Dancing With Our Stars Live Raises Over $360,000

(KNSI) — The seventh annual Women’s Fund’s Dancing With Our Stars Live event racked up over $360,000 in donations to support girls, women in transitional phases in their lives and elder women in our community Monday night.

More than 600 people packed into the Escher Auditorium at the College of St. Benedict to watch and cheer on the six local community stars as they danced with their professional partners to win up to a $15,000 grant for the nonprofit of their choice. The Women’s Fund of the Central Minnesota Community Foundation donated $42,000 in grant money to participants based on their rankings in the competition.

The dancers and charities raised $198,423, and event sponsorships brought in $165,625 for a total of $364,048.

The final scoring was 60% on the dollars raised and 40% from the judges’ scores.

Community Star, Rachel Thompson of Visit Greater St. Cloud, danced with pro Amber Schmiesing to benefit Zonta Club of St. Cloud. They raised $69,886 and took home the first place prize of $15,000 for a grand total of $84,886 awarded.

Community Star, Ayan Omar from District 742, danced with pro Jesús Sandoval to benefit the Local Activities Education Foundation (LEAF) for District 742. They raised $45,493 and took home the second place prize of $10,000 for a grand total of $55,493 awarded.

Community Star, Franco Cusipag from Sherburne State Bank, danced with pro Lucille Guinta to benefit the INDY Foundation. They raised $32,073, took home the third place prize of $5,000, and were honored with the Judge’s Choice award and an additional $3,000 for a grand total of $40,073.

Community Star, Jason Miller from Premier Real Estate Services, danced with pro Janell Missler to benefit St. Cloud Hospital NICU. They raised $25,704 and took home the fourth place prize of $3,000 for a grand total of $28,704 awarded.

Community Star, Ben Anderson from the St. Cloud Fire Department, danced with pro Shantelle DesMarais to benefit St. Cloud COP House. They raised $17,381 and took home the fifth place prize of $3,000 for a grand total of $20,381 awarded.

Community Star, Christine Skoog, with Christine’s Cheesecakes, danced with pro Matthias Meyer to benefit Tanner’s Team. They raised $7,884 and took home the sixth place prize of $3,000 for a grand total of $10,884 awarded.

These numbers reflect the total amount raised as of June 12th, 2023, at 8:00 p.m.

Since 2002, the Women’s Fund of the Central Minnesota Community Foundation has been dedicated to strengthening the community by improving the lives of women and girls. The Women’s Fund has granted nearly $1.6 million to support local programs in three core focus areas: girls age 10-18, women in transition and elder women.

Learn more by clicking here.

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