Hummingbird Gala Success
Every year the Alberta Diabetes Foundation hosts an amazing gala event that is responsible for a large portion of their annual commitment of raising $1 million for life changing diabetes research. This past Friday, September 23, 2016, embarked a new partnership between the Alberta Diabetes Foundation and the Canadian Diabetes Association. One goal of the 2016 Hummingbird Gala was to strengthen the collaboration between the two diabetes organizations in a time of uncertain economic climate in Alberta.
The view of the river valley was in full autumn stunning glory as guests began arriving to Hall D of the Shaw Conference Centre. Live acoustic guitar, played by Marc Beaudin, welcomed close to 500 guests from both of the organizations guest lists. Graham Neil of CTV was the Master of Ceremony, and guests were delightfully entertained by comedian Andrew Grose.
“The Hummingbird was a beautiful evening. Surrounded by a room full of people driving real research and real progress right here in Alberta towards a cure. A privilege to attend and support.” said Jason Pincock, Chief Executive Officer at DynaLIFE Medical Labs.
The impact of events, like the Hummingbird Gala, have on diabetes research here in Alberta go well beyond the financial contribution that the event brought in. It was an evening to share stories, and learn about exciting breakthroughs in research. It was about getting people together who share a common goal – seeing an end to the destructive disease that is diabetes. The 2016 Hummingbird Gala raised just under $250,000 towards life changing research and programming here in Alberta; to keep the momentum building from this event, the Alberta Diabetes Foundation is encouraging folks to donate.
“Thank you to our amazing corporate sponsors for stepping up this year – especially to Nordic Mechanical Services for becoming our presenting sponsor,” shared Brad Fournier, Executive Director of the Alberta Diabetes Foundation. “All things considering, it was a truly exceptional evening and the 330,000 Albertans living with diabetes and 700,000 at risk for type 2 diabetes will benefit immensely.”
