On Thursday 25th June, One YMCA held its annual Gala Night at the newly refurbished Watford Colosseum. This year’s Gala was particularly remarkable as the charity celebrates its 140th Anniversary in the town where it was originally formed as Watford & District YMCA.
The charity was delighted to welcome the Lord Lieutenant of Hertfordshire, Robert Voss, and Watford’s Mayor, Peter Taylor, who spoke on stage about the amazing work the charity does across local communities. Guests included local dignitaries, corporate partners and other valued supporters of One YMCA.
One YMCA was proud to highlight the incredible work it does to support local families, vulnerable individuals, and particularly young people; including those experiencing homelessness, domestic abuse and sexual violence, and mental health challenges. The charity was also thrilled and grateful that Efa Foncette, a talented young singer, and part of the Airplay and One YMCA family for the past year and a half, performed three songs alongside violinist Oliver Mills.
An incredible £17,480.60 was raised through event ticket sales, sponsorship and a raffle and auction. Although One YMCA didn’t quite reach its £20,000 fundraising target, the event provided the perfect opportunity to showcase its services supporting people to belong, contribute and thrive. Anyone wanting to help the charity reach its target by making a donation can still do so at oneymca.org and adding ‘Gala’ to the donation message.
One YMCA would like to thank everyone that helped to make the event such a success and extend appreciation to its corporate partners and the event professionals that brought the evening to life:
- Harlequin Watford and EMW Law for sponsoring the event
- Pearldrop Video Production for being our media sponsor
- Debbie Chadwick, Station Director at Heart Radio Hertfordshire for hosting the evening
- Leonardo Hotel Watford for providing water for the tables and a discounted stay for guests
- ABN Contract Cleaners Ltd for sponsoring the welcome drinks
- Miles Eagling, the Bowler Hatted Magician for enchanting our guests
- Anna’s Kitchen for providing the delicious food
- Autoscript for ensuring everything ran smoothly behind the scenes