Hearts and Harmony Gala set for Feb. 10 at new facility

The Hoover Service Club is gearing up for its 2017 Hearts and Harmony Gala on Feb. 10 at the new Carriage House at the Park Crest Facility on Little Valley Road.

The event is a fundraiser for numerous charities and scholarships for Hoover and Spain Park high school students.

Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. for a silent auction, Chinese auction, appetizers and cash bar in the downstairs portion of the building. Then guests will go upstairs at 7:30 p.m. for a seated dinner and live auction.

The dinner will include rosemary roasted prime rib of pork over winter vegetable succotash and natural juices, a twice-baked potato, smoked Gouda, apple-smoked bacon and minted chocolate chip mousse with spiced rum caramel and candied spearmint. There also will be a vegetarian option of basil-buttered penne pasta with wilted leaf spinach, roasted sweet bell peppers and blistered sangria tomatoes.

Music is by Dianne Shaw and her son, Hoover Councilman Mike Shaw. Hoover Councilman John Lyda and 2014 Mrs. Alabama America Jamie Nutter are scheduled to serve as auctioneers.

Auction items will include art from local artists and galleries (including painter Daniel Moore, sculptor Robert Taylor and Griffith Art Gallery), jewelry pieces from Steed’s Jewelers and Anthony’s Jewelers, Disney World Park Hopper passes, backyard barbecues, tailgate parties, a Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama package and Southeastern Conference Baseball Tournament tickets.

The 2016 gala drew more than 260 people and raised about $46,000, Chairwoman Betty Daigle said. For 2017, organizers hope to have about 300 people and raise at least $50,000, she said.

The Hoover Service Club already has awarded $11,500 from last year’s event to Oak Mountain Missions, the Green Valley Baptist Church United Way Food Bank, the Hoover Helps backpack food program for children, Focus on Recovery (a residence for women recovering from alcohol and drug addiction), Triumph Services (which serves adults with developmental disabilities) and the Hope for Autumn Foundation (which helps families of children battling cancer).

The club plans to distribute another $11,500 to charities in the spring, plus $24,000 in scholarships, member Lynda Wasden said.

Tickets for the gala are $125 ($60 of which is tax-deductible). To make a reservation, go to hooverserviceclub.com. For more information, call Martha Veazey at 903-4987.