Friends and fans of the SF LGBT Community Center joined chanteuse Veronica Klaus and drag stars Miss Rahni and Ambrosia Salad for a champagne reception to kick off the San Francisco LGBT Center’s Soiree 8 gala. Bubbly and bites were served as The Center celebrated the season of sharing in anticipation of its fundraising gala next spring. Flashed across the big screen were colorful slides of Soirees 1 through 7 as remembrances of fun times at past Soirees and teases for the upcoming 8th gala fundraiser. Master of ceremonies was Gregory Marks with special guests David Campos and Theresa Sparks. 

Rebecca Rolfe, executive director of the Center, noted that “those who attended got an early, insider scoop on some juicy news for April’s Soiree 8.”

Rolfe also pointed out that the joyous reception was an opportunity for participants to learn the bigger picture of how The Center continues to celebrate, connect, and fiercely advocate for the LGBT community. Rolfe gave shout-outs to the Event Committee: Jazmine Bergeron, Chloe Christine, Roy Ferreira, Maureen Futtner, Neeli Hooker, Darren Iverson, Kevin Lee, Gregory Marks, Tim Moody, and Puya Vakili – all working hard to make this the best Soiree fundraiser ever. 

The reception marked the kick-off of months of activities to plan The Center’s annual fundraising gala, Soiree, which will be held on Saturday, April 10 at Terra Art Gallery in San Francisco. Last year’s Soiree was attended by more than 700 revelers, including MILK screenwriter Lance Dustin Black. The event co-chairs are Michael Medema and Sean Hutchison. When Medema was speaking about volunteering, he jested about his experience in the Navy as N.A.V.Y. = Never Again Volunteer Yourself. 

He announced the celebrity co-emcees would be actor/ writer Bruce Vilanch and drag queen extraordinaire Jackie Beat. “We’re going to cover the venue with plastic, because they will be slinging mud all night long,” he joked. He also announced the Soiree 8 theme would be “Gods and Goddesses, Heroes and Villains.” He said, “If you can’t pull that off, pick an entourage big enough to convince everyone you’re a god or goddess.” He promised, “No rubber chicken dinner.” He said tickets went on sale that night, and he was proud to be ticket holder number one. 

This year, Supervisor David Campos and Human Rights Commission executive director Theresa Sparks are honorary chairs of the Soiree. Sparks said she was pleased that The Center was the first to honor transgenders. She said, “They have always made us feel we are part of the community.” She announced the various levels of support people could lend, starting at Soiree 8 Ambassador as a “virtual table captain,” selling five tickets and attending for free. Soiree tickets are $95 each. One can be an individual sponsor for $1,000 and receive 2 free tickets plus one’s name included in key event promotions. One can always join The Center’s Sustainers’ Club with ongoing monthly contributions of $10 to $250. And any one-time investment of any amount is always gratefully received. Call (415) 865-5555 for more information. Sparks said it was very important for people to buy tickets as soon as possible to help the Soiree early on. 

The evening ended with three performers entertaining as a tease as to what they might do at the Soiree. Headlining the evening was Veronica Klaus, plus Drag queen Ambrosia Salad from the House of Salad and Miss Rahn.