Next Concert
The Power of Ten
We kick off the season with a Salon concert featuring guest guitarist Michael Goldberg and artistic director Martín Benvenuto, performing music by J.S. Bach, Manuel Ponce and John Dowland. The evening also features a special appearance of the Acalanes High School women’s ensemble Bella Voce, and WomenSing performing Craig Hella Johnson’s touching Will there really be a morning? Tantalizing entertainment, delicious food, fabulous wine, and an exciting auction to benefit WomenSing.
BUY TICKETS
Contact your favorite singer or
email the Auction Committee.
Sunday, October 10, 4 to 7 pm
Lafayette Veteran’s Memorial Hall
3780 Mt. Diablo Blvd.
Lafayette, CA 94549
General Admission: $45
Online Catalog
This year WomenSing is offering a number of auction items online. If you can’t join us for the Salon concert, you can still join in the auction fun. Some of the items in our catalog are “Pay to Play,” meaning that you can pay a fixed amount in order to attend the event. There is no competitive bidding, but you do need to grab a spot before they’re all gone. Other events are up for competitive bidding, starting at a minimum bid. These events will remain open for bidding up to and including 10/10/10, the date of the Salon Concert and Silent Auction.
To BID email the
Auction Committee.
To submit a competitive bid or to enter your name on one of the spaces for a “Pay-to-Play” event, simply email the Auction Committee. Remember to include the item number, your bid (if applicable), your name, address and phone number. In the case of competitive bids, you can indicate whether or not you want to be contacted if a higher bid comes in for the item you’ve selected.
E1 – Walnut Creek Overnight Get-Away
A one weekend night stay for two at Renaissance Club Sport in Walnut Creek. Renaissance is a fine hotel-spa-fitness center right here in our backyard. This gift includes free valet parking and breakfast for two at the hotel’s c-blue Bistro and Wet Bar.
As a guest at the hotel you will have complimentary access to the 85,000 square foot fitness facility including an outdoor heated aquatics center, bocce ball, racquetball and squash courts as well as state of the art fitness equipment.
Value: $184
Minimum Bid: $100
E2 – Business and Pleasure in the Castro
You will be guests of Bruce Carpenter, WomenSing’s Past President, and his partner Alan Gibson in their beautifully reconstructed Edwardian in the Castro. Upon your arrival you’ll enjoy a finger-food lunch followed by a fascinating presentation by Rob Marandino on the process of bringing a top-of-the-line skin cream* to market. Rob is a marketing and product development expert. He will discuss the steps involved in product development for a skin cream, the legal and financial considerations which must be taken into account and how to successfully market a new face care product.
To complete this extraordinary afternoon you will be escorted to Kite Hill to enjoy late afternoon treats while enjoying the most spectacular view of San Francisco to be found anywhere.
Date: September 25, 2010. You will depart via BART immediately following the WS workshop at LUMC to arrive at Bruce’s home shortly after 1:00 pm.
Location: 3925 17th St., San Francisco
Maximum Guests: 8
*Samples of this skin cream will be available to try, but nothing will be for sale.
Value: Priceless
Pay to Play: $75
E3 – Private Yacht Sail on the Bay
For four lucky bidders, a sail on Chuck Beazell’s 54 ft. sailboat from Ayala Cove at Angel Island to Alameda. The day includes transportation to San Francisco and tickets for the ferry to Angel Island. With Maestro Benvenuto as co-host, you’ll enjoy a BBQ picnic lunch with wine and other beverages. Dessert and champagne will be on the boat as you sail to Alameda where your transportation will meet you for the ride back home.
Maximum guests: 4
Date: August 13, 2011
Time: 9:00 am
Value: Priceless
Minimum Bid: $900
E4 – Northstar at Tahoe Condo
Three nights at Barbara and Jeff Beck’s Northstar Condo. Three bedrooms/2 baths, sleeps 6. Includes guest passes for use of the pool and other recreational activities. By arrangement from October 19 through November 16, 2010 or from April 16, 2011 through the summer.
Northstar has wonderful activities and facilities for both family and adult enjoyment. This condo is very comfortable, well furnished and equipped. A great location for a good time!
Maximum Guests: 6
Value: $1065
Minimum bid: $600
E5 – British Pub Night
Enjoy a fun pub night—it’s not just for the boys! At Andy Freedman’s home in
Walnut Creek. You’ll enjoy a dinner of traditional pub fare home cooked by Brits, Andy, Jules Campbell and Andy’s Mum, Gwynneth. There’ll be a selection of British beers along with wine and spirits.
The evening’s entertainment will follow the style of very popular British Pub Quizzes but these are very special quizzes designed by our hosts to challenge our American wits. The good news is that you don’t have to come up with the answers on your own. You will be playing in 3 teams of 5. Prizes will be awarded!
Maximum Guests: 15
Date: Saturday, January 15, 2011
Time: 6:00 pm
Value: Priceless
Pay to Play: $100
E6 – A Grand Italian Dinner
Buon Appetito! Enjoy a six-course meal of authentic regional Italian specialties while your hosts Jules Campbell and Stephanie Baker entertain you with their Florence cooking school stories. The wines you enjoy will be especially chosen to pair with the various courses. You’ll have a hand in making the pasta. This is a not-to-be-missed culinary experience!
Maximum guests: 10
Date: Saturday, November 6
Time: 6:00 pm
Value: Priceless
Pay to Play: $125
E7 – Cooking Demo and Extraordinary Dinner
Ten lucky bidders will enjoy a unique evening of delicious food, paired wines and other beverages and learn cooking techniques and tips as demonstrated by talented chef de cuisine, Deno Marcum. Deno had his own restaurant in Jackson Hole, WY and is now located in the Bay Area.
You’ll gather at the art-filled home of Jules Campbell for this unique dining event. Jules and new WomenSing board member Fritz King are your hosts. You are guaranteed a fabulous dinner and a lot of fun!
Maximum guests: 10
Date: Saturday, January 15, 2011
Time: 5:00 pm
Value: Priceless
Pay to Play: $160
E8 – Lake Tahoe Bed and Breakfast Weekend
Four guests will enjoy a unique B&B experience in the spectacular lakeside home of Ellen Marshall. Ellen and her husband, Bryant Blewett are experienced Montana Dude Ranch owners and hosts. Ellen will host you for the weekend, Friday night to Sunday afternoon, providing you with two full breakfasts and a Saturday night dinner.
This large, expansive home has a lakefront exposure, a pier for sunning and swimming, a gorgeous view of the lake and surrounding mountains and is very well located for Tahoe restaurants and activities. Holiday weekends are excluded.
Value: $1300
Minimum Bid: $650
E9 – Incline Village Get-Away
Enjoy a three-night stay (excluding holidays) at this comfortable, free-standing condo right in Incline Village, Lake Tahoe. Adjacent to great restaurants and a grocery store, close to Ski Incline and only 20 minutes away from Northstar. Two golf courses are nearby. Great location for skiers or for a summer get-away. Comfortable for 4 adults with a Queen bed and 2 Twins. Also has laundry facilities.
Value: $450
Minimum Bid: $250
E10 – Authentic Japanese Tea Ceremony
Enjoy a traditional Japanese Tea Ceremony provided by Yoshi’s owner, Yoshi Akiba and her students in a private, tranquil Zen center setting at Yoshi’s home in the Rockridge area of Oakland. This is an exclusive and unique opportunity for you and three guests.
Value: Priceless
Minimum Bid: $300
E11 – Empanada Workshop
Learn the art of preparing authentic Argentine empanadas from the Maestro himself, Martín Benvenuto. Wine and supper to enjoy the fruits of your labor along with a decadent dulce de leche dessert follows. Pam Whitman will host in her Orinda home.
Maximum guests: 10
Date: Sunday, Februray 20, 2011
Time: 4:00 pm
Value: Priceless
Pay to Play: $50
E12 – An Evening in Paris
Right here in Lafayette—a night of champagne, nibbles and shopping. For you only—the lucky participants. Anytime between 6:30 and 8:30 you may drop in to this fabulous French Apartment Shoppe, enjoy the bubbly and food and look for the perfect treasure, for yourself or for gifts. Souvenir features new and vintage jewelry, clothing, accessories, home décor and more. Just in time for Christmas!
This is a great opportunity for a night away from home and your regular life—escape for awhile to “Gay Paree”. Souvenir will give 10%of all purchases made on this evening toWomenSing.
Because this is a drop-in event there is room for 30 participants.
Date: Tuesday, November 16, 2010,
Time: 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Value: Priceless
Pay to Play: $25
E13 – Portland Get-Away
A one-night stay for two guests at Heron Haus Bed and Breakfast, the ideal inn and the ideal location for a Portland visit. A full, gourmet breakfast is featured. Each room has a private bath and WiFi access. Heron Haus is only a few blocks from the fine dining on 21st Ave. and from the 23rd Ave. shops and boutiques, minutes from the city center and the Pearl District. Also near the Rose Garden, Japanese Garden and the Forest and Washington Park Hiking Trails.
Heron Haus is a 10,000 sq. ft. English Tudor home designed by noted Portland architect Joseph Jacobberger in 1904. The home’s fine craftsmanship lends it a beautiful but casual elegance. Heron Haus is listed on the National Historic Register. Information and guidance about other Portland sights and experiences is available from your inn hosts. Former WomenSing soprano, Pam Walker, and her husband are the hosts at Heron Haus and are the donors of this offer.
Value: $185
Minimum Bid: $100
E14 – Overnight Get-Away at Bodega Bay
A one-night stay for two guests (Deluxe accomodations) at Bodega Coast Inn and Suites in quaint and beautiful Bodega Bay. This is the Inn where WomenSing holds its bi-annual weekend retreat. Very nicely located for browsing in the unique shops and dining on fresh-caught seafood. This Inn has some fireplace and spa tub rooms, they provide breakfast and there’s a pool. Spend a day exploring the spectacular California coast and the night relaxing in your comfortable room. Perfect!
Value: $189
Minimum Bid: $100
E15 – Your Voice! An Inside View
Have you ever wondered what vibrato LOOKS like? Or ever been uncertain as to why one vowel is more resonant than another—in your voice? Or perhaps why Pavarotti’s Bb sounds different than Domingo’s? Then this item is for YOU! Two one-hour singing lessons with Dr. Martín Benvenuto, including a spectrographic analysis of your sound with Vocevista, a software/hardware package that provides real time feedback of your voice.
Two highest bids win.
Value: $200
Minimum Bid: $100
E16 – Dinner with the Maestros
Join Maestro Martín Benvenuto and piano artist extraordinaire, Paul Caccamo as they prepare and serve a gourmet meal with accompanying wines in the uptown ambiance of Martín’s Oakland home. Martín and Paul will captivate you with music on a French theme.
Maximum guests: 6
Date : Saturday, March 16, 2011
Time: 7:00 pm
Value: Priceless
Pay to Play: $150
