Twilight festivities offer hope for many

From the Lansing State Journal

Twenty-nine years ago, Carol Walters dreamed up an event to help women network.

There were two rules: Bring a dish to pass and a friend nobody else knew.

"We turned it into an annual event, and before we knew it, we had 300 women attending with 300 dishes to pass," said Walters, who then worked for the state and lived in mid-Michigan.

The event - now known as Twilight in the Garden - takes place Thursday.

Over the years, it moved with Walters to the Oakland County city of Milford. The potluck was abandoned in favor of catered food, and the so-called Women's Cocktail Party morphed into the Women's Caring Program. Ticket sales and donations help low-income mothers across the state pay for day care so they can go to work or school.

Last year's event, attended by more than 700 women, raised $250,000, and in 2007, 82 families were assisted.

"There's no program," Walters said. "Women come and just enjoy the evening, meet old friends, meet new friends, eat and bid at the silent auction."

Bartenders and servers all are male, corporate types who have paid $2,500 for the privilege of pouring wine or passing an hors d'oeuvres tray. There's music, conversation and more.

Kelly Rossman-McKinney, CEO of the Lansing public relations firm The Rossman Group, has attended the party since its early years. This year, her firm is donating $20,000 to the cause in honor of its 20th anniversary.

"I wanted to do something that had what I considered to be a real social impact, real staying power," said Rossman-McKinney, who strikes a balance between her career and her role as mother of four.

"I'm so grateful to be in a place in my life where I can do something like this."

She and a group of friends have chartered a bus to take them to Milford on Thursday for the event.

Walters is expecting as many as 800 women this year, and corporate donations are up over last year. Both of those things mean that even more families can get child-care help.

"It's great," Walters said. "People see the need and believe in it."