(L-R) Myles Peake, Outreach Centre Director of Fund Development; Bonnee Gregg and Brandy Roberts, event co-founders; Kortney Waschuk, judge, performer, and past-champion of the event; and Dustin Moore, Fund Development & Events Specialist for the Outreach Centre, at the commemorative gathering for Red Deer's Lip Sync 2023 fundraiser on Thursday at Tiffany's Steakhouse & Lounge. The event raised $210, 269.91. (rdnewsNOW/Alessia Proietti)

By Alessia Proietti

Thanking red deerians

2023 Lip Sync Battle raises over $200,000 for The Outreach Centre; most in its eight years

Feb 8, 2024 | 10:44 PM

A special gathering was held on Thursday at Tiffany’s Steakhouse & Lounge to commemorate those who helped put together Red Deer’s Lip Sync Battle, which raised a total of $210,269.91 in 2023 for The Outreach Centre.

Event co-founders Bonnee Gregg and Brandy Roberts said it was the most raised in its eight years, with last year’s total around $135,000.

While the group held a thank-you party solely for performers last year, they wanted to expand that even more this year to sponsors, judges, Masters of Ceremonies, and all those involved.

“It’s like a little army of people that work behind the scenes, and everyone is volunteering their time,” said Gregg. “To get everyone together, say a genuine thank you, [in an] eye-to-eye conversation, is important to us.”

Due to the event’s popularity, it was the second year in a row that the Lip Sync Battle was held over two days at Bo’s Bar & Stage.

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“Both sets of show tickets went on sale at the same time and our tickets sold out in less than 90 seconds, so I guess you could say Lip Sync for Red Deer is the Taylor Swift event,” said Roberts.

With eight contestants, each performing two acts, Gregg said each year is better than the last, incorporating their first ever half-time show this year, as people pour their heart and soul into it.

“There’s no event like this in Red Deer. There’s no event where people can pay a pretty modest amount for a big return. It’s a party at Bo’s. The performance value is amazing so it’s a lot of bang for your buck and I feel like we’ve been listening to what Red Deer wants and we’re delivering,” she said.

“They want to be entertained, they want to be in an inclusive environment where everybody can contribute to the cause.”

She added that every dollar counts, whether it’s buying a ticket or bidding on an auction item. One contestant, Brian Isaac, was given a custom bobble head as a prize for raising over $44,000, the most out of any contestant this year.

Bonnee Gregg (left) and Brandy Roberts (Right), co-founders of the Lip Sync fundraiser in Red Deer, presenting contestant Brian Isaac with a custom bobble head of all three of them for raising the most funds, over $44,000, out of any contestant in 2023. (rdnewsNOW/Alessia Proietti)

Ian Wheeliker, Executive Director of The Outreach Centre, said the funds have allowed them to serve their highest amount of kids and families this year through their Adopt-a-Family program, which totalled roughly $100,000. The funds also helped people in need to buy groceries, pay utility bills, and other financial aids.

“This is the most fun raising funds. They put the fun in fund development,” he said, thanking the community for their generosity.

“When we’re able to have huge fundraisers like this, we’re able to say yes a lot more than we have to say no and it feels really good to be able to give it back to the community and to help people that are struggling. It’s just a good news story all around.”

READ: The Outreach Centre’s Holiday Hope Campaign kicks off to help central Alberta families this season

Wheeliker shared that some upcoming projects for the Centre include an affordable housing initiative, where rental revenues from the housing would be reinvested back to the family tenants, whether it be through education to seek higher paying jobs or for a down payment on their own house someday.

For next year’s Lip Sync Battle, the co-founders said more news is yet to come on how it will be bigger and better, with Bo’s reserving Friday night for the shows fo the first time.

Roberts says it’s never too late or too early to support the cause, encouraging interested businesses and community members to reach out to them on social media or to The Outreach Centre to learn more about getting involved.

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