Mary's Place 2020 SHINE Gala Goes Virtual with an Interactive, Live- Streamed Singing Competition and Live and Silent Auctions

The event goal is to raise $1.5 million in one exciting night to benefit the Mary's Place Popsicle Place program for families with critically ill children who are experiencing homelessness

Seattle (October 16, 2020) – Mary's Place 2nd annual SHINE Gala goes virtual this year and it promises to be even more engaging and interactive. Local singers and music artists will perform and compete for a winning title. Silent and live auctions will offer exclusive, one-of-a-kind items. This family-friendly, interactive show will be live- streamed at marysplaceseattle.org on Friday, October 23 from 6:30 to 8:30 pm. Registration is free at marysplaceshinegala.org. Guests are invited to drop in early, a 6:00 pm virtual preshow will feature a social media photo booth, a virtual wine tasting with Tinte Cellars, an auction preview, and a behind-the-scenes tour of the Microsoft Studios, all from the comfort of your living room!

During this pandemic, when many are staying home to stay healthy, it’s more important than ever to ensure that families have safe, stable housing. Mary's Place is the leading provider of emergency shelter and services for women, families and children experiencing homelessness in Washington State. In 2019, Mary's Place helped over 750 families find their way back to a home of their own. The 2020 SHINE Gala raises critical funds for Mary's Place Popsicle Place program, which provides safety, medical services, and hope for families with medically fragile children.

During this year’s show, guests can support Mary's Place by donating-to-vote and pick the next SHINE singing champion. Contestants include cleantech entrepreneur and choral enthusiast, Alexander Oki; northwest recording artist, Amber Sweeney; software industry executive and guitarist Christopher Weare, and singer/songwriter Kellie Rose (KR). Music industry judges include: Margaret Cho, stand-up comedian, actress and singer-songwriter; Lev Mergian, Supervising Producer at America's Got Talent; and Ian Saunders Creative Director at Gates Ventures.

The 2020 SHINE Gala chair is Microsoft Corporate Vice President of Global Events, Studios and Marketing Community, Bob Bejan. The event is being produced by our Creative and Technical Partner, Microsoft, at the Microsoft Studios. The event will be co-hosted by the high-energy team of Matt Lorch, news anchor and auctioneer, and Tiernan Madorno, New Hire Culture & Engagement at Microsoft.

The auction catalogue is now available for early bidding and includes items like private dinners, local getaways, rare wines, behind-the-scenes tours, and an option to compete in next year's singing competition.

To round out the Gala experience, a special event prix-fix meal is available for order through October 18 from four favorite local restaurants: How to Cook a Wolf, Marjorie, El Gaucho Bellevue, and Din Tai Fung. The first 250 guests who ordered a dinner received a gift bag that included two bottles of wine from Tinte Cellars, a bottle of Tito's Handmade Vodka and Topo Chico for signature cocktail, a Theo Chocolate bar, a Mary's Place face covering, Starbucks gift card, and other fun items.

Each year at the SHINE Gala we honor a community leader who exemplifies visionary leadership that inspires the community to ensure that no one's child sleeps outside. This year's honoree is the Windermere Foundation. For more than 30 years, the Windermere Foundation has donated a portion of the proceeds from every home purchased or sold with a Windermere agent towards supporting low-income and families experiencing homelessness in our communities. For ten years, Windermere and their passionate and committed agents and employees have organized cleaning days and school supply drives. Mary's Place has been the beneficiary of Windermere's #TackleHomelessness partnership with the Seattle Seahawks, donating $100 to Mary's Place for every hometown defensive tackle. To date, they've raised more than $120,000 to help ensure that no child sleeps outside in our community.

Additional event sponsors include: Believer Level sponsors Amazon, Starbucks, and Zillow; Tinte Cellars, Exclusive Wine Sponsor; Advocate Level sponsor Boeing; Alaska Airlines, Official Airline Sponsor; Partner Level sponsors HNN Communities, Holland America Line, and Trifilm, Inc.; Tito’s Handmade Vodka, Official Cocktail Partner; Supporter Level sponsors Biella Foundation, Columbia Bank, Coughlin Porter Lundeen, GLY Construction, Graphite Design Group, Menasha Packaging, Seneca Group, and Vertical Bridge.

About Mary’s Place Mary’s Place believes that no one’s child should sleep outside. They provide safe and inclusive shelter and resources for women, children and families on their journey out of homelessness. Mary’s Place operates five crisis response family shelters providing refuge and community each night for 500 family members experiencing homelessness. The organization focuses on an innovative strategy of combining emergency shelter and resources for transition into housing to bring families out of homelessness. To learn more, visit www.marysplaceseattle.org.

Contact: Linda Mitchell, Mary's Place Chief Communications Officer, 206-334-4687 [email protected]