Saturday, May 2, the Rotary Club of Alpharetta had its first virtual Donation Derby and Party. The idea was to have 20 Alpharetta Rotarian Jockeys race in a virtual Kentucky Derby. Each jockey represented one of 20 different local organizations to raise money. The jockeys used their networks, and the club relied heavily upon social media to get the word out. We used Classy.org as the vehicle to collect the donations and Zoom and Facebook Live to do the virtual race party. Our goal was to raise $75,000.

On the day of the event, incoming District Governor, Kirk Driskell was the Grand Marshall. We had over 100 people attend on Zoom; custom mint julep cups were distributed, we sang the National Anthem and Old Kentucky Home, we had a virtual fashion show, a bourbon bar battle, and, of course, we replayed footage of a previous Kentucky Derby.

When everything was said and done, we had raised $110,000. Major thanks go to Rotarian Mary Ulich for conception and execution of the idea. We are incredibly proud of the citizens of Alpharetta and our Club. In one month, in the middle of a pandemic, the club raised over $100k. I am beginning to believe the Rotary Club of Alpharetta can do anything.

The list of organizations that participated included: Alpharetta Business Association, Alpharetta Chamber of Commerce, Alpharetta Public Safety Foundation, Alpharetta Rotary, BrewAble, Child Development Association, Community COVID Relief, Drake House, End Polio Now, Family Haven, Homestretch, Lionheart, Meals by Grace, North Fulton Community Charities, North Fulton Senior Services, Out of Darkness, St. Vincent De Paul, Stand Up for Kids, Vision Warriors, YMCA