Celebrity Waiter Night offers boost to families in need

Apr. 30—Peggy Ford, executive director of Children's Place, expects to log a little extra mileage on the evening of May 16, with her organization holding its biggest annual fundraiser, spread over territory in Aiken and North Augusta alike.

Celebrity Waiter Night's locales this year include The Willcox, Whiskey Alley, Village Cafe, Tailgate Tavern, Sno-Cap (North Augusta's representative), Neon Fig, Malia's, Fuse and Casa Bella, all with a corps of greeters and waiters drawn from around Aiken County, representing such fields as law, medicine, government and media. Ford, in keeping with tradition, plans to make the rounds, visiting several establishments during the course of the evening.

Among other establishments on board, with different arrangements in terms of participation, are Newberry Hall, Grumpy's Sports Pub, Blue Collard and Alley Taproom. This year's offerings also include the sale of raffle tickets for a $3,800 pair of diamond earrings donated by Floyd and Green Jewelers.

"I believe in Peggy Ford and I love her mission and the good work that she continues to do at Children's Place," said Gail Diggs, largely known for her work as an Aiken City Council member, and now on track to be a greeter at Malia's, working alongside Keyatta Priester, community development manager of Aiken Electric Cooperative.

"Peggy is passionate about the care that those kids receive from Children's Place, and I think she treats all those kids like they were her own, and I cannot wait for her to be in her new digs," Diggs added, acknowledging plans for the organization's future base of operations, to be at 137 Prosperity Lane, at the intersection with Beaufort Street. Groundbreaking for the future site is set for July 15, and demolition of the warehouse at that location began April 20.

The current building is at 310 Barnwell Avenue NE and has been in service for more than 50 years, Ford said, acknowledging her eagerness to move into a new facility. "First of all, we're going from a little less than 5,000 square feet to 16,700 square feet. It's going to be wonderful," she said.

"We're going to have room for ... smaller children than we have now, and we'll have room for bigger children. We'll have six classrooms. We'll have dedicated rooms for therapy. We'll have closets," she added, with a laugh.

"It's going to be really exciting to have all of that space. It's going to really help us be able to do our services so much better, serving our children and families."

Ford noted that she got a shot in the arm from Celebrity Waiter Night's corporate chairman, Rhonda Overbey, the Aiken Standard's publisher. "One of the things that Rhonda challenged us was to make sure we could have scholarships for children," Ford said, "so as a result of this year's Celebrity Waiter Night, not only will we will in all the therapy gaps for kids ... but we'll offer some scholarships for children ... who don't have the proper health insurance."

Overbey offered some thoughts on the fundraiser. "If you need a compelling reason to dine at one of your favorite Aiken restaurants, here it is! You'll see some familiar names and faces dishing it out ... to support essential services provided by Children's Place. Children's Place depends on this signature event to help improve the lives of kids and families in our community," she wrote.

She added, "Our goal is to bring more attention to this outstanding event as well as the generosity of corporate sponsors and participating restaurants. Ultimately, it's about supporting Children's Place and bringing hope and healthcare to Aiken's children and families in need."

The organization, as stated on its website, has its roots in a variety of organizations founded in the 1950s and '60s to help low-income working parents and their families.

Overbey noted that half of this year's $120,000 goal is to come from tips from Celebrity Waiter Night. She wrote, "The funds will be used to support more than 100 local kids and families this year so we're counting on diners to fill up the tip jars!"

Such names as Ronnie Maxwell, Melissa Oremus, Lynn Sullivan, Kevin Molony, Cody Anderson, Mike Hosang and Sara Wood are on the roster of waiters on board for this month's event.

Among the top-tier sponsors are Floyd and Green Jewelers, Savannah River Nuclear Solutions, Savannah River Mission Completion, Maxwell Law Firm and IntelliSystems. Also on board are several individuals and dozens of organizations such as Butler Automotive, Hixon's Roofing, Palm Beach Tan, Tucker Orthodontics and Max Fitness.

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