Why We Do What We Do: Gala 2025 Recap

There are two primary goals for the annual gala. One is financial, as the community relies on the Loma Public Education Fund to cover the cost of fully educating our students. Last year’s revenue enabled LPEF to cover K-8 art, PE at Loma, and a portion of a 12th teacher at Loma to keep class sizes small. 

If funding were the sole objective, however, we could just ask for money. We believe it is also vital to bring our community together to celebrate what makes us special. It is a massive and expensive undertaking to put on this event, entirely organized by volunteers, and one could be forgiven for asking if it's worth the effort. As witnesses to the ways in which the community came together to make this such a successful event, the LPEF board can assure you that we wouldn't want it any other way.

A Community Effort

People gave at every level—with their time, their creativity, and their wallets. We greeted volunteers who have been involved for decades, as well as folks who are brand-new to the mountain or to the schools. We loved seeing the creativity and dedication of the parents who harnessed their students' artistry and turned it into remarkable class treasures for the silent auction. The auction basket donations this year were impressive and unique, including diamond jewelry, vacation rentals, handcrafted art, jaw-dropping desserts, and vintage baseball cards.

We made more money in both the silent and live auctions than we have since the gala’s return after COVID. This is no small feat given that ticket sales were lower this year than they have been in recent years, perhaps due to people leaving town for the three-day weekend. Those who showed up opened their pocketbooks, and those who could not attend bid from afar. We were astounded by the display of generosity from all.

For those in our community who have the means to consider private school, we are grateful that you are directing your money to our schools. It reaffirms that we are all in this together, building a promising future for all of our children. It's worth noting that all Los Gatos elementary schools now offer Spanish starting in kindergarten. As we think about what programs will best prepare our mountain students, community input matters—your voices shape what LPEF can support.

What We Learned

We introduced new live auction vacations this year and were delighted that the sourced travel packages did well. An agency sells these trips to us at cost and LPEF gets to keep the excess, which amounted to a whopping $14,215. The baseball cards were part of a larger donation from a local estate that you may be seeing more of leading into the holiday season.

Like any event, we learned a few things along the way. We got great feedback about everything from bidding glitches to improving dessert service, and we're already thinking about how to make next year even smoother. Please keep the suggestions coming—we genuinely want to hear what worked and what didn't.

The Financials

Here's how the numbers broke down for this year's gala:

	Gross Revenue	LPEF Cost	Net Profit
Silent auction	$68,093	$125	$67,968
Live auction	$55,350	$11,387	$43,963
Ticket sales	$48,750	$45,823	$2927
Drinks	$7850	$2616	$5234
Parking raffle	$1655	0	$1655
Fixed price items	$6065	0	$6065
Donations, including top-hat	$13,250	$44	$13,206
Sponsorship	$13,250	$476	$12,774
Total	$214,263	$60,471	$153,792

The “cost” column only includes the direct cost to LPEF. We acknowledge with gratitude that donated vacation rentals, services, art, etcetera carry significant costs for donors. Additionally, many classes donated funds to purchase the items in their class baskets. Having said that, it is becoming more common for room parents to solicit local businesses to donate gift certificates and other items for their class baskets to reduce how much money they are asking their room families to contribute.

You'll notice that we basically break even on ticket sales. As we mentioned earlier, it is expensive to put this event on, but we think it's worth investing in a big night celebrating all that we are. The biggest expense is catering, followed by lighting and sound, table and chair rental, bathroom rental, day-of support from our software vendor, and the drinks that aren't donated by local wineries. We actually lost money again on the beer truck, but we have learned the hard way that attendees must have their good IPA and cannot tolerate foamy kegs.

The Magic of the Night

This year's gala was one of those nights where everything just clicked—good food, great company, and the satisfaction of knowing that a night out can make a real difference for our schools. When the Leadership Committee voted on the Old West theme, we weren't sure how it would go—but wow, did it work! Jamie Cassel's décor looked amazing, as always, and seeing how everyone chose to embrace the theme, from casual to elegant, increased the fun.

No article about the gala would be complete without mentioning the incredible generosity of Patti Hughes in gifting her gorgeous property for over twenty years. She has shared how much joy it gives her to bring people together and keep them on the mountain for our annual celebration. Interestingly, many of the improvements on her property that enable us to enjoy ourselves so much were actually constructed by mountain boys—her students at LGHS—in the 1970s and 80s.

Looking Ahead

If you weren't able to join us this year, we dearly hope that you'll consider coming next year. The gala is always held the first Saturday in October. Discounted early bird tickets for October 3, 2026 will go on sale soon. And here's something to look forward to: those whose annual donations qualify for Leadership Circle (inclusive of gala silent and live auction purchases) will get to vote on next year's gala theme.

In the nearer term, save the date for the annual Holiday Tree Lighting! LPEF is coming together with Scott Green, Loma Prieta Home & School Club, and Loma Prieta Community Foundation to light up the fabulous tree near Building Blocks. We’ll have four food trucks and a children’s movie in the Redwood Amphitheater. Mark your calendars for Dec 3, 2025 at 6pm.

Please don't hesitate to share your feedback about what LPEF is doing well and where you would like to see improvements. Email president@lpef.org or complete our anonymous community survey.