Have Dinner With a Steelers Great or Vacation at a Private Greek Villa and Support Needy Families - Beaver County Salvation Army Spring Gala Slated

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May 03, 2010, 03:24 ET

CARNEGIE, Pa., May 3 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- If your dream is to have a private dinner with Steelers legend Andy Russell or to lounge on a warm Grecian beach, those dreams are at your reach at the Beaver County Twelfth Annual Spring Gala. Slated for Saturday, May 15th at The Club at Shadow Lakes, The Salvation Army's Aliquippa, Beaver Falls and Rochester Worship and Service Centers are the beneficiaries of the festive formal affair.

For a price of $100 per person, attendees will experience an elegant evening of formal dining, dancing to the music of Rudy Zeta & Fourth and Main, and an opportunity to bid on a wide array of products, outing packages and signed sports memorabilia. Hostetter Auctioneers is donating its professional services.

Nearly 20,000 residents of Beaver County live below the poverty level. Thousands more are faced with the daily decision of either paying bills or putting food on the table. Now, with area business closings, layoffs and an economic downturn, the need is rising while funding streams are evaporating. "In 2009, our social services statistics shot up by nearly 55, 000," said Major Richard Lyle, The Salvation Army's Beaver County Coordinator. "This event is critical to funding the more than 360,000 instances of services that we provide to our area families."

WTAE-TV Channel 4's Sally Wiggin is serving as the evening's emcee. Local business leader and longtime Salvation Army supporter Louis Pappan is the event's honorary chair. Rudy LaGotta, one of the founding members of the charitable entertainment troupe, Five Fun Ghouls, will be honored posthumously. For more than three decades, Rudy and his four fellow ghouls have been providing Beaver County with love and laughter and more than $300,000 to support The Beaver County Times Give-A-Christmas campaign. Rudy's wife, Lil, will accept the "Doing the Most Good Award" on Rudy's behalf.

Event sponsorships and the donation of auction items are still being sought. Special packages that include program advertising and complementary tickets range from $500 to $3,000. Individual ads without tickets may be placed at a cost of $250. To RSVP or for more information, call 724-846-2330.

Both a church and a social service organization, The Salvation Army began in London, England in 1865. Today, it provides critical services in 120 countries worldwide. The 28-county Western Pennsylvania Division serves thousands of needy families through a wide variety of support services. To learn more about The Salvation Army in Western Pennsylvania, log onto www.salvationarmy-wpa.org. The Salvation Army... Doing the most good... for the most people... in the most need.

SOURCE The Salvation Army