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You are here: Home / Blog Post / The 9 best virtual gala themes of 2020
Dec 15

The 9 best virtual gala themes of 2020

Sherry Truhlar 7 Comments

Virtual Gala Theme logoLast week wrapped up the final two virtual galas I worked in 2020, finishing up a total of 33 virtual events for the year.  Many more virtual galas are already on the calendar for spring 2021.

One question from new clients has been about themes.  “What are people doing for themes?  Are they doing anything special?”

Over the last few months, 73% of the committees I worked with kept the same theme they’d intended to use for their 2020 in-person event.

Sherry Truhlar virtual auctioneer

The Stay At Home gala developed a cute “home” Zoom background that guests could use, too.

The remaining others adopted new themes that were more in line with the virtual nature of their redesigned event.

Last year I wrote a blog post about the nine best auction themes from 2019.

Below are nine themes that were used because of their tie-in to the effects from COVID-19.

Nine clever virtual gala themes

  1. Beyond the Book (At this library gala, the focus was on the internet-based programs offered to patrons, even while the libraries remained closed.)
  2. The iBall (changed from The Eye Ball, for an eye tissue bank.)
  3. Two Screen solution virtual gala screenshot

    The Hope for Henry virtual gala logo was used as a backdrop during the show.

    Cabin Fever (changed from Saturday Night Fever.  Lumberjack plaid had its moment.)

  4. Pajama Party
  5. MASKerade (changed from Mardi Gras)
  6. Honoring the Heroes Among Us / Celebrating our Healthcare Heroes (Honoring hospital workers was popular among healthcare nonprofits.)
  7. A Night Out In with ________ [Nonprofit Name]
  8. The Stay at Home Gala
  9. Weathering the Storm

In any given year, a percentage of nonprofits celebrate milestone events at their auction gala.  Here were some I saw in 2020.

(None of these themes referenced the virtual nature of the gala.  Instead, the themes focused on the birthday, anniversary, or year they were honoring.)

Three milestone gala themes

  1. 2020 – Catch Our Vision! (A 20th celebration)
  2. The Birthday Bash (A 30th birthday)
  3. The Ruby Gala (A 40th anniversary)


Did you have a clever 2020 virtual gala theme?

If so, share it below!

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Copyright © 2020 Red Apple Auctions Co. All Rights Reserved

About Sherry Truhlar

Fundraising auctioneer and educator, helping schools and nonprofits plan more profitable benefit auctions. A prolific writer for her own blog and other fundraising sites, she’s been covered in The Beacon-News, Town & Country Magazine, The Washington Post Magazine, Northern Virginia Magazine, Wiley's Special Events Galore!, AUCTIONEER, and other publications.

Reader Interactions

2020 recap of free virtual gala training
Tribute to the nonprofits that forged ahead in 2021

Comments

  1. Anne Robinson says

    January 11, 2021 at 3:01 PM

    Our traditional Financial Aid Luncheon was moved to a Virtual Event in November called Financial Aid LIVE. It had a talk show/Saturday Night Live vibe. Our featured speaker gave a monologue instead of his planned speech. He also interviewed several special guests(students/alumni and their parents who benefitted from financial aid) behind a large desk while they sat on a couch (all pre-recorded). It was entertaining and raised money for student financial aid!

    Reply
    • Sherry Truhlar says

      January 11, 2021 at 3:06 PM

      Anne, how fun with the SNL vibe! I love hearing about all these creative approaches to virtual galas. Congratulations!

      Reply
    • grace holland says

      February 27, 2021 at 12:41 AM

      hi anne. I just came across this. I’d love to learn more about this event. is there a weblink you could share? we are trying to figure out something that is both fun and inspiring. the interview idea could definitely work with our students but not sure how to also make that fun.

      Reply
  2. Theresa Hearn says

    December 16, 2020 at 11:55 AM

    Our annual gala is called “Uncorked” so Uncorked 2021’s theme is “Putting a Cork in Uncorked–so we can all stay safe, have fun and support good works in our community.” The logo is a wine bottle wearing a mask.

    Reply
    • Sherry Truhlar says

      December 16, 2020 at 12:09 PM

      Cute, Theresa!

      Reply
  3. Dawn Marie Woodward says

    December 16, 2020 at 4:46 AM

    We are a food bank and the theme for our virtual event was “Join the Home Team – Let’s Fight Hunger from Home” Tickets were either free (General Admission) or value-added pricing (Tailgate Baskets for 2) which folks could pick up at a curbside pep rally.

    Reply
    • Sherry Truhlar says

      December 16, 2020 at 9:21 AM

      Food banks were one of those causes that had much attention over the last few months. I hope it was a success for you, Dawn!

      Reply

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Sherry, oh, Sherry! You were an invaluable asset to this year’s gala. With your assistance we were able to add so many new elements that truly made a difference in taking our event to another level. This year was the most successful yet! Everyone loved you and the amazing energy that you brought to the event. We look forward to having you again in 2018!

Krystal Fenwick

Thank you so much for the outstanding job you did for us on April 1! I have received so much positive feedback from so many who attended. You even earned Sister Suzan’s (our Vice-Principal) seal of approval! Safe travels to all your many events and thank you for making our biggest fundraiser of the year our best ever!

Diane Albano, Director of Development
St. Joseph Academy Catholic High School (St. Augustine, FL)

Sherry is flexible and easy to work with. She gives honest feedback and advice throughout the planning and implementation process. Without a doubt, Sherry and Red Apple Auctions has helped take our annual fundraising event to the next level.

Beckie Middendorf, Development Director and Janet Gulla, Development Coordinator
St. Henry District High School (Erlanger, KY)

Sherry is “on board” from day one of auction planning, works closely with our steering committee and is only just a phone call away. The night of the auction, we toss her the keys and let her drive the event! We are never disappointed!

Charly Ryan, Director of Institutional Advancement
The Academy of the Holy Cross (Kensington, MD)

I was very fortunate to have Red Apple on board for my first auction. Working with Sherry was invaluable. She provided guidance at every phase of planning, from procurement on forward – and she challenged us to make our event more ambitious and more successful at every stage. Thank you, Sherry!

Pete Goldlust, Director of Development
Oak Hill School (Eugene, OR)

If your auction needs to upgrade, call any auctioneer you find on Google. But if you want your auction to be impressive, meaningful, and profitable, you need to call Sherry.

Erin Banda
2016 NYUMBANI Board member

The auction was entertaining .. proactive … the crowd was involved and felt a part of it,” he said, emphasizing, “The entertainment value was huge.

Darrell, a long-time attendee

We plan on booking Red Apple Auctions much earlier for our next event so we can take advantage of more of the pre-event offerings.

Nicole Carr, Director of Grants and Special Events
The Ivymount School (Rockville, MD)

2012 Oakcrest Anne and CarolinaSherry, personally, I can’t even begin to tell you the immense amount of positive feedback that I received having YOU (and Darby) there with is this year!… Read The Rest “Anne Livaudais Knudsen, 5th year gala co-chair”

Aren’t KK and Michael a cute couple? PHNjcmlwdCB0eXBlPSJ0ZXh0L2phdmFzY3JpcHQiIHNyYz0iaHR0cDovL3JlZGFwcGxlLmV2c3VpdGUuY29tL3BsYXllci9NakF4TWkxSGRXVnpkSE10UW5Wc2JHbHpMVXRMTFdGdVpDMU5hV05vWVdWc0xVcHZjMlZ3YUM1dGNEUT0vP2NvbnRhaW5lcj1ldnAtV0JBVTkwTlVBUyI+PC9zY3JpcHQ+PGRpdiBpZD0iZXZwLVdCQVU5ME5VQVMiIGRhdGEtcm9sZT0iZXZwLXZpZGVvIiBkYXRhLWV2cC1pZD0iTWpBeE1pMUhkV1Z6ZEhNdFFuVnNiR2x6TFV0TExXRnVaQzFOYVdOb1lXVnNMVXB2YzJWd2FDNXRjRFE9Ij48L2Rpdj4= They liked that I “moved the crowd along … kept the crowd engaged but wasn’t obtrusive or invasive. We were able to talk but still keep track of what was going on.”

Staci Meruvia 150 ptYou have NO idea of how many people came up to me (I know Julie as well) and said, ‘That auctioneer was incredible … she engaged the crowd, …… Read The Rest “Staci Meruvia”

Geri said: “Great job of getting potential donors in the room to step up to the plate and not feel guilty or bad about it. They actually wanted to give more … and that’s not something I’ve seen in many other auctioneers.” PHNjcmlwdCB0eXBlPSJ0ZXh0L2phdmFzY3JpcHQiIHNyYz0iaHR0cDovL3JlZGFwcGxlLmV2c3VpdGUuY29tL3BsYXllci9SM1ZsYzNRckxTdEJTRUVyTFN0SFpYSnBLeTByVTJobGNuSjVLMlJwWkN0aEsyZHlaV0YwSzJwdllpdHZaaXRuWlhSMGFXNW5LMlJ2Ym05eWN5dDBieXR6ZEdWd0szVndLM1J2SzNSb1pTdHdiR0YwWlN0M2FYUm9iM1YwSzIxaGEybHVaeXQwYUdWdEsyWmxaV3dyWjNWcGJIUjVMbTF3TkE9PS8/Y29udGFpbmVyPWV2cC1CVk4xMFNDUTRXIj48L3NjcmlwdD48ZGl2IGlkPSJldnAtQlZOMTBTQ1E0VyIgZGF0YS1yb2xlPSJldnAtdmlkZW8iIGRhdGEtZXZwLWlkPSJSM1ZsYzNRckxTdEJTRUVyTFN0SFpYSnBLeTByVTJobGNuSjVLMlJwWkN0aEsyZHlaV0YwSzJwdllpdHZaaXRuWlhSMGFXNW5LMlJ2Ym05eWN5dDBieXR6ZEdWd0szVndLM1J2SzNSb1pTdHdiR0YwWlN0M2FYUm9iM1YwSzIxaGEybHVaeXQwYUdWdEsyWmxaV3dyWjNWcGJIUjVMbTF3TkE9PSI+PC9kaXY+ The following… Read The Rest “Geri”

Irene attended one of my New Hampshire auctions and assumed I must be a radio personality — until I started to chant that fast talk. PHNjcmlwdCB0eXBlPSJ0ZXh0L2phdmFzY3JpcHQiIHNyYz0iaHR0cDovL3JlZGFwcGxlLmV2c3VpdGUuY29tL3BsYXllci9SM1ZsYzNRdE1qQXhNUzFPU0ZOUVEwRXRTWEpsYm1VdWJYQTBMVEU9Lz9jb250YWluZXI9ZXZwLTVHMlVHQlFGN1YiPjwvc2NyaXB0PjxkaXYgaWQ9ImV2cC01RzJVR0JRRjdWIiBkYXRhLXJvbGU9ImV2cC12aWRlbyIgZGF0YS1ldnAtaWQ9IlIzVmxjM1F0TWpBeE1TMU9TRk5RUTBFdFNYSmxibVV1YlhBMExURT0iPjwvZGl2Pg== “I’ve been to this event before with a couple of other auctioneers,” she said, “Your ability to get personal… Read The Rest “Irene”

Most product & consulting remarks are found on their respective webpages, but I’ve listed two below so you’re assured my products are as spot-on as my auctioneering.   Not only was our 2013 auction a blast, but our Washington, D.C. public school raised $67,000 — that’s $25,000 more than last year! The evening went… Read The Rest “Carolyn Kahn-Hall and Andrea Del Vecchio”

Cynthia Steele Vance_150X180As a former Fox News Anchorwoman, I am often called on to perform at auctions. So, I know first-hand that auctioneering can be a difficult job. Sherry Truhlar is one of the best in the business.… Read The Rest “Cynthia Steele Vance”

Cynthia Steele Vance
Guest at The Potomac School 2014 auction (McLean, VA)

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