A Message from Paz & Peter

“Boogie with the Stars” is part of a fun-filled, biennial New Year’s Eve gala event held at the Prince George Civic Centre on even years.  The evening is primarily one of music and dance for everybody, with a first class buffet dinner and great entertainment, together with a fundraiser that has a strong focus on healthcare in Northern BC, in coordination with UHNBC, Northern Health and other key healthcare organisations and charities in our area.

The evening came about as a result of the two of us wanting to experience an elegant New Years Eve function, where we could share the evening with good company, enjoying good food, good music and good dancing, all under the roof of a wonderful venue.  There was simply nowhere in town to find this, so we decided to set up our own event.  After several years of reflection and planning, we walked into the Civic Centre one day in 2010 and put down a deposit to reserve the evening of December 31st, a Friday which seemed perfect, and so BWTS was born.

For each event we look to high quality entertainment, in order to add colour, flare and energy to the evening.  The entertainment is carefully chosen to enhance the elegant evening, blending visual entertainment with the dance floor and a variety of music, where folks can simply sit and watch, or get involved at their own level of comfort and activity.  We have seen music from Boogie to Big Bands, out-of-town entertainers such as the Elvis Impersonator and high calibre local bands such as Pink Champagne, as well as the generous participation of Dave Mothus & The Entertainment Group.

The competition segment of the evening is based on the concept of the highly successful TV show, “Dancing with the Stars” – we put a cast of local celebrities and people of notoriety together with local dance instructors for a dance competition like no other in Prince George.  Our stars have included politicians, bankers, doctors, educators, plus high profile members from the business community and the media, and we wish to sincerely thank all those volunteers for their hard work and diligence.  Besides working hard with their dance instructors on their routines, the Stars also put in a tremendous amount of time and effort into raising money by selling votes and accumulating pledges.  None of this would be possible without our loyal volunteers and big-hearted sponsors, such as Canadian Tire, Wood Wheaton, Concept Design, Brink Forest Products, Van Horlicks and others.  Judy Russell and her dance studio offer professional help and advice, for which we are truly appreciative.  And then there are the Dance North members and all the instructors who help with the organizing and whipping the Stars into shape – we thank you all for your commitment and generosity

All proceeds go towards supporting the finances required for the many services and pieces of equipment essential to help folks in need of medical help and attention in Northern BC.  The financial arrangements are organized and prudently administered by the charity involved.  Funds and support flow in from all walks of life including the media and publishing services, direct sponsorship, the actual Stars who sign up, or folks simply attending this gala event with friends, where everyone gets the opportunity to buy votes for their favourite Dancing Star, and then later dance themselves on the spacious floor to bring in the New Year!

Support will come in many forms, but it is toward the business community that we look for substantial support for this very worthy cause.  It is well recognized of course that the true success of any benefit relies heavily on corporate sponsorship.  By giving to this annual event, corporate generosity is supporting healthcare, and in turn helping to provide assistance to people in need throughout our northern community. Sponsorship is acknowledged at our event in several ways, such as being announced verbally during the event as well as being included on all materials that publicize the event, including media advertising.

If you have an interest in getting involved in our next event, please call Paz at 250-640-0490 or Peter at 250-565-8888.  For any potential sponsors, we will be more than happy to give you a brief overview of the financial structure of “Boogie with the Stars” and how it has helped organise and funnel donations over the years, now proudly approaching close to the quarter million dollar mark.

Sincerely,

Paz Milburn
Peter Weedon
Coordinators / Instructors
Boogie with the Stars (BWTS)