LAWTON – The Great Plains Technology Center Foundation’s fall fundraiser is just days away.
The foundation’s Big Top Benefit is set for 6 p.m. Oct. 24 at the Great Plains Coliseum Annex building, 920 SW Sheridan Road in Lawton. The event will include games, silent and live auctions, live music by local performers Blake and Mandee Thomas, and carnival-style snacks.
“I think it will be a fun night,” the foundation’s executive director, Karen Bailey, said in an Oct. 2 interview. “It’s for a great cause. The Technology Center is well respected in the community, and we continue to support them 100 percent.”
Most of the proceeds from the fundraiser will go into a fund that provides scholarships for Great Plains students, as well as a Morale and Welfare fund to assist faculty and staff. The event will also raise money for the school’s construction trades classes, which are currently finishing a project house that will be sold to the highest bidder later this fall.
The benefit’s main sponsors are Liberty National Bank and Ford Roofing, both of Lawton. Additional sponsorship opportunities at levels ranging from $1,500 to $10,000 were still available as of Oct. 2, and individual tickets were selling for $125 apiece.
Tickets must be purchased in advance of the event. For tickets or more information, contact Bailey at kbailey@gptcfoundation.org.
Supporting students, clients Through scholarships and grants, the foundation aims to remove any financial barriers for Great Plains students and clients. The school’s clients include high school students and adults from Great Plains’ service area, which includes Lawton and surrounding communities.
“Any taxpayer in any of those communities – that would be our audience,” Bailey said.
The foundation has three fundraisers each year. Those are:
• The Cornerstone Partners campaign, which gives businesses and individuals an opportunity to work together on providing scholarships and emergency grants for Great Plains students.
• The Kenneth Bridges Golf Tournament.
• A benefit in the fall.