The St. Tammany Art Association paired up with New Orleans Museum of Art to put on the HeART & Soul event on Saturday, September 19, 2009.
Laurie Pennison, chair and board member, and Mary Monk, co-chair and art coordinator, planned HeART & Soul to benefit STAA. The event ran smoothly because of STAA’s board members and also because of the multitude of volunteers who made this event happen. Cliff Bergeron, President of STAA, and Brian Schneider of the New Orleans Museum of Art were both guest speakers at the event.
At HeART & Soul, Spii Glass Catering provided many culinary delights for the guests to enjoy. Delicacies included a raspberry gator martini fountain, almond crusted shrimp with raspberry pepper jelly, prime filet tips set on toast points topped with a Creole bearnaise, spinach and artichoke dip with toasted tortillas, jumbo lump crabmeat cakes set on a crawfish Julie sauce, Hawaiian chicken skewers served with grilled pineapple and for dessert, Swiss chocolate dipped strawberries.
The jazz duo Chris Edmunds and Matt Johnson provided music throughout the evening while a silent auction went underway that included original heart-themed artwork by local artists. Through the silent auction and ticket sales HeART& Soul raised just under $6,000 for STAA. The funds will go towards educational opportunities for adults, teens and children, discounted class tuition and other activities that will allow STAA to run smoothly throughout the year. STAA partnered with NOMA to generate awareness from its members. HeART & Soul is one of three fundraisers that STAA puts on through out the year to generate revenue for the city.
