BETTENDORF, Iowa — Get ready for the third annual 'Starry Night Gala' happening on Saturday, Nov. 2.
It will be an evening of fundraising, raffles, dancing, speakers and the crowning of the next Mr. Starry Night. Tickets are $100 per person or $760 for a table of eight. Tickets are available here, with sales ending on Friday, Oct. 18.
The event is organized by local groups The Gray Matters Collective and Foster's Voice. The proceeds from the gala go to the Foster Cares Fund to help individuals in need of mental health care.
The fund was started in honor of Foster Atwood, who died by suicide at 19. It provides free mental health services to those who need financial assistance. Those services include work by licensed, professional therapists, as well as social workers trained in evidence-based practices.
In the first two years of the gala, nearly $100,000 has been raised for the fund.
"Mental health needs do not discriminate; they do not impact only certain types of people," Foster's Voice writes on its website. "Mental health needs are as universal and varied as physical health needs and we want you to know that there is hope and help."
The fund is a partnership between Foster's Voice, The Gray Matters Collective and QC Counselor. It was founded in 2022 with Transitions Mental Health joining in 2024.
Foster's Voice was founded in 2017, nine days after Kevin and Jamie Atwood's son, Foster, died by suicide. The group's mission is to end suicide and the stigma around mental illness.
The Gray Matters Collective began as a mental health campaign at Augustana College. Today, it's a nonprofit dedicated to mental health awareness and suicide prevention.
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