Making the Grade
Annual auction gets “A” for effort, excitement, and execution From the bevy of cheerleader gear, letterman jackets, college colors—and most impressive, Sacred Heart uniforms!—sported by the nearly 700 SHS parents, faculty, staff, and friends, the 2016 auction Be True to Your School hit all-new heights in terms of successful fundraising and wide-scale and cross-divisional communitybuilding. Arriving early to peruse the silent auction items at the reception, guests were treated to the smooth tones of the SHP band and crooner Nick Conroy (SHP ’16) and the dance team’s electric routines, followed by an impromptu musical revue of Guys & Dolls, delivered by the recent SHP cast. Once inside the Rogers Pavilion, attendees were drawn to the “science lab” reception bar, where strange fog floated out of colorful beakers, and where, for a small price, a guest might be put in detention by an enterprising “classmate.” Gearing up at a pre-event pep rally with Director of Schools Richard Dioli are auction With dinner underway in the big tent, however, co-chairs Alison Van Dyke, Charlie Hays, Mary Stevens, and Amy Yang. the night’s business accelerated considerably, and the 18 packages up for live auction were soon the subject Capping the night, the annual Fund-a-Need appeal for financial of hot contests and good natured competition. Among the items aid brought the event’s purpose into sharp focus, as with poise garnering the most interest was the replica Shelby Roadster and grace beyond her years, student speaker Lilika Teu (SHP ’16) currently being constructed by four SHP students in the Creative expressed her tremendous gratitude for the opportunity she had Inquiry program. With the mechanical work-in-progress on display been given, sharing how attending Sacred Heart has dramatically at the auction’s entryway, and a promise to customize the body to changed the course of her life and opened up a world of possibility the buyer’s color choice, the car generated several outstanding bids and promise. before a winner was declared. Spurred by Lilika’s heartfelt story, an overwhelming number of pledges were collected, and an anonymous donor stepped forward with a 2:1 Challenge Grant. In all, approximately half a million dollars were pledged to the SHS financial aid program as a result—a figure that means critical support to the one-quarter of all enrolled SHS families who yearly rely on financial assistance.
Sharing how her own life has been transformed by the opportunity to attend Sacred Heart, Lilika Teu (SHP ’16) was an eloquent speaker on behalf of the night’s Fund-a-Need campaign.
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