Friends of Mount Washington News
2026 Auction Was An Amazing Success - we raised over $70,000 Thanks to you all!
To everyone who helped bring the FOMWS Jet-Set Soirée to life — THANK YOU. The evening was a beautiful and joyful success, and together we raised meaningful funds for the incredible programs and opportunities that support our children at Mount Washington Elementary. But what made this year’s soirée truly spectacular was the extraordinary level of parent participation, creativity, and community involvement behind it. This year’s event felt especially alive, more ambitious, more immersive, and more community-driven than ever because so many people stepped forward to contribute their ideas, talents, labor, resources, and enthusiasm. The night was built by an extraordinary community of volunteers, parents, artists, organizers, problem-solvers, decorators, heavy-lifters, lighting designers, donation wranglers, and people willing to show up at truly wild hours all came together to create something magical for our school. What people felt most throughout the evening was that sense of collective spirit. Every glowing light, every flower, every auction table, every cupcake, every perfectly steamed linen, bottom-lit glass of bubbly and every thoughtful detail existed because someone in this community stepped in and said: “I’ll help.”
Some very special gratitude to:
Ben Dickow — as our president, Ben made sure we stayed on track every step of the way and was integral to every part of the planning process. He served as our fearless leader and pilot captain during the live auction, helped hang sponsorship banners and posters throughout the venue, helped secure museum memberships alongside Laurel, and was also our connection to Good Neighbor Bar, who mixed the fantastic drinks that kept the night flowing.
Suzanne Méjean Pinney — our auction chair and planner extraordinaire, who brought this entire evening together with boundless creativity and vision. From the champagne tower to the entertainment lineup to every detail in between, Suzanne shaped the look, feel, and spirit of the night. She worked tirelessly behind the scenes, and her ideas — big and small — are the reason this soirée felt so special.
Angela Buck — auction co-chair, serving as the mentor and guide through this entire process. After chairing the event for the last few years, we used your blueprint as the stepping stone to take things up a notch this year. Thank you as well for your décor help, steaming linens, and assistance with auction preparation. And thank you to her little Saffie for loading batteries into every single candle in the event.
Anna Schilling — for taking on the enormous job of tracking down donations, coordinating pickups, organizing silent auction items, and setting up the auction tables on the day of the event. The sheer scale of managing so many moving pieces behind the scenes was massive, and this event truly would not have come together the same way without your tireless work and dedication.
Margaux Corsini — for building excitement around the event through communications and social posts that created such great energy leading up to the night, and for also helping day-of with setup.
Trey Wallace and Jeff Watkins — our treasurers — for fielding countless emails about contracts and invoices, handling all things money-related throughout the event, and helping with auction setup and logistics.
Lisa Lorentson — for helping secure sponsorships and auction items, assisting with auction displays, and then still showing up at the very end to help hang lights and bring the space together.
Edith Reyna — for helping secure and transport major live auction items and supporting the auction throughout the process.
Akiko Stehrenberger — for the stunning poster artwork, bookmarks, and program cover design that gave the entire event its visual identity of elegance and playfulness.
Sef Pinney — for building the incredible plane installation, along with the cupcake stand and glowing champagne tower (a feat of design engineering!) that truly elevated the atmosphere of the evening.
Lynsay Brice — for sourcing the florals and creating the stunning sculptural floral designs throughout the event.
Laurel Dickow — for helping with logistics and auction coordination throughout the process, along with helping secure museum memberships alongside Ben.
Katherine Sheehan — for photographing the evening and capturing the magic of the night so beautifully.
Laura Blair Sherrier — for helping design the plane installation, including the plane windows and logo details, and for inspiring the beautiful handprint concept that allowed so many children to become part of the artwork itself.
Heidy Fine Iles — for helping facilitate getting the children’s handprints on the plane through the most fun and chaotic ACAS in memory.
Nina Zippay — for generously donating her time as Radical Cooks to cook for the event. The hors d’oeuvres were absolutely fabulous.
Heather Sperling — for contributing the beautiful crudités and charcuterie spreads from Botanica and bringing such warmth, beauty, and generosity to the evening.
Archie Carey — for generously donating beers from Solarc Brewing and helping bring such a fun community spirit to the evening.
Jimmy DeFlippo — for parking his car overnight to save entertainment load-in space, walking home at 6 AM (!), and loaning the beautiful live-edge wood piece that held the crudités display.
Cindy Peña — for helping secure wonderful silent auction items and always bringing creative ideas for new offerings, partnerships, and community connections.
Nathan Peña — for beautifully lighting the champagne tower and for photographing the evening alongside Katherine, capturing the magic of the night.
Lindsey Hunter Lopez — for opening her closet to Anna and Suz and helping bring the jet-set vision to life.
Giovanni Knox — for helping shape the atmosphere of the stage with lighting for our performers. He also came early, with a broken hand no less, to install the blue sky backdrop for the FOMWS airplane (being auctioned off tomorrow!).
Roo Krout — for consulting on lighting design and plane placement throughout the space.
Lauryn Gerstle and Luis Cabrera — for being some of the very first volunteers to jump in, helping build table rods and hang lighting throughout the venue. Lauryn also helped scout York Manor early in the planning process as we first envisioned the event.
Sophie Olson — for fully embracing the mood and spirit of the event and helping with every little thing throughout the day.
Jonathan Sample — for jumping in on the day-of to transport sponsorship banners and posters down from the school.
Sarah Simmonds — for being one of the earliest helpers to arrive day-of: ironing linens, building table rods, and helping hang lights throughout the space.
Henriette Hammet — for generously donating a case of champagne.
Laylo Denman—for hanging lights and assisting with décor installation.
Gianna de la Torre — for helping transport and deliver auction items.
And to everyone else who hustled, donated, hauled, wrapped, organized, procured, transported, bid on, or brought auction items — THANK YOU. Your generosity and energy helped make this event feel abundant, joyful, and deeply supported by our community.And to the countless others who lifted, schlepped, climbed ladders, folded linens, moved furniture, ran errands, solved crises, stayed late, arrived early, donated materials, or simply asked “what else do you need?” — we could not have done this without you.This event truly felt like a community-built labor of love, and we are so grateful.And if reading all this makes you want to be part of the magic next year, whether that be in the garden, planning an event, or doing last-minute pickups, we would absolutely love to have you involved. FOMWS is always looking for volunteers, fresh ideas, and new energy, and it's a good time!One of the most beautiful parts of this event was seeing how many parents and community members came together to create something none of us could have built alone. Please reach out if you’d like to join us!
Yours Truly,
FOMWS
What We Fund
Garden Spaces
Music
Robotics
Library Books & Upgrades
Campus Beautification & Repairs
Loose Parts
Campus Events
HOW TO HELP
Participate! Shop with our local sponsors, attend our annualauction, donate, buy a produce boxto fund the School Garden.
But, most importantly, BECOME AN FOMWS MEMBER and join in the fun and rewarding work of supporting our children and galvanizing our community.
Contact us if you have any questions about our programs or organization.
