The Point Loma Association (PLA) will host its 46th annual gala floating dinner around the bay Tuesday, May 20 aboard the Inspiration Hornblower.
“The annual dinner,” said PLA board member and dinner chair Martha Phillips, “is our once-a-year, largest fundraiser.”
The money raised during the event is generated by ticket sales, silent auction proceeds and donations, said Phillips.
“The money goes towards a variety of different projects that we have in and around the Peninsula community,” Phillips said.
Phillips said the projects include news racks, new bus benches, collaborative efforts with other organizations and utility-box painting ” all part of an ongoing community beautification campaign. Another big aspect of the PLA is a variety of plantings, including the area around the entryway to Point Loma, she said.
The dinner’s menu consists of classic Caesar salad, fresh vegetable saute and a chocolate-pear caramel torte. For the entree, guests may choose between grilled steak, grilled chicken or Portobello mushroom ravioli. There will also be live entertainment and a silent auction.
A key part of the dinner will be the presentation of beautification awards in recognition of community achievement. The two biggest awards handed out will be the Lighthouse Award for the person who contributes the most to the community and the Grand Beautification Award.
Tickets for the dinner are available online at www.plaweb.org. Individual tickets are $75 and participants can pay an extra $30 for a PLA membership. Businesses can join in the dinner by sponsoring it or donating items to the silent auction.
Part of the PLA is the Beautify Point Loma project. The project helps maintain Point Loma through activities like graffiti removal, tree and shrub planting and neighborhood cleanups.
The biggest aspect that Beautify Point Loma has undertaken recently is the entryway on the onramp to Famosa Boulevard from Nimitz Boulevard. This project was completed earlier this year.
“That used to be covered with weeds and it was overgrown “” a place for homeless people,” Phillips said. “Now, through donations from the community “” both in-kind and in cash “” we’ve been able to completely change that around.”
Beautification is not the only thing the PLA does in the community, however.
“It’s not just about beautification,” Phillips said. “It’s also about being the eyes and ears for things that go on within the community.”
The PLA’s upcoming project is the summer concert series, a series of five concerts on consecutive Fridays starting on July 18. For more information, visit www.plaweb.org.