For the week of November 13 - 19, 2002

Galena rides the magic

Annual benefit record success

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By DANA DUGAN
Express Staff Writer

The 7^th Annual Galena Lodge and North Valley Benefit Dinner and Auction glided to a successful evening Sunday at the indoor Ice Rink in Sun Valley.

Ben Young wins a Suburu Outback at the Galena Benefit with the purchase of a single raffle ticket. Express photo by Willy Cook

 

With a theme of "Keeping the Magic," the festivities, organized as usual by Jenny Busdon, began with a cocktail hour and a silent auction. And, while the Bruce Innes Trio played tunes, auctioneer Bob Rosso started things off with the annual toast to the Heinz family, who helped save Galena Lodge almost 10 years ago with a donation. The community matched the donation to complete the campaign to buy the lodge. Located 22 miles north of Ketchum, the lodge is now the Blaine County Recreation District’s headquarters for the North Valley Trail System.

The party this year was held in the ice rink because the Limelight Room in the Sun Valley Inn is being remodeled. And since they had the space to do it, a Subaru Outback that was being raffled off was parked front and center next to the silent auction tables. That enabled the organizers to sell many more tickets for the car.

But the proof of their efforts lay in the eating of the pudding. The lodge’s 7^th annual benefit was a record success.

"We grossed over $100,000. More than we’ve ever made," Busdon said.

"Ben Young won the Subaru car with one ticket. That was the best part of the evening. I was really, really happy that he got it."

Besides the car, the raffle included such items as Yuba snowshoes, gift certificates, ski tuning, round trip tickets on Horizon Air, wine, and ski passes.

Jenny Busdon Express photo by Willy Cook

The silent auction and live auction were chock full of trips, dinners, condo accommodations, jewelry, artwork, and other amazing items. And the generosity of the patrons was informed by their love of Galena Lodge and the trails.

"Sun Valley Company is really so supportive," said Busdon, who added that the resort made the switch to a new venue as painless as possible.

"This is a great space for the party. Jenny deserves a vacation around the world for this, not that she’d take it," said Bart Davis, of Backwood Mountain Sports, who summed up the atmosphere at the party as well as his feelings about Busdon, "She’s the reason the lodge is still there and is available to the public."

Davis’ wife, Jennifer Davis, concurred, "She’s a rare gem."

And a magician, since in a matter of seven years she has created an event that is annually the kick off to the Wood River Valley holiday season. Keeping with the theme, the large round tables were decorated with magician’s hats, wands, white gloves and cards. A video made by John Plummer on the multi-faceted history of the Galena Lodge was played.

"The lodge is one of the most precious resources for life at Galena," Fraser Ford, a guest, said. "This is the most incredible community for the sport of cross country skiing. The economy here is based on cross-country as much as on downhill. It’s a big deal."

Another partygoer and Galena lover, Salome Taylor, said she had lived in St. Moritz, Switzerland, where people come from all over the world to cross country ski. "We skied it daily. Galena compares. It’s huge."

 

The Idaho Mountain Express is distributed free to residents and guests throughout the Sun Valley, Idaho resort area community. Subscribers to the Idaho Mountain Express will read these stories and others in this week's issue.