Attendance was very low for our fundraiser. Even people who purchased tickets did not attend the event. With so much delicious food, many silent auction items, and of course the main purpose of a fund raiser being to raise funds, I was a little worried at the beginning of the evening that the event was going to be a failure.

I am sad to say that I even doubted the success of the event. I should know by now that when doing God’s work, He is running the show and that I need to have more faith in what He has called us to do!

A quote that came to mind after reflecting on last night’s event is…”it’s not the quantity, but the quality that matters.” A synonym for quality is excellence and everyone from the MC to the live entertainment, the speakers to all of those in attendance were excellent. I have no doubt that God put all of those pieces, I mean people, together last night for His purpose. Northern Star raised more money last night through donations and the silent auction than last year’s Garden Party with only 1/3 of the number of attendees.

Back to where I thought the event would be a failure…what was I thinking?! The testimonies that were shared were meant for the attendees who were there. The artists’ paintings were exactly what more than one attendee wanted…which made the auctions exactly what they should be. There was so much extra food you would think would be a problem, nope, just turned bags of meat into auction items and some happy bidders got to take a delicious meal home.  

Thank you to all of those who helped support this event even if you were not there in person. Every prayer, dollar, donation, and minute of time spent played a part in making our 2^nd Annual Garden Party a success! It was humbling to be reminded that we need to have faith in what we have been called to do and that God will do the rest!