By Rubin E. Grant
Alex Broadhead admits she had superficial reasons for becoming a member of the junior board at Glenwood, a nonprofit agency dedicated to serving children, adolescents and adults with autism and other behavioral health needs.
“I got involved as part of a start-up company I was working for, looking to make business connections,” Broadhead said.
That was five years ago, and Broadhead is still on the Glenwood junior board. In fact, she’s now the junior board president.
“I have become passionate about Glenwood and their mission,” she said.
This month, Broadhead and the rest of the Glenwood junior board will be hosting its annual Big Top fundraising event Feb. 24 from 8 p.m. until midnight at the Haven in Lakeview.
The Mallie and Glenn Ireland Foundation is the presenting sponsor. The event is led by co-chairs Jacquelyn Drennen and Kyle Crew. Committee chairs include Nonie Brown and Justin Detwiler, sponsorships; Alicia Tibbs, silent auction; Jessica Caldwell, Friends of Glenwood; Kimberly Piazza and Megan Fingerman, publicity.
“It’s a huge fundraiser,” Broadhead said. “Our pre-Covid numbers were around 700 attendees and we’re looking to bringing it back to that number.”
This will be the 19th Big Top event held by the junior board.
“Big Top is our largest fundraiser for children’s services,” said Linda Baker, chief development officer for Glenwood. “It’s super exciting. Normally the life for an event like this is seven years, so it’s amazing success story for our junior board and it’s fun. Our junior board brings a lot of energy to helping children with autism.”
Guests will be treated to an evening of live music featuring local band TOTAL A$$ET$, casino games, silent auction and food provided by Happy Catering.
The event is best known for the silent disco in which guests dance the night away to their own personal beat.
“I absolutely will take part in silent disco,” Broadhead said. “It’s one of the most popular parts of the event.”
All tickets come with complimentary beer and wine. VIPs and Friends of Glenwood also will be treated to complimentary cocktails provided by Tito’s Handmade Vodka and other donated spirits.
Other activities include photos taken on the red carpet, ring toss to win a bottle of wine, and the silent auction featuring trips, jewelry, art and other items.
Broadhead said some of the things available for the silent auction are stays in the mountains and lake, Alabama and Auburn items, cooking classes and things for golf enthusiasts.
“The good thing about the silent auction is you don’t have to be at the event and you can do it online in the comfort of your own home,” Broadhead said.
Aiming for the Top
Baker hopes the event will top the amount of money raised during last year’s Big Top.
“Every year our junior board wants to do more than it did the last year,” Baker said. “Last year we raised about $360,000. It’s a wonderful event.
“With all that’s going on, our junior board is working hard to make it a success. Glenwood has been affected by inflation just like everyone else. We’ve got a lot of employees working and we need to keep them engaged, and we’ve got about 30 homes we care for and we have to provide groceries for about 125 people.”
Baker said the work is ongoing for Glenwood, which began in 1974 as a program to provide treatment, education and research in children’s mental health.
“Currently one in 44 children will be diagnosed with autism, so there’s a huge need,” she said. “We have a continuum of care. We serve children as young as 18 months and the oldest person we serve is 70, so we do it across the years of life.
“We have over 30 comprehensive services for children from evaluation, diagnosis and full-time residential care. We touch the lives of over 8,000 families each year.”
For more information about Big Top, contact Jackie McLean at [email protected] or 205-795-3268 or visit glenwood.org.
