Breaking records has become somewhat normal for the Southside Virginia and Northern North Carolina supporters of the VCU Health Community Memorial Hospital Foundation. The CMH Foundation’s WinterFest 2019, held on February 23, did it again, raising a record breaking $46,533.53 net total to benefit their Pharmacy Connection program. 

This year’s fun event featured lots of laughs and lots of new things. Held at the South Hill Exchange, 345+ people had a great social time, dinner, and the area’s largest reverse raffle with a $10,000 grand prize won by Floyd Edmonds. Emcees Jamie Jones and Jeremy Lynch kept things fun. New draw-master Kathryn Bigelow drew numbers and kept everything on track. In addition to cash prizes, trips to ski resorts and the beach, a year of massages, $500 toward a new set of tires, photography packages, and much more were won.

This year, a very special auction, “A Cop for A Day” raised a combined total of $2500. Winners of the auction will be able to give a child of their choice an experience of a lifetime in being a police officer for a day. The “Officer” will be sworn in by South Hill Mayor Dean Marion and will spend the day with Chief Stuart Bowen in ride-alongs, visits to emergency services, a “business lunch” with the Chief, and more. Robert Harris Photography will take a photo of the young officer in his police shirt and badge. This was a very popular part of the evening.

Entertainment this year was exceptional, with local folks forming an “All Star” Mardi Gras Tribute Band. This group entertained the crowd with performances of “Soul Man” and “Uptown Funk”. As a thank you to longtime draw-master Mickey Smith, Kim Twisdale, an employee of the Hendrick Cancer & Rehab Center, performed a show-stopping serenade as “Patsy Cline”.

The WinterFest 2019 committee is very appreciative of the extraordinary support received from sponsors and guests. It was a record-breaking night!

The following businesses and individuals were sponsors:

Venue Sponsor
Town of South Hill

Grand Prize Sponsor
VCU Health CMH Medical Staff

Meal Sponsor
Pine View Assisted Living / M.C.’s Kids

Bar Sponsor
Citizens Bank & Trust

Souvenir Sponsor
Trinity Custom Apparel

Signage Sponsor
Xtreme Signs & Graphics

Event Sponsors
Dr. Tony & Mrs. Mari Adams, Airtec/Jimmy & Judy Newman, Boyd Chrylser-Dodge-Ram-Jeep of South Hill, Virginia, EXIT Town & Lake Realty, Newmart Builders Inc., Parker Oil & Propane, The Springer Agency and Total Image Solutions

Decor Sponsor
First Citizens Bank

Special Prize Sponsors
Justin & Amber Smith
Virginia Pallet & Wood LLC

Table Sponsor
Touchstone Bank

Photo Booth Sponsor
Williams Enterprises

Audio-Visual Sponsor
Lee’s Excavating

Print Media Sponsors
South Hill Enterprise, The Mecklenburg Sun

Corporate Sponsors
BIT Communications, Dogwood Graphics, Edward Jones, First Citizens Bank, Mecklenburg Electric Cooperative, Remac, Inc., Rosemont Winery of Virginia, South Hill Paint Store / Town & Country Cleaners and Stahl Accounting and Tax, Inc.

Diamond Level Prize Sponsors
David & Lynda Biggs, Beth Cook, Kim & Gregg Harper, Robert L. Harris Photography,
Spectrum Photography, Johnna Maurice Tefft

Gold Level Prize Sponsors
Billie Jo Gwaltney Photography, Kim & Gregg Harper, Hite’s Clothing, Karobway Furniture & Floor Covering, Meherrin River Lawn & Landscaping LLC, Rosemont Winery of Virginia, Sand Dollar Seaplanes / Steve Harris, Sass & Sawdust and Skelton Speed Shop

Other Sponsors
Around the House / Chris Early, Penny Evans / LulaRoe, Wendy Grimm/Young Living, Essential Oils, Harper Jewelry, Lake Gaston Pizza, Memory Makers, Pampered Chef/Dawn Kriigel, Risin’ Smoke and Wildwood Nursery

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The Pharmacy Connection program at VCU Health Community Memorial Hospital (CMH) has been assisting qualified individuals in obtaining their prescribed medications since 2003. The Pharmacy Connection is offered at no charge, and is partially funded by the RxRelief Virginia grant from the Virginia Health Care Foundation. Qualifications for enrollment in prescription assistance programs are manufacturer specific, and are generally income-based for uninsured and underinsured patients. Individuals who are interested in participating with this program or who would like more information are encouraged to speak with a VCU Health CMH Pharmacy Connection staff member by contacting (434) 774-2584.

Emcees Jeremy Lynch, left, and Jamie Jones, right, flank the big winner – Floyd Edmonds who proudly shows off his winning ping pong ball worth $10,000 as the final ball pulled at WinterFest 2019. 

Kell Fleshood, AKA Dan Aykroyd, left, and Kevin Blackwell, AKA John Belushi, sing “Soul Man” from the Blues Brothers as Jeff Parrish backs them up on saxaphone