Crystal Gala Raises $30,000 for Huguenot Children's Library

It was a night to remember as 222 people gathered to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the Huguenot Children’s Library. The evening included cocktails and dinner, an exciting benefit auction and dancing to the sounds of ReMixx. The 15th Anniversary Crystal Gala held March 16th at the Fountainhead, raised more than $30,000 for the Partnership for the Huguenot Children’s Library, the non-profit group that renovated the building and continues to support its programs.

Contributing significantly to the total was a silent and live auction that included dinner for six at New Rochelle’s hottest restaurant, Alvin & Friends; a Columbus Day weekend getaway to a private home on Cape Cod;  a week in a deluxe Naples, Florida condo; and the chance to let your child be “Librarian for a Day.” But perhaps the most popular item was a basketball autographed by New Rochelle High School phenom Khalil Edney, whose 55-foot buzzer beater was the “shot heard ‘round the world” winning the sectional title for the Huguenots. Michael Weissman served as the evening’s auctioneer.

“We owe a special thanks to our sponsors, who underwrote the costs of the evening,” said PHCL President Lisa Bonalle, who co-chaired the event with Vice President Theresa Kump Leghorn and  Secretary Lori Morrow. The sponsors included Auction Sponsors Kathy and Jeff Wiegand, Entertainment Sponsor the Bonalle Family, Flower Sponsors Barbara Reguero and Keith Barbaria, Invitation Sponsors Karen and James Haskell and Journal Sponsors M.C. and Paul McEvoy.

The Crystal Gala Committee included Journal Co-Chairs Lori Morrow and Catherine White; Auction Chair Barbara Reguero; Decorating Co-Chairs Angela Stenroos and Catie Stern; Invitations and Publicity Chair Theresa Kump Leghorn; and Treasurer Yan Mui. Gala Committee members included Lori Hall Armstrong, Judy Fraioli, Barb Francella, Colleen Davis Gardephe, Fenizia Maffucci, Haina Just-Michael, Debbie Morris, Pat Myron, Angela Pilla Soares, Randi Shane, Marc Wager and Dana Ziogas.

The Huguenot Children's Library, located at 794 North Avenue (corner of Eastchester Road) in New Rochelle, opened its doors in November, 1997. The building had been a branch of the New Rochelle Public Library but had been closed in 1991 due to budget cuts and then damaged by an arson fire. “Twenty years ago that little library by the lake was an empty shell, and it took a grass-roots effort to save the structure and renovate it,” recalled Lisa Bonalle. “Thanks to the community’s continued support, the Huguenot Children’s Library continues to be a vital hub of reading, learning and creativity for the children of New Rochelle: Each year more than 6,000 children attend the library’s programs and more than 42,000 books, audiotapes and videotapes are circulated.”

The Partnership for the Huguenot Children's Library is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to inspiring a life-long love of reading and learning through outstanding library services for all of the children of New Rochelle; the PHCL works to enhance the excellence of the Huguenot Children's Library and to promote and advocate for exceptional children's library services within the New Rochelle Public Library system. For more information about the PHCL visit the website at www.partnershipforthehcl.org.