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ST. CLOUD, MN – The third annual Women’s Fund Presents: Dancing With Our Stars LIVE was held yesterday, Monday, June 18, 2018 at the College of St. Benedict. The event raised $151,949 for local organizations that benefit women and girls. Over 600 people were in attendance to cheer on their favorite dancers and charities. This year’s event once again featured a dance competition between six local celebrities who had been paired with a professional partner for a chance to win up to a $15,000 grant for the non-profit program of their choice.
Dancers showcased their skills to raise funds for their supported charity through the Women’s Fund Presents. Final scoring for the competition was based upon a combination of judges’ scoring and dollars raised for the non-profits – 40 percent Judges’ score, 60 percent dollars raised.
Women’s Fund Presents is proud to announce the results from last nights event:
- Community star, Chris Klimpel from Park Industries, along with pro, Nathan Eric Hampton, danced to benefit the United Way Neighborhood Resource Center. They raised $45,519 and took home first place prize of $15,000 for a grand total of $60,519 awarded.
- Community star, Steve Windfeldt from PCI, along with pro, Lisa Saari, danced to benefit Youth Arts Initiative – Boys and Girls Club of Central MN. They raised $23,718 and took home the second place prize of $10,000 for a grand total of $33,718 awarded.
- Community star, Stephanie Theisen from Leighton Broadcasting, along with pro, Dan Triplett, danced to benefit Family Education and Outreach program for the Alzheimer’s Association Minnesota-North Dakota Chapter. They raised $12,560 and took home the third place prize of $5,000 plus the judge’s choice award of $3,000, for a grand total of $20,560 awarded.
- Community star, Adam Heathcote from BerganKDV, along with pro, Rachel Trout, danced to benefit St. Cloud Area Family YMCA, Y Partners Scholarship Fund. They raised $12,018 and took home the fourth place prize of $2,000 for a grand total of $14,018 awarded.
- Community star, Jenifer Odette from Brandl Motors, along with pro, Steve Kuebelbeck, danced to benefit Tanner’s Team Foundation. They raised $13,840 and took home fifth place prize of $2,000 for a grand total of $15,840.13 awarded.
- Community star, Randy Warzecha from Riverside Realty, along with pro, Lucille Guinta-Bates, danced to benefit LEAF, Homeless Student Services Fund. They raised $5,293 and took home the sixth place prize of $2,000 for a grand total of $7,293 awarded.
About the Women’s Fund
In the past 10 years, the Women’s Fund has raised more than $1 million and established an endowment to support programs that serve girls, women in transition and elder women. Since 2002, dozens of organizations have benefited from the over $1 million in grants awarded through the Women’s Fund. Hundreds of community members save the date each year for the annual fundraiser.
The Women’s Fund started with a vision; a vision to help women and girls in our community live their best lives. We hope to empower:
- Girls with self-confidence, making good choices for their future;
- Women in transition by giving them the opportunity to pursue one-to-one mentoring, job training and education;
- Elderly women with access to health and fitness opportunities, resulting in lower health care costs, chronic illness, and a longer independent lifestyle.
The Women’s Fund is an initiative of the Central Minnesota Community Foundation. The Central Minnesota Community Foundation (CMCF), in affiliation with CommunityGiving, is a public charity that attracts and administers charitable funds for the benefit of the local community. Since 1985, CMCF has grown to over $89.6 million in assets and awarded over $93.1 million in grants to non-profits. CommunityGiving is a collaboration of community foundations united under a single framework to create efficiencies that maximize the impact of our donors. The core foundations working with CommunityGiving include the Alexandria Area Community Foundation, the Brainerd Lakes Area Community Foundation, the Central Minnesota Community Foundation and the Willmar Area Community Foundation. Collectively, CommunityGiving administers more than 700 funds totaling more than $129 million. Learn more at CommunityGiving.org/CentralMN
