Dinner in White: A True Community Affair

Dinner in White on the Columbia Announces New Non-Profit Partnership and Event Location

Dinner in White on the Columbia today announced it will partner with local non-profit, Camas-Washougal Community Chest, to host the 8th Annual Dinner in White on the Columbia, Saturday, Sept. 19, 2020.  Community Chest will receive 100-percent of event proceeds to help with their efforts to coordinate grants for local non-profits that provide service in one or more of the following areas: education, youth activities, aid to people with special needs, natural resource conservation, health and welfare programs, and crisis and emergency services.

Dinner in White committee chairwoman, Terri London, approached Community Chest because of their proven track record for helping locals in need. "It was time to partner with a non-profit that covers a wide area of need and shares our desire to raise money for causes that will enhance the lives of those in the Camas and Washougal communities," she said. Community Chest awarded $397,000 in grants to 34 local non-profits in the last five years. In 2019, the all-volunteer board awarded 29 grants for a total of $108,500, providing over 18,000 individual services for residents of Camas and Washougal. Board president, Joelle Scheldorf, says their organization received more requests for funding than they were able to fill last year and anticipates their new partnership with Dinner in White will help the organization reach its goal of providing $100,000 of grants in 2020.

"We are very excited to be partnering with Dinner in White on the Columbia in 2020. Many worthy non-profits apply for Community Chest grants each year, and it is difficult to turn some of them down. The proceeds from this event will expand our ability to help these organizations and support the valuable work they do in our community."

The event venue will also change in 2020 and is moving from Marina Park to The Black Pearl on the Columbia, located at 56 S 1st Street, Washougal. London said the reason for the move is simply weather-related. In 2018, 450 guests attended Dinner in White on the Columbia to raise more than $43,000 for the Library Building Fund, but the 2019 event was rained out and the group didn't meet their financial goals.

 "At this year’s event, we will have beautiful floor-to-ceiling views of the Columbia River and Mount Hood, without the risk of being rained out," says London. "We're confident that our guests will have a comfortable and wonderful experience, and be able to focus on creativity and celebrating our uniqueness with new and old friends while raising much-needed money for the community."

"We have been twice, for when it benefited the Washougal library. It was a lot of fun. It is great to see fellow members of the community come out to have some fun and most importantly to support a worthy cause and do good work to support our community."  David Scott, board member Community Chest.

Dinner in White's four-year partnership with the Fort Vancouver Regional Library Foundation ended in 2019 after the volunteer community group raised more than $102,000 for the Washougal Library Building Fund. London says, "It felt really good to hand the check to the Foundation, and know that our effort and the efforts of our valued business sponsors and guests will help bring a much needed new library to Washougal."

"This truly has become a large community event and we look forward to working together with Camas-Washougal Community Chest to make our community an even better place to live."

For more information, visit: www.dinnerinwhiteonthecolumbia.org and www.camaswashougalcommunitychest.org