BY ALEXXIA LITTLETON
FOR THE OBSERVER
OPELIKA — The BigHouse Foundation hosted a Support Dinner at the Marriott Grand National on March 26 to raise funds, increase community awareness and share its mission of supporting foster and adoptive families in East Alabama. It serves as a key fundraising event to secure corporate sponsorships and auction items to help fund programs, such as Kids’ Night Out and special events.
The Support Dinner allows BigHouse to connect with local supporters and invites local businesses to become event or corporate sponsors to help expand their reach. It also serves as a venue to gather foster and adoptive families, recognizing their efforts and providing opportunities for fellowship.
Micah Melnick, Founder and Executive Director of The BigHouse Foundation, says she wants those in attendance to see the passion and commitment that she and her team have for helping foster and adoptive families.
“We want to introduce them to who we are and what we do, and then hopefully, over time, they build trust in our organization and see that we are committed to doing what we say we do,” she said. “Our goal is to get new people who may not know a lot about BigHouse, may not
have given in the past or are currently giving to BigHouse, [together for the event] sitting, listening, learning more about what we do and hopefully being moved to support financially.”
Melnick explained the true meaning behind all of the events BigHouse hosts and why they are vital for supporting its mission.
“Whether [they learn about our mission at the Support Dinner] event or throughout the year, [we hope] they start following BigHouse on social media, getting our newsletter, [and they begin] supporting when we [hold] back to school at Christmas, and sponsoring a kid on the beach retreat,” she said. “We wouldn’t be sad if we made a ton of money, if somebody wants to write us a huge check, that’s great, but we are also trying to look long-term at developing relationships with donors.”
BigHouse was founded in 2010 and has since grown to serve over 12,000 children in Alabama’s foster care system through its various programs and events. Melnick said the organization facilitates these programs, but it is through God’s faithful provision and the generosity of the community that they can offer these resources to the families they serve. And through a night of food, information and fellowship, Melnick said locals learned how to support BigHouse in its mission.
“So at the beginning [of the event], we have an opportunity for our guests to visit our silent auction hall, it’s the hallway into the venue,” she said. “Our silent auction items will be on display, so they can come before the event starts and check that out, and then they’ll get seated and we have a plated dinner. Then we have speakers throughout the evening, so they’ll get seated at their table with their table hosts, who will provide them dinner, and I’ll speak a little bit about BigHouse.
“We have several different people [speaking] who are involved in some way in our ministry, so we have a couple of the families that are being served, staff or a volunteer, and then some partners that will share their perspective of BigHouse and how it benefits families,” she said. “Then we’ll present an opportunity for people to give if they feel like it, because it is a support dinner, and then it’ll wrap up. It’ll probably last an hour and a half to 2 hours, and it [allows locals to] come and hear about what we do and who we are.”
Melnick said the event is community-focused, with table hosts inviting others in the community to learn about BigHouse.
“This event has table hosts, and they have 30 tables at the center,” said Melnick. “Each table is hosted by either a couple, an individual or even an organization or business that sponsored it, and they invite people to sit at their table. So everyone who attends has either been invited by a table host, someone who’s hosting a table of 10, or they’ve requested a seat.”
Melnick said she wants those who attend to feel safe, comfortable and informed at the event, no matter their age or background.
“It’s less like a party, like Sorbick Farms when they have their big derby, they have much more of a festive party feel, but this is more of a very warm, inviting feel, but it’s more educational,” she said. “It’s more about what we do and who we are. [Those who attend] hear stories from families and stories of joy, challenge and how BigHouse walks alongside families through that.”
Through the Support Dinner, Melnick said BigHouse is able to impact both the families navigating foster care and adoption and those who attend the event and support the organization.
“It’s our biggest fundraiser of the year,” said Melnick. “So it’s pretty important for our organization, as far as fundraising efforts at the dinner. We don’t set a fundraising goal expectation, but we did have a goal to have 30 tables, and last year we had 25, so we wanted to increase our number of guests, and we met that goal.
“[We enjoy] being able to share what we do and hopefully engage people,” said Melnick. “The goal is to have a very good program that represents BigHouse really well, and let that carry out the ministry of getting the actual donations. [We] want it to speak for itself, we feel like the work we do is solid, and the people we serve are appreciative, and so we’re going to tell those stories and hopefully people in the community rally around that.”
At this year’s Support Dinner, Melnick said many sponsors and individuals were involved in supporting the mission.
“We had a number of individuals and sponsors present,” she said. “Our event sponsors for the evening were Pearson and Lauren Alsobrook, Day Structures, Richard and Brittany Oden and Southern Pride Landscaping and Maintenance. Our table sponsors were the Haywood Family, the Konopatzke Family, Take Flight Tutoring and Coaching, Ron Anders, Walton Law Firm, The Mint Julep Boutique, Carr, Riggs and Ingram, Hand Law Firm, Sumter Utilities, Doug Cannon, Ru’s Roots Foundation, Funtastic, Triple Farms and Auburn Psychological Wellness Center.”
With a night full of information and food, Melnick said the ultimate goal of the Support Dinner and BigHouse is raising funds to continue serving foster and adoptive families.
“We had lots of new faces in the crowd this year so we are hopeful that this event brings awareness of the needs of foster and adoptive families as well as avenues to support them through BigHouse,” she said. “My favorite part of the night was definitely hearing local families share their experience with foster care, adoption and BigHouse. It is so encouraging to hear from the families we serve how impacted they feel by our programs and services.”
At the Support Dinner, BigHouse launched a sign up for the BigHouse Hustle at the dinner. According to Melnick, the BigHouse Hustle is a virtual challenge where locals can get active every day and raise money to support foster and adoptive families.
The Goal of the BigHouse Hustle is to find 30 community members who would join the mission to complete a monthly movement challenge to log 31, 65 or 100 miles over the course of 31 days. Each participant will receive a t-shirt and encouragement from through a private BigHouse Hustle facebook group. For more information, visit ourbighouse.org/.
