The NHH Foundation gala cabinet started mobilizing earlier this spring for this year's 25th fundraising gala. /NHH Foundation photo
For a quarter-of-a-century, the Northumberland Hills Hospital (NHH) Foundation annual gala has been a staple in the community – a lifeline fundraiser helping to ensure residents have access to priority medical equipment and modern care close to home.
Since its inception in 2001, the gala fundraiser has raised more than $4.1 million to support the delivery of patient care at NHH.
And now, another dedicated cabinet is hard at work to dish up a new experience for this year’s fundraiser, which includes a return to an in-person gathering and an emphasis on celebrating Northumberland’s generosity over the years.
In honour of the gala’s 25th anniversary, the foundation has announced plans to host “A Silver Soirée – Celebrating 25 Years of Giving,” on Saturday, Nov. 8, 2025, at the Liuna Local 183 Lifelong Learning Centre.
“With a focus on celebrating the tradition that began in 2001 and the overwhelming community support since inception, this year’s event will return to an in-person, single location format, but with a twist on the typical,” explained organizers.
Chairing the “silver anniversary celebration” are long-time foundation supporters and well-known local physicians Dr. Kate Everdell and Dr. Emma Smith.
Everdell tells us more about the exciting twist in the works.
“We’re really excited …” added Everdell.
There’s always so many great people attending this event and who are supporting the hospital regularly, and you want to get up and talk to everybody, and that’s a challenge with a sit-down meal, noted Everdell.
Simply put, the toted “elevated cocktail reception” will treat guests to an elegant and social gathering.
“Both Dr. Everdell and Dr. Smith are well-known not only for the care they offer their patients, but also for their involvement in bettering our community,” said Rhonda Cunningham, CEO of the NHH Foundation. “We have a stellar cabinet of dedicated volunteers working alongside them and our foundation staff team to bring this celebration to life.”
For guests, there’s still lots of time before the big day – but for the 2025 cabinet, volunteers already started mobilizing earlier this spring and are meeting regularly to finesse everything from food, décor, music plans, and more.
Their goal is to plan “a seamless, elegant experience for guests, focused on the cause that inspired the inaugural event: Supporting NHH.”
The cabinet volunteers tasked with bringing this experience to life over the coming months include silent auction chair Therese Brennan-Hunt; décor co-chair Gabrielle Eckhardt; board chair of signature and third-party events Laura McCracken Ebbrell; volunteers chair Sue Morrow; sponsorship co-chair Trenholm Parker; catering and beverage chair Grace Rivers; décor co-chair Will Ryan; raffle chair Rebecca Vaughan, and sponsorship co-chair Carly Wardle.
There are a lot of details to work on, and this incredibly dedicated cabinet of volunteers – some of whom have been doing this for years – has been doing an amazing job tackling a lot of heavy lifting to prepare for the celebration, added Everdell.
And while change is in the works with a shift away from the traditional seated meal format, Everdell noted that many of the cherished past gala elements are returning.
Tickets for “A Silver Soirée” are set to go on sale on Sept. 9 through the foundation’s website.
In the meantime, organizers are encouraging residents to save the date and stay tuned for future announcements.
“Our annual gala is our most financially successful signature event and helps raise funds to support the purchase of priority medical equipment and technology across our hospital,” explained Jennifer Gilmer, manager of communications and philanthropy, when asked to elaborate on the significance of this year’s fundraiser and its impact in the community. “Having a well-equipped, modern hospital requires consistent investment to ensure NHH can continue to offer high-quality care close to home.”
Monies raised through this year’s gala will be directed towards the hospital’s highest priority equipment needs. An announcement is still to come regarding what equipment will be the focus for the “Fund Me” auction element of the event, noted Gilmer.
“With this year being the 25th anniversary, we look forward to celebrating the incredible generosity of our community over the past 25 years and coming together to support our hospital once again,” continued Gilmer. “Every year, we aim to design an event to raise an excess of $200,000, but we always hope to exceed that goal as it allows us to invest more in our community hospital.”
Looking back over the years and various formats the gala has taken on – from the formal sit-down, to pivoting during COVID with home-based celebrations and Zoom components – this year is going to be an exciting one, said Everdell.
The most recent edition of the gala featured the community-wide format known as “Galalicious.”
(Written by: Sarah Hyatt, with files from Joseph Goden)
