Some families who attend Cornerstone Christian School (CCS) can have trouble paying the annual tuition, so to address that situation, the school holds an annual fundraiser to top up that fund.
The “Celebrate Cornerstone” dinner and dessert auction occurs Wednesday, Feb. 14 at 6 p.m. Charlotte’s Catering will prepare a roast beef dinner with all the trimmings, while the CCS community will bake various desserts that will be auctioned off to the highest bidder.
Tickets are $30 per person or $200 for a table of eight.
To reserve a seat, call 306-693-2937 or email events@ccsmj.ca. The deadline to reserve a seat is Monday, Feb. 12.
This event supports the school’s Student Aid Fund, which is used to help families who attend Cornerstone and who may have difficulties paying the tuition, explained Karlene Benallick, CCS development co-ordinator.
“Because we don’t want families not to come to Cornerstone because they can’t afford it … it’s something where we go and try to do as much as we can to help families attend our school,” she said.
Families must apply for student aid, and once the school receives the applications, it has a third party rate the requests to determine who meets the criteria, she continued. That group then provides the school with a financial figure it believes the families require, while school officials meet with the families to discuss the amount and — if everyone agrees — distribute the money.
Since the Student Aid Fund’s annual budget is $80,000, the school hopes the dinner and dessert fundraiser can generate $20,000 — although more would be great, said Benallick. That is a reachable amount since the event usually raises between $15,000 and $20,000 annually.
Donors are the main source of funding, while the school holds other fundraisers to support that account, such as partnering with Fellinger’s Meats and holding an apple fundraiser in September.
“We love doing (the dinner/dessert event) every year because it’s really fun, like, just take away all of the actual need and necessity from it,” Benallick said.
Principal Lee Behrns — who will auction off the desserts — is usually entertaining and a "very gifted with the microphone (who) does an amazing job with getting everyone involved,” she continued. Furthermore, many staff members also contribute and make it a fun event.
Many “incredible cakes” will be part of the auction and will generate “amazing amounts of money” for the fund. Benallick noted that people will receive a tax receipt for the cakes they purchase. For example, a dessert may be worth $20, but if someone purchases it for $200, he or she will receive a $180 receipt.
Other items people can win include a handmade wood charcuterie board, a date-night basket and a family photography package.
The school’s choir under teacher Josh Carley usually performs during the fundraiser, but because of the rotating teachers’ strikes recently, the group hasn’t had much time to practise, said Benallick. However, she hopes the group can entertain since Carley has planned many fun Valentine’s-related songs.
This event is not just for CCS families, but for the wider community as well, since the school wants to show residents what it does and why it does it, the development co-ordinator added. In fact, many area residents attend the fundraiser annually because they enjoy the event.
