On October 29, 2022 Memorial Opera House Foundation presented its first inaugural Halloween fundraising gala, Phantoms of the Opera House, which was held at the Porter County Expo Center in Valparaiso. Although the event was primarily a fundraiser for the Foundation, a portion of the proceeds were awarded to the Porter County Animal Shelter on January 10, 2023 as part of the Foundation’s mission to give back to the community and support a worthy cause.
At the Halloween event, Animal Shelter personnel were present with adoption pets for attendees to visit. They even conducted a brief “Puppy Parade” showcasing dogs in costumes lead through the audience as one of the evening’s early attractions.
Yesterday, Memorial Opera House Foundation board members, Kaye Frataccia-Seibert and Christy Vice, as well as Memorial Opera House staff and Porter County Commissioner Laura Blaney met at the Animal Shelter to present Darrin Biggs and his staff with a $1200 contribution. Darrin commented, “It was really nice to see so many people from [Memorial Opera House] and Commissioner Blaney come down to be a part of the presentation. We look forward to teaming up with MOH in the future and appreciated the opportunity to show our animals in a relaxed setting. Thank you to Scot and the staff for your generosity and support of the Porter County Animal Shelter.”
Memorial Opera House Foundation is already in the planning stages for the 2023 Phantoms of the Opera House annual gala, scheduled for Saturday, October 28. 2023 once again at the Expo Center. They hope to make this an annual event for adults to dress up, dance, socialize, compete in the costume contest, and bid for raffle prizes. They hope to have some new surprises on hand for attendees as they continue to develop the theme and program for this year.