Whimsy and childhood delights provided the inspiration for Mission Children’s Hospital’s biannual gala “Faces of Hope: The Missing Piece” which will take place at 6 p.m. on August 21 in the Reuter Outpatient Center, 11 Vanderbilt Park. The theme for the fund-raiser can be found in the giant jigsaw puzzle pieces on the walls of the Center.

“The idea behind the puzzle pieces ... was to get children to think about all the different pieces that make up the world,” says Linda Poss, business manager for Women’s and Children’s Services and a member of the team that helped design Reuter. “Each one is unique and has a part.” The idea, she continues, was to encourage children to figure out their part in the bigger scheme of things. “They are much more than a child with an illness coming for care. They are special people with a very special role in the world.”

Each time event organizers asked staff and children the significance of the puzzle, they got different answers. Event co-chairs Lynne Brofman and Carlyn Pheil decided to host the event at the Outpatient Center and let guests take a turn at solving the puzzle.

“Faces of Hope: The Missing Piece” begins with a reception that will lead guests on the path to solving several puzzles, followed by dinner under the stars on the Center’s grounds. Guests will also have an opportunity to meet some very special faces of hope, the children served by the Children’s Hospital. The party goes until the puzzle is solved.

Tickets are $175 per person. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit facesofhopeevent.org or call 828.213.1020.
In Photo: Doug Fox (left) and brothers Sam and Gus Cowan