Children’s Museum Gala has Celtic theme

 

Guests will dance jigs and reels to fiddlers’ tunes as they enjoy “A Celtic Holiday” at the annual Gala hosted by the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge. The Gala, celebrating the culture and cuisine of Scotland and Ireland, will be held from 6-11 p.m. Friday, December 5, at the museum, which is at 461 West Outer Drive in Oak Ridge.

The Good Thymes Ceilidh Band, playing traditional Scottish music, will entertain after dinner with fiery Scottish tunes, as well as aires and waltzes. Guests will learn jigs and reels as the band plays with fiddles, guitar, penny whistle, bodhran, mandolin, and hammered dulcimer. The band formed in 2008 when several members of the Knoxville Scottish Music Club got together.

The Knoxville Pipe and Drums, wearing the ancient Mackenzie Tartan, will also entertain during the lively Celtic evening. The group has been together since the early 1990s, when three pipers began playing bagpipes together, adding a number of pipers and drummers over the years.

Becky Hook will perform Celtic music on the harp during dinner, a traditional Scottish feast prepared by Chef Mark Ferguson of The Scottish Cottage in Asheville, North Carolina. The Oak Ridge High School Chorus and an ORHS String Quartet will also entertain during the Gala.

Auctioneer Bear Stephenson will conduct a lively auction featuring many Celtic-themed items, including Irish crystal. More items will be offered during the silent auction, and a Celtic Spirits Wall will be a feature of the auctions.

More than 30 individuals and businesses are sponsoring the Gala, the annual fundraiser for the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge, in sponsorships from $500 to $5,000. Among them are The Babcock and Wilcox Company, at the $5,000 Edinburgh Castle level; Larry and Marge Burkholder, at the $3,000 Christ Church Cathedral level; Eagle Bend Manufacturing Inc., TRU Waste Processing Center, and Ronnie and Jim Bogard, at the $1,500 Celtic Cross level; and Dr. Fred and Sandra Barry, UT Battelle, Information International Associates Inc., and George and Michelle Solomon at the $1,000 Blarney Stone level.

The Gala supports the museum’s mission of educating children of all ages through play. The Children’s Museum offers summer camps, classes throughout the year, after-school programs, and experiences in history, the arts, science, and cultures, serving children and families throughout the East Tennessee region.

For more information about tickets, corporate tables, or sponsorships, call Carroll Welch at (865) 482-1074, extension 105.  See the Children’s Museum web site at www.childrensmuseumofoakridge.org.