by Carolyn Eller
For the past seven years, we’ve gathered together—face to face—for our annual auction and gala, A Night of REST. The event has served as our largest opportunity to join as a community to declare “Everyone deserves to be loved, everyone deserves a life free from exploitation.”
Every year, hundreds of supporters have dressed to the nines and prioritized this night as they bid on auction items, raised their paddles, and gave funds to build and expand pathways to freedom, safety, and hope for victims and survivors of sex trafficking. Over the years, supporters have raised millions of dollars to fight sexual exploitation alongside REST.
The truth of the matter is this: we simply cannot safely gather in large groups right now—and A Night of REST is no exception to this rule. Over the last few months, we’ve carefully evaluated our options from safety, achievability, and financial perspectives, and have decided to reimagine A Night of REST 2020 into a virtual soirée. We will deeply miss seeing your faces and having a chance to thank you in person—but we wanted to make a safe and wise decision for our supporters. (And let’s be honest, we’re also going to miss the photo booth, dessert frenzy, and all the energy of over 500 friends in one place).
But even while we navigate the uncharted waters of a global pandemic, and can’t be physically together this year, we still need you! We have always relied on the support and generosity of our community to keep moving forward, and that’s no different right now. This year, we have a unique opportunity to (virtually) gather with each other here in our local community—as well as those across the world—to raise awareness and $500,000 of critical support for victims and survivors of sex trafficking.
The silver lining of hosting this soirée in the middle of a pandemic is what makes this A Night of REST different from all the others that came before it: a virtual event gives us the unique opportunity to reach beyond Seattle and King County, inviting people nationally, perhaps even globally, to learn more about the reality of the issue of sex trafficking, and then to respond. While we may not be able to gather in person this year, we look forward to being able to gather online with our long-time and most faithful supporters—while also forging new relationships, unrestricted by geographic boundaries.
Before we shift gears into what you can expect from what we thought A Night of REST would be—to what it will be—we wanted to pause and publicly thank our partners who we were working with for our annual in-person gala. Thank you, Hyatt Regency Seattle and Stokes Auction Group for allowing us to reschedule your venue and services for A Night of REST 2021! Save the date—October 16, 2021—we’ll be partying in person again next year!
What can you expect at A Night of REST: Virtual Soirée?
The biggest fundraising opportunity at A Night of REST has always been inviting attendees to support through Fund-a-Need gifts, which reflect the greatest needs of survivors of sexual exploitation—things like housing, job placement services, counseling, basic necessities, and more. This year, the Fund-a-Need will be even more critical, as we’re opting to forego the auction you may have come to expect, and reimagine A Night of REST into a live streamed program that brings you a bit closer into our world.
We don’t want to add just another virtual commitment to your calendar—we want to provide you with an opportunity to come alongside REST, raising awareness around the issue of sex trafficking, and funds to build and expand pathways to freedom, safety, and hope for victims and survivors of sexual exploitation.
Won’t you join us?
Here’s what we’re going to do, and we need your help to do it: We’re going to raise $500,000–virtually–to build and expand pathways to freedom, safety, and hope.
Here’s how you can participate—and you can do one, two, or all three of these things:
1. Register to attend A Night of REST: Virtual Soirée on October 17 at 6:00 p.m. PST. Registration is free, but required to attend.
2. Become a Virtual Ambassador: There’s never been an easier way to attend a REST event. No ticket. No cocktail dress rental. But we need YOU to help us make this A Night of REST a success. Virtual Ambassadors will help mobilize their friends, family, and colleagues to join us—both here in the Seattle area, and around the world—inviting individuals who have a passion for making freedom, safety, and hope a reality for victims and survivors.
3. Support REST’s greatest needs through a Fund-a-Need donation—your gift, in any amount, will help us meet our goal of $500,000. You can make a gift anytime between now and the end of our Week of Giving REST (October 23).
Again, we’re extraordinarily sad that we won’t get to see you in person this year—but we are so excited for this opportunity to come together virtually and raise the funds to build the pathways to freedom, safety, and hope for victims and survivors of sexual exploitation.