GISD Educational Foundation fundraising event combines good food, a good cause

There will be plenty for those mingling folks to talk about, because they’ll be among the first inside the historic Galveston Water and Electric Light Community Center on 30th Street. The 1904 structure, built to replace a pumping station destroyed by the 1900 Storm, features 13-foot tall windows and an elaborate tin ceiling.

The award-winning restoration will be the backdrop for an evening that includes live entertainment by Galveston band The Line Up and a silent auction. “This year’s auction items focus on wonderful island experiences, and all our favorite restaurants, hotels, attractions, boutiques and businesses have contributed generously to the auction,” event co-chair Sheila Lidstone said. “Royal Caribbean has donated a seven-day cruise to the auction, and we also have four highly-coveted passes to tour the Battleship Galveston as it undergoes restoration on Pelican Island, paired with lunch at the Mosquito Café.”

As the auction heats up, dinner will, too, with a buffet of shrimp kisses, Mama Mario’s meatballs, pulled pork sliders and chicken piccata planned, followed by a dessert of mini cannoli. “The menu is a combination of island and Italian,” Hart said.

Proceeds of the auction and dinner benefit the Galveston ISD Educational Foundation’s efforts to support schools, teachers and students by supplementing programs in areas where school budgets fall short. “A lot of teachers pay out of their own pocket for things for their classroom. Each year, the foundation awards upwards of $150,000 for things that really make a difference to our students,” foundation executive director Brittany Viegas said. “Grant requests can be up to $10,000, and go to every campus in the district. In recent years, we have provided classroom technology, funds for a specialty music camp for members of Ball High’s elite drum corps, elementary reading curriculum and even a nature boardwalk for students at GISD’s Crenshaw Elementary and Middle School on Bolivar Peninsula.”

Viegas pointed out that the foundation’s role in filling education gaps is now more important than ever. “As a ‘Robin Hood’ school, GISD has to return $44 million in local tax revenue to the state,” she said. “That figure has more than doubled in the last three years. GISD Educational Foundation is not subject to that Robin Hood recapture, so everything we raise is money that gets to stay here in the district.”

The Seaside Spring Soiree is scheduled for Thursday, March 9 from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m. at the Galveston Water and Electric Light Community Center, 715 30th Street. A limited number of tickets are available by calling the GISD Educational Foundation at (409) 766-5157.