Irvine’s comedy night fundraiser fast approaching

Ponoka's Ken Valgardson will be headlining the fundraiser.

By Scott Schmidt

Alberta Newspaper Group

If you like to laugh and love to help your community at the same time, the sixth annual Irvine & District Ag Society fundraiser dinner is an opportunity to combine the two.
The Annual Fundraiser Comedy Night is set for the evening of Nov. 3, with proceeds going toward upkeep of the Irvine Sports Complex. The evening — which includes cocktails, dinner, entertainment and a silent auction, and will be held at the sports complex itself — focuses on comedy once again, but that hasn’t always been the case.
“It varies from year to year,” says society member and one of the event’s organizers Diane Good. “Last year we did dueling pianos, another year we brought in a ventriloquist and once we had a Johnny Cash entertainer.
“I believe this is third time we’ve done comedians.”
A pair of Albertan comics will entertain the crowd that night, with Edmonton’s Adam Blank opening for Panoka’s Ken Valgardson — both of whom came highly recommended.
The event has already sold more than 185 seats, but with a capacity of 290, there is still plenty room for more. Tickets purchased before Nov. 2 cost $55, while those purchased the day of will run $60.
Advance tickets can be secured by calling Diane (403-529-7432) or the Irvine Sports Complex (403-834-3863). Cocktails start at 5:30 p.m., with a roast beef dinner prepared by Front Porch Catering served at 6:30 p.m. The comics take the stage at 8 p.m., while the silent auction — featuring items donated by businesses in the southeastern Alberta region — will be available for bids throughout the evening.
Cypress County and the Alberta Ag Society do provide some funding for the complex, but as is the case with so much else in 2018, it doesn’t cover the full needs of the building. Fundraisers such as this allow communities to ensure they have the best facilities possible.
“This is a great fundraiser for our (sports) complex, which we all use,” Good says. “It gives us extra funding to help keep the facility looking good, which I think it does. So we just encourage people to come out and support that while enjoying a fun evening.”

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