Hello, friends! Special treat for you! I asked my friend, Michelle Wildman, to be my guest blogger today. Michelle has worked behind the scenes for the Mt Hebron Viking Fest for months, and I knew she’d have a wonderful perspective. I hope you enjoy…..
Mt. Hebron High School was turning 50 and Lisa Scarbath had an idea!
As President of the Viking Backers Booster Club, Lisa wanted to create a special event to thank the Mt. Hebron community, while simultaneously generating funds for the many sports, groups, and clubs that the Viking Backers support within the school.
And voila – Viking Fest was born!
Enlisting the help of three of her “Event Planning” friends who happened to have children enrolled at MTH, Lisa met with Lee Draminski, Paula Shane, and Michelle Wildman to brainstorm about the exciting party details.
Lisa knew that Misspent Youth, Maryland’s top party rock band, would be a huge draw for the community, and Michelle knew that Outback Steakhouse would provide a delicious dinner, so they were quickly brought on board. St. John’s Parish Day School provided our exceptionally beautiful venue.
The ladies implemented a Holiday Viking Fest party to ask (beg/plead/bribe!) other MTH parents to join their committee, and to “adopt” many basket themes that would help to promote the Silent Auction.
Planning a fundraising event for 400 people is not unlike planning a wedding…but it’s a wedding where everything gets donated, and the bride and groom offer gifts to their guests instead of the other way around! Luckily, the team was up for the challenge.
They met with Mt. Hebron High School’s Principal Scott Ruehl, who couldn’t have been more supportive. MTH alum Bob Lucido of The Bob Lucido Team graciously agreed to be Viking Fest’s Presenting Sponsor. Lisa Mazzuca, Rodan+Fields Independent Consultant and Adam Stull of State Farm Ins. were also very generous in their Sponsorships!
MTH parent Donna Detweiler, owner of Pro-Outsource, donated her time to create our promotional materials, which were printed by Sponsor Vince Sharps and his fabulous team at Sir Speedy BWI. And we were ALL overjoyed when the amazingly talented, creative, and personable Pam Long, of Pam Long Photography agreed to photograph this event! Andy Guerin, whose parents own Schuler School of Fine Arts, whipped up our Viking Fest mural with lightning speed was very generous with his time and talent! Many other Sponsors and Donors offered discounts and fabulous auction items, and we were overwhelmingly grateful – I wish I had room here to name each and every one of them.
Of course, the event was not without its challenges (SNOW? Really?). Trying to schedule meetings when the majority of the committee was available was like herding cats in a tornado. Full-time jobs, trips, kids’ sporting events and family emergencies added a touch of…excitement?!…to our implementation.
The most fascinating challenge revolved around the day (Friday) and the venue, both thoughtfully chosen. How could we get 350 children OUT of the school and 400+ adults INTO the school in a mere 3 hours? Not to mention the tables, centerpieces, auction items, decorations, Shutterbooth, and bars that needed to be set up?!
This is where we have to offer a HUGE shout-out to St. John’s Parish Day School.
As luck would have it, Michelle has a daughter enrolled in that school as well, and had worked on their Galas for the last 8 years, so she knew a few shortcuts. But nothing could have been achieved as easily without the flexibility and cooperation of Head of School Tiffany Nichols and the rest of the marvelous staff at SJPDS.
As one of our treasured Sponsors, they relocated dismissal and classes, loaned us items, and were an absolute pleasure to work with. They even allowed us access to the building early, so we could unload and start blowing up 1200 balloons!
Yes, I said one thousand, two hundred balloons, the majority of which were blown up using air as opposed to helium. (Luckily we were able to borrow air pumps so we could save our own “hot air” for the event!) 😀 The marvelous Jill Alli, also a MTH parent, spearheaded this effort and created beautiful towers and sculptures to add panache and color to the venue. Our children of all ages were enlisted to help, along with Hebron’s National Honor Society volunteers and numerous spouses and parents.
The excitement and energy during Viking Fest was palpable, and the guests enjoyed catching up with old friends, making new ones, and celebrating our 50th Anniversary!
One of the most popular offerings was our signature “Viketini” Martini, created by the Four Seasons’ own Aaron Joseph. His passion for mixology has earned him numerous awards, as well as a spot on WBAL-TV this morning! (It may have also contributed to the lowered inhibitions of guests who donned Viking Helmets and balloon sculptures as headgear by night’s end.) 🙂
County Executive Allan Kittleman was our VIP guest, who arrived with a proclamation for the school, and stayed long enough to help us put away tables and chairs at the end. Howard County is blessed to have such a resourceful and helpful man in office.
The event ended at 10pm, when Viking Fest-ers were prompted to continue the party at The Cellar at Chef Paolino Cafe, where Lisa Passalacqua and her accommodating staff pampered and spoiled us, then donated a portion of their sales back to the school!
Viking Fest would not have been nearly as successful without the wonderful community of friends, volunteers, and supporters that surround Mt. Hebron High School. We may have asked a lot of you, but because of YOUR generosity we are able to give more than $25,000 back to the school and its children. And that’s quite an Anniversary gift.
Cheers to kicking off the next 50 years with a bang!
Thank you, Michelle, for writing the wonderful blogpost. You and the entire committee were so focused, resourceful, energetic and very well organized to pull off such a successful event for Mt Hebron High School. Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us as you wrote this post. To the committee members, all of the volunteers, the sponsors, the businesses that donated service and products for your auction, St John’s Parish Day School, Shutterbooth, Outback Steakhouse, THANK YOU! Truly a community effort that resulted in a fun evening and a phenomenal fundraiser! Personally, for me, it was fantastic watching everyone have a great time together, definitely fun to document this outstanding event. I was elated to see parents of some of my high school seniors that I’ve photographed in the past, it was like seeing family again! It was also a pleasure to meet many other Mt Hebron alumni! I hope I have the chance to see you all again! 🙂
I hope you enjoy the images!
Outback Steakhouse provided an incredibly delicious meal.
Shutterbooth added to the fun with their state of the art Photo Booth!
Many awesome volunteers helped make the Viking Fest a success.
55 local businesses came together and offered prizes for Silent Auction winners! A HUGE thank you to each one of them!
These guys were great sports, watching UofMD play their first game of March Madness on an iPhone!
How convenient that Mt Hebron’s school colors are the same as the Pittsburgh Steelers! Coincidence, Michelle? 😉
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Visitors – thank you for taking the time to read and view this blogpost about this awaesome high school senior. If you are ever in need of photography services, I’d love the chance to talk with you. Here’s a little more info about us….. Whether you choose to be photographed in our studio, on location or along the quaint streets of our own beautiful historic town, you will truly enjoy your experience with
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