of grant requests and for allowing grants that help researchers collect data that lets them go after large national grants.
The concert and auction will be one way to supplement the income already raised from the cookbook.
"It's going to be a really fun way for us all to reconnect and to raise money for research grants," said Pam Kolter, sponsorship chairwoman for the event. "And to do it in Warsaw was important.
"The important thing, too, is that people realize that research is not about millions (of dollars). This is a way to get research funded that requires a small amount of money and can get a lot of results."
The concert is scheduled for 7:30 to 11 p.m., with the auction being held from 9 to 10 p.m. Kevin Deardorff will be the emcee for the evening.
Tickets are $35 per person with seating limited to the first 800 requests. For tickets or for more information, call the Wagon Wheel Theatre box office at 219-267-8041.
