This Friday at the Fantasy Springs Resort and Casino, swing will be the thing.
“Swing” is the name the ABC Recovery Center’s Annual Firestone Award Gala, starring the Cherry Poppin’ Daddies, and honoring John Schwarzlose, the CEO of the Betty Ford Center.
Kate Burke, of the ABC Recovery Center, said the event is part-fundraiser, part-celebration, and part-awareness-raiser—and the fact that this is the center’s 50th anniversary makes the event even more significant.
“We want to say, ‘Look, over 50 years, we’ve become a trusted member of the recovery community,” she said. … “This work is blood, sweat and tears. There plenty of tragedies in our line of work. People don’t work here for the money; they work in recovery because there’s hope, and lives can be saved.”
The Firestone Award—named after Ambassador Leonard K. Firestone, a co-founder of the Betty Ford Center, and a major contributor to the expansion of ABC—was first given to Betty Ford back in 1999. Therefore, it makes sense to now honor Schwarzlose, a friend of the late Ambassador Firestone.
“It seems only fitting, given the 30th anniversary of the Betty Ford Center and ABC Recovery Center’s 50th, that John’s tireless commitment to recovery would be honored,” said ABC president and CEO J. David Likens in a news release. “ABC has had a very special kinship with the Betty Ford Center over the past 30 years; and that is something to celebrate!”
The event starts at 6 p.m., Friday, March 15, with dinner and the silent auction. (Actually, that’s only partially correct; the silent auction is already under way at abcrecoverycenter.org.) Music and dancing get going at 7:30 p.m., courtesy of the Cherry Poppin’ Daddies, who were at the front of the ’90s swing revival with their big hit, “Zoot Suit Riot.”
The event takes place at the Fantasy Springs Resort and Casino, 84245 Indio Springs Parkway in Indio. Tickets are $100, and are available by calling 342-6616.
Attendees will also have a chance to participate in a “Perinatal Auction,” in which bidders can fund baby showers for new mothers who are in recovery at ABC.
“We want to embrace the spirit of Ambassador Firestone in giving out this award,” Burke said.