Oktoberfest Ottawa A Success!

The Rotary Club of Ottawa Kanata Sunrise held their 2^nd Annual Oktoberfest Ottawa fundraising event Friday, October 16 with rousing success! A tremendous THANK-YOU to our sponsors, Palladium Insurance and Unwired Web Solutions, for ensuring a fun-filled evening. We'd also like to thank the staff at the Centurion Banquet Hall (170 Colonnade Road South, Ottawa) for providing the perfect service for this event.

Funds raised from Oktoberfest Ottawa directly support our community. A primary goal of the Rotary Club of Ottawa Kanata Sunrise is to assist those who need help, both in our community and abroad. The money raised from this year's Oktoberfest supports the Ottawa Rotary Home, the new Eastern Ontario Rotary Place (home of the Dave Smith Youth Drug Treatment Centre) and other humanitarian projects.

Some highlights of the evening included:

• the award-winning GTEV Maple Leaf-Almrausch Bavarian Dancers from Orleans, ON (www.mlac.ca), who entertained us with whips, anvils, explosions, and cowbells, and kept all in the dancing mood,
• music from Schteeve und die Lederhosers (www.ottawasuperband.com -- our official Oktoberfest Ottawa Bavarian band)
• a scrumptious buffet of authentic German food,
• lots of cold Erdinger German beer,
• a silent auction, and
• Dave Smith, who nicely took the mike and helped with the live auction!

Over 230 guests attended Oktoberfest, and all went home with a souvenir Erdinger beer stein.  Thanks very much to Erdinger for all their support. It wouldn't have been Oktoberfest without them!

Oktoberfest Ottawa 2009 raised just over $17,000 for the club's charitable commitments.  The club would like to thank all who donated time, auction items, and attended the event.  Oktoberfest would not have happened without you.

Rotary International is a worldwide Service Organization that maintains 'Service Above Self'. For more information, please visit www.kanatarotary.com or www.rotary.org.