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Last weekend, the Cleveland Cavaliers hosted their inaugural Wine and Gold Gala the night of Saturday, October 1 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. The new fundraising event was a massive success, raising nearly $700,000 thanks to the generosity of the over 500 guests in attendance. Every dollar raised will go straight back into the Northeast Ohio community through annual grants given to grantees of the Cavaliers Community Foundation.
The event itself is the spiritual successor to the organization's Big Shots and Little Stars fundraiser event. Cavaliers players and other Cleveland-area “Big Shots” are paired with the “Little Stars” of the night – pediatric cancer survivors – to walk the runway. The fundraiser itself helped raise money for pediatric cancer research. To be able to pay it forward even more so now through the Wine and Gold Gala only further impacts the Cavaliers' impact in the greater-Cleveland community.
Guests arrived at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, clad in feathers, pearls and gold galore, and were transported to Cavalier City, a 1920s Atlantic City-style boardwalk. The night kicked off with a stage show, hosted by Cavaliers in-arena hosts Ahmaad Crump and Nicole Marcellino. Cavs CEO Nic Barlage, President of Basketball Operations Koby Altman and Head Coach J.B. Bickerstaff welcomed guests and spoke about the organization’s commitment to the community.
The inaugural Wine and Gold gala was themed after Atlantic City with casino and carnival games available to attendees to participate in. Photo credit: Cleveland Cavaliers |
After hearing from Altman and Bickerstaff, it was then time for Cavaliers players, Community Champions (representatives of the Cavaliers Community Foundation grantees) and Big Shots (individuals with an important presence in the Northeastern Ohio community) to share their stories about how the funds raised from the Gala will positively impact the Northeast Ohio community.
After the stage show and a live auction, Cavalier City roared to life, opening the gaming portion of the night, with attendees having the opportunity to play imitation casino and carnival games alongside the players and coaches of this year's iteration of the Cavaliers. Guests enjoyed games, food, drinks, live music and dancing until the festivities ended later in the evening.
This year’s inaugural Wine and Gold Gala marked the introduction of the Cavaliers' newest large-scale annual fundraising event in support of the Cavaliers Community Foundation. Barlage has expressed numerous times to Right Down Euclid that the organization wants to act as both a community asset and a conduit for change within the community as well.
After such a successful event, the hope for next year's Wine and Gold Gala is already sky-high. The Cavaliers, along with over 550 of their corporate, community and civic partners in attendance, were able to make a huge difference for prominent non-profits that directly support the development and well-being of youth in Northeast Ohio. Since its inception in 1993 more than $24,000,000 has been granted through the Cavaliers Community Foundation. With the Wine and Gold Gala now a prominent part of that, the number will increase at a rapid rate.
Featured image credit: Cleveland Cavaliers
Evan Dammarell is a sports journalist covering all things Cleveland right off the shores of Lake Erie. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram. You can also email him at evan@downeuclid.com. He can also be found three to five times a week on Locked On Cavs, a part of the Locked On Podcast Network.
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