Residents raise $100K for Eden Prairie needs

(From left) Eden Prairie Community Foundation Board Chair Carlos Berger, Kathie Case, Eden Prairie Mayor Ron Case, Sarah Knox (the auctioneer for the evening), and emcee Alix Kendall during the EP Gives gala on Saturday night, May 14, at the Marriott Southwest Hotel in Minnetonka. Photo by Kelley Regan

Eden Prairie residents and businesses raised money to fill community needs Saturday, May 14, by attending the EP Gives gala held by the Eden Prairie Community Foundation.

Nearly 150 persons attended the dinner, auctions, fund-a-need, and program at the Marriott Southwest Hotel in Minnetonka – the first in-person EP Gives since April 2019. FOX 9 morning anchor Alix Kendall was the event’s emcee.

More than $100,000 was raised at the event. Proceeds support the Foundation’s work to strengthen community services and fill critical people needs through philanthropy, collaboration, and leadership. One of the event’s beneficiaries is the Foundation’s Grants Fund, which was the focus of the Saturday fund-a-need, or special appeal.

Greg Leeper (left) shakes hands with Mark Weber at the gala. In July, Leeper will take over as the Eden Prairie Community Foundation’s executive director from Weber, who is retiring on June 30. Photo courtesy of Sarah Morreim of Sarah Morreim Photography

Other money was raised in silent and live auctions for items that ranged from a tour of the Eden Prairie Police Department to international trips.

The event also included recognition of Mark Weber, who has been the Foundation’s executive director for almost nine years and will be retiring on June 30, and a welcome to Greg Leeper, who takes over in July.

The Foundation has existed since 1981, awarding more than $2 million in grants to 100-plus different nonprofits and agencies serving Eden Prairie residents.

About 150 people attended Saturday night’s EP Gives gala. That included (from left) Karen Nelson, Nicole Kerin, Jennifer Urbanski, Peter Kerin, Rachel Soffer, Jan Eian, Adam Soffer, State Sen. Steve Cwodzinski, and Patti Cwodzinski. Photo by Kelley Regan

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