Like most, if not all organizations in town and beyond, the Soroptimist International of Pahrump Valley were forced to either cancel, suspend, or modify their regular activities due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
As a result, the organization’s local Mardi Gras fundraiser will not go on as planned, according to Soroptimist President Willi Baer.
Last year the inaugural gala event was held at the Pahrump Nugget.
It should be noted that Soroptimist International is an organization dedicated to “improving the lives of women and girls in communities throughout the world.”
“We can’t do it this year, so we decided to do something else because we don’t want to let everything that we do completely drop,” Baer said. “We are going to do what we call an ‘Armchair Raffle.’ One ticket costs $5 or you can get three tickets for $10.”
Winner take all
Baer went on to say that one ticket equals one entry, where the winner will receive a $300 gift card to the retailer of their choice.
“It could be a Visa gift card, a Walmart gift card, or anything you want,” she noted. “The winner will be chosen on February 14th and notified via email or phone call. We have limited the number of tickets being sold. Sales are going pretty good, and I think we have definitely reached or have gone over our break-even point. There will be just the one $300 gift card prize, so it’s winner-take-all, because there are no second- or third-place prizes for this raffle.”
Last year the organization grossed more than $11,000 following the Mardi Gras themed event, where upward of 100 guests were in attendance.
“We are still doing our programs and still serving in the community with the ‘Live Your Dream Award’ and other scholarships that we do,” Baer noted. “In summing things up, I am very proud to be a Soroptimist. Even though I am on other committees here in town, Soroptimist is the one I will be on until I bite the dust.”
Coming up in March, the Soroptimist International of Pahrump Valley will celebrate their 15th anniversary.
For additional information on the Armchair Raffle or to purchase tickets, call Willi Baer at 702-592-5276.
Contact reporter Selwyn Harris at sharris@pvtimes.com. On Twitter: @pvtimes