The Compassion Gala was a fun and impactful evening benefiting Heart to Heart International! Thanks to all who made it such a wonderful success! Access the photos, the videos and more below…
The Compassion Gala presented by Bank of Blue Valley was held on May 9th, 2015 at The Gallery Event Space in downtown Kansas City in the Power & Light District. Just about 400 people attended the event. We were so happy to have so many people attend that were new to HHI – what a great way to introduce Heart to Heart International’s humanitarian mission to more people.
The Gala began with a VIP Reception and as evening turned to night everyone gathered for a tasty dinner and for the evening’s program emceed by Lara Moritz & Len Jennings of KMBC-TV 9. Two well-deserved awards were presented as you’ll read about below, and the night was capped off with an exciting Fund the Mission and Live Auction overseen by auctioneer Tanna Guthrie. Let’s not forget about the exciting Balloon Pop – more balloons next time! – and the wonderful music provided by Angela Hagenbach.
GALA PHOTOS
Photographer Scott Reynolds snapped hundreds of photos at the Gala and of all the evening gowns and bow ties on display, and we’ve collected the best in a couple of albums on our Flickr account.
See the photos from the Gala and photos from the VIP Reception.
AWARDS
Heart for Humanity
We presented this year’s Heart for Humanity award to the American Academy of Family Physicians Foundation, a longtime partner with HHI, who continues to do great work with us, especially in Haiti.
Learn more about why we chose the AAFP Foundation and watch a video that showcases our partnership.
Power of One Award
This year’s Power of One Award was presented to Major General Gary Volesky for leading the charge in the fight against the Ebola epidemic, and by extension, all military servicemembers who took part in that fight.
Volesky could not attend the Compassion Gala, however the Power of One was accepted on his behalf by another Army officer who worked closely with HHI in Liberia.
See the video that announced the Power of One award and learn more about why Volesky and the U.S. military deserved the honor…
I’M JOSEPHINE…
One of the more emotional moments of the evening came as everyone watched the story of Josephine, a Liberian woman who survived Ebola, lost her entire family to the virus, and then came to work with HHI in Liberia to help fight the spread of the virus. See this powerful video…
Josephine’s story debuted at the Gala, and as it happens, that day – May 9th, 2015 – is the day Liberia was declared Ebola-free.