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NGHCC is also hosting a companion fundraiser event for ladies on Saturday, April 22 at 10 a.m. The Hat Party and Luncheon is a social gathering where attendees can prepare hats for the main derby party on May 6. Hat embellishments will be provided. Tickets cost $35 and are available at nghcc.com while space is available.
Pack up your golf clubs and pull out your bow ties - North Georgia Healthcare Center is trying something new this year.
On Saturday, May 6, NGHCC will host its first-ever Kentucky Derby Fundraiser Party, a departure from its annual spring golf tournament.
"Everybody does golf tournaments and [people] get kind of burnt out on those," said Sharron Mitchell, director of programs and community outreach at NGHCC.
Event organizers at the Ringgold health care provider wanted to give supporters a unique experience this year, and Mitchell said while the area will see several golf tournaments in the coming months, derby parties are few and far between.
"To our knowledge, no one has done a derby fundraiser party here," she added.
The event will pay homage to the titular Kentucky horse race, held in Louisville the same day, with games, music, a silent auction and a full catered meal. Channeling the classy culture of "The Greatest Two Minutes in Sports," attendees are encouraged to wear their finest seersuckers, sundresses and ornate hats. Standouts will be rewarded with trophies and prizes during a Prettiest Hat, Most Outlandish Hat and Best Decorated Hat contest, as well as during a Best Dressed Gentleman contest.
"[We] hope that it will become something we can do annually and that people will look forward to attending," Mitchell said of the derby fundraiser.
Funds from the event will help NGHCC provide services to underserved residents who may not qualify for NGHCC's regular sliding scale fees which bases the cost of treatment on household income.
"We don't turn anyone away, but it does help us if we would have a fund specifically for that," Mitchell said.
Last fall, the center purchased a mobile health unit with dental care capabilities to bring such services to those underserved populations, and the funds will also help develop that program so the team can get the unit out into the community.
Mitchell said the main goal of these types of fundraisers is to raise awareness of the work NGHCC is doing to provide primary health care for residents in Catoosa, surrounding counties and the Greater Chattanooga area, so those who need help will know where to find it, whether that be through firsthand experience or through referrals.
"We can't serve them if we don't know about them, and they can't come here if they don't know about us," Mitchell said.
The Kentucky Derby Fundraiser Party will begin at 4 p.m. at The Renaissance Center, 630 North Ave. in Rossville. Tickets cost $75 and can be purchased online at nghcc.com or by contacting Mitchell at smitchell@nghcc.com or 706-935-6442, ext. 119.