MEDIA RELEASE 

OCTOBER 16, 2009 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 

Tickets Now on Sale to Unwrap the Magic at the 2009 Festival of Trees Gala  

WENATCHEE, WA— Tickets are now on sale for the event to kick off the holiday 

season in Wenatchee—the 2009 Festival of Trees Gala, a black tie-optional benefit for 

the Performing Arts Center of Wenatchee (PAC), presented by Wenatchee Valley 

Medical Center.  Advance reservations are required for the November 21 

auction/dinner, and seating is limited, so purchase your tickets today: Performing Arts 

Center Box Office, 509-663-ARTS(2787) or on the web at www.pacwen.org.  

This year’s Gala auction dinner, held at the Red Lion Hotel in Downtown Wenatchee, is 

set to be a “bold and refreshing experience of exhilarating colors and visual sensations” 

says volunteer Design Director, Amy Aguigui.   VIP arrival begins at 5:30pm, and all 

guests will be treated to white glove service as they enjoy a specially prepared menu by 

Chef Lee Hirst.  Menu highlights include Filet of Beef and Lobster stuffed Prawns.  An 

elegant chocolate shell dessert, filled with a light holiday mousse completes the dining 

extravaganza.  Fine Northwest wines will be featured from Icicle Ridge Winery, Ryan 

Patrick Vineyards and Tsillan Cellars Winery.  “And,” Aguigui adds, “every guest will 

leave the evening's event with a special thank you gift, gorgeously wrapped, as an 

intimate way of saying thank you to all those supporting the cause.”  

Emcee and host for the evening will be Dr. Rich McBride, Superintendent of the North 

Central Educational Service District.  McBride has served on numerous education- 

related and community boards supporting both education and the humanities, and he is 

a recipient of the National School Administrator of the Year and a Past President of the 

Washington State Association of School Administrators.  “His participation is not only an 

honor for us, but highly appropriate in light of the PAC’s new emphasis on educational 

outreach,” says Performing Arts Center of Wenatchee Executive Director, Sara Cornell.  

Stokes Auction Group, of Western Washington, will again provide the auctioning 

services as 15 four to ten-foot Christmas trees, many valued at thousands of dollars, will 

make their way to the highest bidders.  Among many other desirable live auction items 

is a Monte Carlo Murder Mystery Four-Course Dinner, hosted on the PAC Ssage, 

catered by Visconti’s, and presented by D.A. Davidson.  Particularly tantalizing is a 

traditional, white gold-lined one carat, total weight, diamond pendent by Clark’s Jewelry.   

Miss Washington,  Devanni Partridge, will have the honor of modeling this and many 

other fine items as well as addressing the attendees and sharing photo opportunities 

during the evening.  

For those who have never experienced the event before, Festival Administrator, 

Jennifer Bushong, of JB Marketing, absolutely encourages attendance, describing the 

November 21st evening as “one of fast-pasted excitement and philanthropy in a 

glamorous, celebrity-caliber setting.”  Thanks to some of the event’s many sponsors:  

Cashmere Valley Bank, Fred Meyer, Numerica Credit Union, Macy’s, Weinstein 

Beverage—Pepsi, Central Washington Title Services, Yahoo!, and many, many more! 

NOTE TO MEDIA:  PLEASE DIRECT QUESTIONS TO SARA CORNELL, EXECUTIVE 

DIRECTOR, PERFORMING ARTS CENTER OF WENATCHEE, M-F, NOON-5:30PM:  

509-665-9096, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it    

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