For this edition of Almabase Spotlights featuring K-12 Schools, we shine the spotlight on Mercy High School’s Virtual Garnet Gala 2021, celebrating their 60th anniversary. The event raised more than their fundraising goal, benefitting promising Mercy Girls with tuition assistance.

📚 A Virtual Gala that Helped Raise Funds for Promising Students

Virtual events have arguably taken out the “personal touch” from engagement campaigns - what used to be an in-person experience for alumnae earlier is now mostly limited to zoom calls. But the Office of Advancement at Mercy High School, Baltimore proved otherwise with their Virtual Garnet Gala 2021. While celebrating 60 years of Mercy, the Office of Advancement went the extra mile with dinner and custom-labeled wine for their alumnae, to make the virtual toast even more festive. Along with this, there was a silent auction that witnessed active participation from their alumnae - old desks and lockers from the school especially garnered a lot of traction. The event was attended by hundreds of alumnae, many of whom hadn’t engaged with the institution before.

The alumnae-centric approach of the Office of Advancement surely paid off as they raised a total of $31,000, surpassing their goal of $15,000, for tuition assistance of bright and promising Mercy Girls - a cause that was certainly close to the alumnae in attendance. These gifts were matched by the Bon Secours Foundation, doubling the impact of every donation. With the tremendous success of Garnet Gala 2021, the Office of Advancement at Mercy High School plans on providing more value to their alumnae through multiple hybrid events in the coming months.
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🌟 Our Source of Inspiration

Amy Dean Kemp is the Director of Advancement at Mercy High School, overseeing Alumnae Engagement and Fundraising for the school. Prior to joining Mercy she served as the Director of Alumnae Relations at Notre Dame of Maryland University, formerly College of Notre Dame of Maryland.