Lowe hopes annual Mayor’s Ball will raise $75,000-$100,000

The 2016 Phenix City Mayor’s Ball has a goal of raising $75,000 for charity and educational scholarships, Mayor Eddie Lowe said.

The annual charity event will be held Saturday at 7 p.m. in Chattahoochee Valley Community College’s Key Hall, 2602 College Drive. Tickets for the black-tie event are $75 apiece.

This is the third such ball Lowe has held. Two years ago, the goal was $25,000 but the event raised about $37,000. Last year, the goal was $50,000 and it raised $55,000. This year’s expected goal is $75,000, and the “stretch goal” is $100,000, Lowe said.

“I challenged myself and I challenged the committee,” he said. “Going from $50,000 to $75,000 is a 50 percent year-over-year increase. What business wouldn’t love to do that? $100,000 is a 100 percent year-over-year. That’s strong as pot-ash.”

Not only will the goal be higher, but the venue will also be larger, Lowe said. Before, the event had been held in the Idle Hour Community Center, which held only about 300 people. Both years, organizers had to turn away about 100 people. This year, organizers decided to move it to the gymnasium in Key Hall, which will hold more than 400.

“You can’t keep turning people away and keep a positive spin on it,” Lowe said. “So we’ve had to move it. We’re going to transform the gymnasium into a ballroom, and it’s going to be extravagant.”

In the first two years, the ball has benefited 30 students with partial scholarships, 23 students with funds for early dual enrollment classes, and numerous agencies and charities that assist the poor in Phenix City, Lowe said.

Beyond the young people who benefit from the event, one of the things that Lowe is proud of is how diverse the event it. “You know what I enjoy and love the most? How diverse it is. It is so diverse. That’s what thrills me the most,” Lowe said. “It shows people that Phenix City can come together for a good cause.”

Lowe said he won’t announce the amount of ticket sales or how much money has been raised until the night of the event.

“My committee doesn’t even know,” he said. “I’m the only person who knows, and I want people to hear it first on Saturday night.”

This story was originally published June 2, 2016 at 4:18 PM with the headline "Lowe hopes annual Mayor’s Ball will raise $75,000-$100,000."