Community Corner

Art Gala Benefits Red Bank Public Schools

At art gala at the Atrium on the Navesink raises money to help fund outdoor education at primary school.

The reception area at the Atrium at Navesink Harbor, crowded with officials and dignitaries sampling hors d’oeuvres following shallow sips of wine and perusing tables covered in original pieces of art, is a far cry from the Westside of town and the Red Bank Primary School, with its large minority population and where more than half of the students qualify for free or reduced priced lunches.

As districts struggle to divvy up mostly flat school funding in the face of rising costs and as extracurricular educational opportunities fall by the wayside to help preserve a few extra dollars, financial help from the community is desperately needed more than ever.

So it was, under the guise of a high-end cocktail reception and art auction at the Atrium, that the Red Bank Borough Education Foundation set out to raise money to help further the educational opportunities for the students of the primary school with its second annual Art Gala fundraiser this past weekend.

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With the promise of free food and drink and taking home an original piece of art in various media, 100 people dropped $125 to help benefit Swimming River Discoveries, an organization dedicated to emphasizing the creation and maintenance of learning areas for students at the primary school’s roughly 17 acres of wetlands.

“It is such a successful and fun event,” Barbara Boas, an education foundation official, said. “People have a drink, something to eat, and they walk out of here with a piece of original art. It’s for a great cause. The education foundation was started to raise funds and work with the discoveries project to preserve the 18 acres of wetlands and to provide students with the opportunity to learn earth sciences right outside of the classroom.”

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The varied artwork ranged from watercolor paintings from local artists, to pottery, and even photography donated by several student artists at Red Bank Regional High School. Every person who purchased a ticket to the event selected their top five favorite pieces and at the end of the night names and corresponding numbers were drawn, providing the event with a bit of suspense.

The idea for the auction has been credited to Red Bank Board of Education President Ann Roseman, who recommended it after attending something similar years before.

Local artist Susan Berke curated the event. The semi-retired art dealer has been a Red Bank resident for the past 40 years. She credited the community for pulling together to support the event. The art was donated by area artists and the Atrium donated the space, food, and drink for the event.

It’s all part of doing your part, Berke said.

“The response has been tremendous,” she said. “We all have to give an inch and if we all give an inch we’ll create miles and miles.”


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