Tasty food and fun, all in the name of supporting homeless families.
This is FUSION’S 30th year in service, and they are celebrating the accomplishment at their largest fundraiser of the year, the annual gala, which has a tropical paradise theme. FUSION is a nonprofit operating in Federal Way whose goal is to house and support families experiencing homelessness.
This year’s gala is at The Dumas Bay Center at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 2. The tickets are on sale in advance until July 26. After then, there will only be $110 general admission tickets for sale at the door. There are two levels of tickets available. A reserved seat, which cost $130 for a single ticket, $260 for a couple, and a reserved table of 10 for $1,300. General admission tickets are open seating. One ticket is $100, and two tickets are $200.
This will be a cashless event, so FUSION recommends registering a credit card when buying tickets.
Every year, FUSION hosts this gala on the first Wednesday of August. FUSION’s Executive Director David Harrison said all of the gala’s proceeds go towards operating transitional housing for homeless families and to continue supporting them.
Harrison said he projects the galla will fundraise about $300,000 to $400,000. Harrison said there are always more families in need than they have resources, so they constantly have to turn families away when they need shelter.
“It happens almost every day, unfortunately. The demand for services has never been greater, and we could easily double our size and still be able to provide for families,” Harrison said. They have about 21 homes that they use for transitional housing when they help a family get on their feet, three more which are being remodeled or built, and they hope that with the money raised from the gala, they can buy their 25th transitional home, Harrison said.
What can attendees expect at the gala?
Harrison described the gala as an entire evening of entertainment, food, drinks, music, and dancing. Additionally, he said there will be silent auctions and live auctions, but it is all to raise money for homeless families in transitional housing.
The gala’s theme is tropical paradise, specifically South Pacific. Harrison said the event’s theme will reflect in the music, food, and entertainment.
The entertainment will include haka dancers, Tahitian fire dancers, and lei making. Harrison said the games include a raffle where the winner wins a cruise, a game called heads or tails in which the winner will win a free trip to Mexico, and a game called 50-50, where the cash prize is split between the ticket holder and FUSION.
Harrison described the food as “delicious.” The spread is catered by Cafe Pacific, which includes poke and lumpia appetizers, a South Pacific bean salad, roasted pulled pork and huli huli chicken entrees, and a fruit-filled cannoli for dessert.
The recommended attire, Harrison said, is floral shirts, shorts, flip-flops, and sundresses.
Some of the sponsors for this gala are Art by Nature, Homestreet Bank, Lennar and many more. More information can be found at fusionhousing.org
