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Empower Gala 2024 - Recap

Thank you to everyone who was able to join us for our 2024 Empower Gala at the beautiful Saint Kate Arts Hotel! We also extend a huge thank you to all of our generous sponsors who helped make this event happen. Here are some of our favorite highlights and professional photos by Red Petal Studio:

  • We contributed to "Fund-A-Need," getting us closer to acquiring and outfitting an outreach van to help more people in the community.
  • We bid on some amazing and unique auction items to help fund our mission.
  • We experienced the moving skill and beauty of Momenta Dance Company.
  • We enjoyed delicious food and drink from the Saint Kate catering service. 
  • We took in the art and design from local and national artists throughout the arts hotel. 
  • We took a break upstairs and experienced the assistive technologies demonstrations.
  • We mixed and mingled with community-minded people. 
  • We created our own mixed-media art with the Saint Kate artist-in-residence Megan Woodard Johnson.
  • We viewed adaptive fashion from the Independence First collaboration with MIAD.
  • We danced to live music from Mike Cudahy and Brian Quinn.
  • We tried our luck at the wine pull and took home a bottle or two.

Empower Gala 2024 at Saint Kate Arts Hotel

Accessible clothing design display in collaboration with MIAD studentsPhoto of individual servings of cheesecake on plates lined up on a tableTwo staff members smile while posing at a table hosting a wine pullWispact display featuring art made by people with disabilitiesAn attendee experiences an assistive technology demonstrationAn attendee experiences an assistive technology demonstrationAssistive technology displayPhoto of a framed art piece which wraps around the corner of a wallPhoto of a wall of art at Saint Kate Arts Hotel. 15 small square works of art evenly stacked in a grid.Photo of a pop-up bar and bartender serving a group of guests at the galaPhoto of a lifelike bust of a man sitting on a table at Saint Kate Arts HotelTwo men performing live music seated on stools playing acoustic guitarsPhoto of two smiling gala attendees. One standing, the other seated in a wheelchairPhoto of silent auction items displayed on a table in a gallery at Saint Kate Arts Hotel with gala attendees in the backgroundPhoto of gala attendees mingling at Saint Kate Arts HotelImage of silent auction items displayed on a table and framed art on an easelPhoto of a silent auction item, a basketful of wine and wine-related gifts. Gala attendees in the backgroundPhoto of the buffet table with pots food on top of burners. A person in the background is serving themselves a plateGala attendees viewing art and chatting at Saint Kate Arts HotelTwo staff members work the registration tableA gala attendee checks in at the registration tablePhoto of the Saint Kate Arts Hotel rotunda with registration table in the backgroundThree gala attendees chat in front of a painting at Saint Kate Arts HotelGala attendees view a table of silent auction itemsClose up photo of silent auction itemsClose up photo of silent auction itemsClose up photo of silent auction itemsTwo gala attendees for the camera while holding a plate of dessertGala attendees participate in art making with the Saint Kate artist-in-residenceGala attendees participate in art making with the Saint Kate artist-in-residenceSmall display of assistive technology inviting gala guests to view the demonstration room on the second floorA gala attendee participate in art making with the Saint Kate artist-in-residenceA gala attendee participates in art making with the Saint Kate artist-in-residence with a glass of red winePhoto of a live auction item. A bar cart filled with bottles of alcohol, glassware, and a bronze Fonz bobbleheadGala attendees mingle and nosh at Saint Kate Arts HotelTwo gala attendees smile for the camera. The person on the left is wearing a red dress, sitting in a wheelchair, and using bionic armsGala attendees mix and mingle at Saint Kate Arts HotelPhoto of a large, colorful painting at Saint Kate Arts HotelGala attendees view silent auction items and art at Saint Kate Arts HotelColorful salad on the gala buffetGala attendees enjoy food, drinks, and conversationThree seated gala attendees smile for the cameraSign language interpreter translating lyrics to the soundtrack for Momenta Dance CompanyGala attendees find their seats for the programRoom full of gala attendees sitting down, getting ready for the gala program and live auctionSeated gala attendees drink wine and bid on online silent auction items with their phonesIndependence First CEO address the crowd of gala attendees in the theaterDancers with Momenta dance company perform with a video feed projected on a screen in the backgroundDancers with Momenta dance company perform with a video feed projected on a screen in the background. One dancer is using a wheelchair cradling the head of another dancerDancers with Momenta dance company perform with a video feed projected on a screen in the background with an ASL interpreter standing next to the screenThree dancers from Momenta in a dramatic pose balanced on a wheelchair, with a video feed projected on a screen in the backgroundRoom full of gala attendees laugh with live auctioneerRoom full of gala attendees listen to a live auctioneerAuctioneer walks through a crowd of gala attendeesAuctioneer reads from a script in front of a screen projecting a live auction itemA large painting and artist in a theater with live auctioneer in front of a crowd of gala attendeesDancers from Momenta Dance Company pose for a photo in the lobby of the Saint Kate Arts HotelArt print of a man seated in a wheelchair with the words, I just want people to see me for me and nothing else

We hope to see you again next time!

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Thanks again to our generous sponsors:

Logos from sponsors of the Empower Gala 2024 event