I worked hard for the ten days before the party and five days following. I got the last of the dishes stored back in the garage exactly one week later. We bought two sets of “service for eight” white dishes a few years ago to cover breakage over time. That extra set sure came in handy for the party. But have you ever tried to pack a whole set of dishes back into the ORIGINAL PACKAGING??? Harder than a 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle…

I’m happy that I took the time to put on this fundraising dinner. A dinner for 25 creates a much more intimate connection to the dance company than attending a wine-and-cheese-silent-auction for a hundred people. The relationships we built that night will go way beyond the value of the $100 donation each guest made. It was a great party and a good kick-off for our new fundraising concept. Dear Jean and her dance have so enriched my life that I was delighted to have this opportunity to give back a little something to her…

If you’ve been reading since the beginning you’ll know that Jean Isaacs was the one who convinced me I could dance and she’s been there every step of the way. I started dating my husband during my first summer dance workshop with Jean. I took class with Jean on the day I graduated from college. On my wedding day I took class with Jean. I danced with Jean all the way through my (very easy) pregnancy and my water broke during her class! Dance is my salvation and I wouldn’t be me without it. I hope all of you have such great passion in your lives and find your “Jean”.

The Happy Hostess and Brodeeva

And, just in case you are wondering? YES, I would do it again and probably will. Hopefully not for a year or so… And I’m certain that any of you could do it too. It just takes strategy, planning, courage and a lot of what my Mom calls “elbow grease.”

Right after I set the date for this fundraiser I landed a great new consulting project. Maybe the Universe responding to my good deed? What do you think?

• ‹ My Breast Cancer Story: Let's Start at the End
• Showtime ›