AURORA - Dinner and dancing to a 16-piece Count Basie-style band under the stars made a charitable event in Aurora truly one for the books for at least 90 people attending Friday night. The Aurora Inn proved the setting for the fifth Book Lovers' Ball, held to benefit the historic preservation of the Aurora Free Library and Morgan Opera House.
Kelly Buck Tehan, Terry Miller, and Denise Brady co-chaired the fundraiser for the library. Pam Sheradin, Cathy Sheils and Ellen Wikstrom were also on the ball committee.
Brady first brought the idea for a dinner to the historic preservation committee seven years ago.
“I stole the idea from Denver Public Library,” Brady, a former Denver resident, said. “I thought, what a wonderful venue to have a ball after having a look at the Aurora Inn.”
Brady said that while this event was wonderful, the bulk of preservation funds comes from the committee's grant writing team efforts, including Marnie Fessenden and Janet Heslop.
Tehan said the event typically drew between 80 and 100 people and the committee hoped to raise between $6,000 and $7,000. Tickets for the optional black tie affair cost $75.
Money raised from the event will be used for the next bit of restoration on the Morgan Opera House, Miller said, which will probably be its lighting.
Bubbly from wineries Long Point, King Ferry and Sheldrake Point was poured by waitress Melissa Marl of Auburn, who popped the corks at the 6 p.m. cocktail hour. Bedlam Gardens in King Ferry, owned by Debi Lampman, donated floral centerpieces.
Merchandise worth more than $7,000 was displayed for the silent auction, Tehan said, and the band was also playing for a nominal fee. Brady picked them for their quality performance and willingness over the years to play for a reasonable return.
A large white tent on the lawn overlooking Cayuga Lake sheltered dinner guests from the setting sun at 7 p.m. while they savored their candle lit dinner of Caesar salad, vegetable pasta, lemon herb chicken, beans and greens, pork roast, sauteed green beens, and apple tart, presented by the inn's executive chef Greg Rhoad.
By 8 p.m. the Ithaca Ageless Jazz Band had set up on the patio, where dancing began. The silent auction, continuing in the Inn's lakeside banquet room until the event ended at 11 p.m., included a dozen signed books. Elie Wiesel's “A Mad Desire to Dance,” “Team of Rivals,” by Doris Kearns Goodwin, and Barbara Walters' memoir, “Audition” were just a few. Other items included a handmade purple martin birdhouse, a leather sole from Aurora Shoe Company, redeemable for a pair of shoes, a blue fox boa from Skaneateles Furs, season tickets to Morgan Opera House, a handsewn quilt, and a variety of photographs and prints, including a print of the Aurora Free Library.
The Aurora Free Library, at the intersection of Cherry Avenue and Route 90, was built in 1899 and also served as a town hall housing a jail cell in the basement. The meeting hall with a stage on the upper floor eventually became the Morgan Opera House, now an intimately sized theater where many diverse programs are held.
Staff writer Kathleen Barran can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 238 or kathleen.barran@lee.net
Brady first brought the idea for a dinner to the historic preservation committee seven years ago.
“I stole the idea from Denver Public Library,” Brady, a former Denver resident, said. “I thought, what a wonderful venue to have a ball after having a look at the Aurora Inn.”
Brady said that while this event was wonderful, the bulk of preservation funds comes from the committee's grant writing team efforts, including Marnie Fessenden and Janet Heslop.
Tehan said the event typically drew between 80 and 100 people and the committee hoped to raise between $6,000 and $7,000. Tickets for the optional black tie affair cost $75.
Money raised from the event will be used for the next bit of restoration on the Morgan Opera House, Miller said, which will probably be its lighting.
Bubbly from wineries Long Point, King Ferry and Sheldrake Point was poured by waitress Melissa Marl of Auburn, who popped the corks at the 6 p.m. cocktail hour. Bedlam Gardens in King Ferry, owned by Debi Lampman, donated floral centerpieces.
Merchandise worth more than $7,000 was displayed for the silent auction, Tehan said, and the band was also playing for a nominal fee. Brady picked them for their quality performance and willingness over the years to play for a reasonable return.
A large white tent on the lawn overlooking Cayuga Lake sheltered dinner guests from the setting sun at 7 p.m. while they savored their candle lit dinner of Caesar salad, vegetable pasta, lemon herb chicken, beans and greens, pork roast, sauteed green beens, and apple tart, presented by the inn's executive chef Greg Rhoad.
By 8 p.m. the Ithaca Ageless Jazz Band had set up on the patio, where dancing began. The silent auction, continuing in the Inn's lakeside banquet room until the event ended at 11 p.m., included a dozen signed books. Elie Wiesel's “A Mad Desire to Dance,” “Team of Rivals,” by Doris Kearns Goodwin, and Barbara Walters' memoir, “Audition” were just a few. Other items included a handmade purple martin birdhouse, a leather sole from Aurora Shoe Company, redeemable for a pair of shoes, a blue fox boa from Skaneateles Furs, season tickets to Morgan Opera House, a handsewn quilt, and a variety of photographs and prints, including a print of the Aurora Free Library.
The Aurora Free Library, at the intersection of Cherry Avenue and Route 90, was built in 1899 and also served as a town hall housing a jail cell in the basement. The meeting hall with a stage on the upper floor eventually became the Morgan Opera House, now an intimately sized theater where many diverse programs are held.
Staff writer Kathleen Barran can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 238 or kathleen.barran@lee.net
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