Friends of Thai Daughters co-founder Jane McBride (second from right) smiles for the camera with three daughters from Friends of Thai Daughters Sunflower House in Chiang Khong, Thailand. Honey (right) will travel to Maine for her first international trip in support of the Aug. 4 Sunflower Celebration in Damariscotta.
For one night only this summer, Darrows Barn at Round Top Farm in Damariscotta will be transformed into a celebration of all things Thai in honor of a local organization that helps young women from Northern Thailand escape the threat of human trafficking. On Friday, Aug. 4, residents from the Midcoast and beyond will be dancing, dining, and drinking at the Sunflower Celebration, a fundraising event benefiting Boothbay-based nonprofit organization Friends of Thai Daughters.
A lineup of local businesses have come together to help make sure the evening becomes one of the highlight events of the summer. Guests will dine on Stone Cove Catering’s scrumptious Thai-inspired food prepared with vegetables donated by Morning Dew Farm. Oysters on the half-shell donated by Mook Sea Farms will be paired with Split Rock’s horseradish-infused vodka for oyster shooters. The Newcastle-based distillery is also creating a one-off signature cocktail with its blueberry-infused vodka. Oxbow Brewing Co. is donating beer on tap to complement the Midcoast-meets-Thai fusion menu. And Boothbay area guests will ride in comfort to the event, thanks to Country Coach Charters, who is donating a round-trip transportation on a 50-passenger charter bus.
Guests will meet “daughters” in town for the event and have a 1-in-300 chance to win $3,000 as part of a reverse raffle led by artist, musician, and entertaining auctioneer Douglas Gimbel. The $75 ticket includes all one can eat, an open bar, and a reverse raffle ticket. A limited number of additional reverse raffle tickets are available for $50 each. Interspersed between the reverse raffle drawings will be exceptional live-auction items including two nights on a private island off of Southport; a Boston Red Sox dream package; a trip to Brittany, France; a giant Buddha; and much, much more. Absentee bids will be accepted.
Committee members Rosa Ergas, Janet Fowle, Adele Gale, Brady Hatch, Kate Horgan, Ellen James, Julie Lamy, Mark Lazzari, and Jane McBride are creating an unforgettable evening. Also supporting the event is the host committee: Liz Evans, Sharon and Doug Goldhirsch, Chuck and Betty Koch, Carol and Pete Matwiczyk, Dorothy Naylor and Normand Saucier, Mark Osborn, Buzz Makarewicz, and Seth Stewart.
To buy Sunflower Celebration tickets, go to friendsofthaidaughters.org or mail a check payable to “FTD” to Friends of Thai Daughters, P.O. Box 370, Trevett, ME 04571. For more information about the event and/or about Friends of Thai Daughters, go to friendsofthaidaughters.org or email julie@friendsofthaidaughters.org.
