Lifestyle / Hot Ticket! The 6th Annual Oakville Diwali Gala Is Set To Raise Funds For Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital

Hot Ticket! The 6th Annual Oakville Diwali Gala Is Set To Raise Funds For Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital

Lifestyle Aug 08, 2019

by Devika Goberdhan | Features Editor - Fashion

The fall gala circuit wouldn’t be complete without this highly acclaimed hospital fundraiser. The 6th Annual Oakville Diwali Gala is all set to raise funds to help support the growth of the hospital’s surgical program.

Oakville is about to be lit!

No seriously, on September 20th, Oakville’s Diwali Gala 2019 Committee will illuminate the Lakeshore Convention Centre as they host the 6th Annual Oakville Diwali Gala in support of the Oakville Hospital Foundation.

After hearing so much about the famous Trillium Diwali Gala, Sushma Agarwal was inspired. The Oakville Diwali Gala started back in 2013 when founding members of the initiative, Sushma and Vijay Agarwal, sought to establish South Asian identity in Oakville, which was predominantly a Scottish area.

**6th Annual Oakville Diwali Gala is taking place on September 20, 2019 with this year’s theme being “Lights Camera Auction”**. Photo Credit: www.oakvillediwaligala.com

The philanthropic couple scrounged up $10,000 from their own pockets to launch their very first Diwali Gala, which was previously named the “Oakville Diwali Hungama.” With the help of a few close friends, the Agarwal’s worked diligently to organize their first Gala and even decorated the hall with items from their home.

This inaugural event featured Ali Hassan as the emcee and a banging Bhangra performance, according to Oakville News. Close to 400 people, including those within the South Asian community, flocked to the Diwali-themed soiree and the Agarwals raised $50,000 CAD in support of the Oakville-Trafalgar Memorial Hospital. Each year the money would be bookmarked for a specific area of the hospital, including the Pediatric Department where the funds raised were used to purchase MRI machines and lounge chairs to make children feel more comfortable, as well as buying much-needed equipment for the hospital’s Surgical Department.

Since then, the Oakville Diwali Gala has turned into an annual celebration in the area, bringing together a significant population of the South Asian community from all across the Greater Toronto Area.

What’s not to love about this Gala anyway?

This year’s theme is “LIGHTS, CAMERA, AUCTION,” the latter of which is a key purpose of the Diwali Gala (along with bringing together the South Asian community in Oakville)! According to the Oakville Diwali Gala 2019 Committee, this year’s fundraiser is being held to support the growth of Oakville-Trafalgar Memorial Hospital’s surgical program. The funds will be used to purchase new equipment, hire additional surgeons, and build new facilities that will ultimately benefit patients and the level of care they are able to receive. This year, the hope is to raise between $275,000-300,000 CAD in support of the Oakville-Trafalgar Memorial Hospital.

For this year’s gala, special decorations to celebrate Diwali will include two large diyas that will be sure to light up the front lobby. As well, the evening will begin with the ceremonial the lighting of the pedestal diya on stage. More than that though, this year’s colour scheme represents the brightness of the festival with red and gold, along with a touch of black for Nazar or Kali Devi.

6th Annual Oakville Diwali Gala: The beautiful ball room at the last year's gala. Photo Credit: www.oakvillediwali.com — **6th Annual Oakville Diwali Gala: The beautiful ballroom at the last year’s gala.** Photo Credit: www.oakvillediwali.com

6th Annual Oakville Diwali Gala: One of the many entertainers from last year's gala. Photo Credit: www.oakvillediwali.com — **6th Annual Oakville Diwali Gala: One of the many featured entertainers from last year’s gala**. Photo Credit: www.oakvillediwali.com

6th Annual Oakville Diwali Gala: One of the many featured entertainers from last year's gala. Photo Credit: www.oakvillediwali.com — **6th Annual Oakville Diwali Gala: One of the many featured entertainers from last year’s gala**. Photo Credit: www.oakvillediwali.com

Not to mention, since it’s humble beginnings, the Oakville Diwali Gala Committee has really stepped their game up!

This year, festivities will begin at 6:30 PM and wind down at midnight. Guests can prepare to be dazzled by a valet service, a red-carpet (do it for the ‘gram), high-end entertainment, a silent auction, a live auction, live music and DJ (because truly, you only live once), dancing, gourmet food, and an open bar!

If you’re still mulling it over, perhaps I should have mentioned that there will be prizes galore! To start the night off with a bang, while enjoying some cocktails and appetizers, attendees can buy balloons (at $75 CAD a pop) to participate in a delightful game called “Pop the Balloon” to win great gifts. Lucky guests can expect to score coupons for a trip to the spa, for massages, lunches at famous restaurants, a helicopter trip with complimentary champagne over Toronto, an hour at the Boeing 747 simulator, and even a hot air balloon ride!

Guests will be served family-style with a sit-down dinner that is sure to be mouth-watering (wear your stretchiest pants ladies and gents, trust me)!

For the entertainment, there will be three jaw-dropping performances by Broken Dance group.

At this year’s gala, the live auction will be introduced by a special guest (totally worth the suspense, I promise), which will be followed by the ‘Cause Within A Cause.’ According to the Oakville Diwali Gala 2019 Committee, “Cause within a Cause simply means we are fighting for a cause close to our heart. This is people donating money outside of a profit-motivated atmosphere to create a change [they] would like to see. This year it is for the eleventh Operation Room.”

Other than feeling awesome about making a donation that will be truly impactful, the items up for auction will definitely give you the warm and fuzzies! Here’s a little something to wet your palate: Attendees will be facing off for a luxurious five day stay in the Presidential Suite that has a private pool at the famous Maradiva resort in Mauritius and a Chef’s package from Geeta Maini, who will be donating her cooking skills for a customized dinner party and a mini-cooking demo class for the winner and their guests!

After all that hard work, guests can let loose and rock out on the dance floor to the eclectic mixes of DJ Jiten of Empire Entertainment!

The 2019 Oakville Diwali Gala is expected to attract at least 500 attendees.

Tickets are available online (just click here) and are still on sale (individual tickets will run you about $250 per head). Otherwise, if you’re looking for more information feel free to contact Suzanne Hallsworth at Oakville Hospital Foundation ([email protected]), and for your media and marketing needs, reach out to Tushar Unadkat at MUKTA Advertising ([email protected]).

The #FOMO around this event will be real, trust me! Not only will you be wined and dined during a lavish night out, but you’ll also be able to contribute to a meaningful cause that will be sure to benefit real people.

So, don’t delay!

Main Image Photo Credit: www.instagram.com

Devika Goberdhan | Features Editor - Fashion

Author

Devika (@goberdhan.devika) is an MA graduate who specialized in Political Science at York University. Her passion and research throughout her graduate studies pushed her to learn about and unpack hot button issues. Thus, since starting at ANOKHI in 2016, she has written extensively about many challe...

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Hot Ticket! The 6th Annual Oakville Diwali Gala Is Set To Raise Funds For Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital

by Devika Goberdhan | Features Editor - Fashion

Devika Goberdhan | Features Editor - Fashion

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