Dining for Dementia dinner raises over $6,000 for Dementia Friendly Orange County

ORLEANS – The Dining for Dementia dinner and live auction proved to be successful Friday night, bringing in over 100 people to support Dementia Friendly Orange County.

Attendees of the dinner

There was great food from Dille’s Smoked Meats and Dillescious Treats which included pulled pork sandwich, cheesy potatoes, and green beans. Music by Kirby Stailey was also playing for those to dance and enjoy while they ate their food, before moving on to the auction.

Top selling item donated by Alana Judah

The top selling item during the auction was a beautiful print donated by Alana Judah which ended up selling for $575.

After the bidding was complete and all items had sold, Rosie decided to share her personal experience with the crowd. She became emotional, but spoke straight from the heart while thanking her family, the crowd, and those that had supported her dream of advocating and raising awareness for those living with dementia. She shared funny stories about her Great-Aunt Gloria, who lived with Rosie for her last 7 months on this earth, and is the reason Rosie became so passionate about advocating for dementia.

Kirby Stailey in the background with auction items

After raising $6,505 for Dementia Friendly Orange County, Rosie and her Mother Dinah hope to make this benefit dinner and auction an annual event, to continue to help those dealing with the effects of dementia.

Going through the auction items list

Dementia is a heartbreaking phenomenon that is affecting more and more people every day. The cost of caring for a loved one with dementia exceeds most ailments and the number of diagnoses of dementia is significantly rising. Communities must get involved and start working together to make this world dementia-friendly. If you are interested in helping Dementia Friendly Orange County, you can reach out to them on their Facebook page.

Dinah Reynolds (left) and her daughter Rosie

“Rosie and I would like to thank all the businesses and individuals that donated items for the auction, money for the cause, or came out to support our cause! We want to especially thank Robinson Auctions and Gatherings for providing an amazing venue for our event, auctioneering, and helping in any and all ways you could to make our event successful,” said Dinah Reynolds.

The event could not have happened without the support of so many people, helping to benefit Dementia Friendly Orange County, a full list of businesses who supported the evening can be found here.