An Evening of Joyful Giving: Highlights from the 2026 EC Auction Gala

“Oh, what a night!” The EC Auction Gala on Friday, April 17, at Westmount Country Club gathered our community for a night marked by generous giving, warm fellowship, joyful celebration, and lively music. More than 350 parents, alumni, and friends of EC faithfully gave over $300,000 to enrich academic programs, continue teacher development, and contribute to scholarships which provide support for students facing significant financial challenges.

The night kicked-off with a two-hour cocktail reception, silent auction bidding, and live music performed by The Flying Ivories, dueling pianos. Our guests enjoyed signature drinks and a variety of tasty food while catching up with friends, meeting new people, and enjoying the gorgeous evening out on the patio. This year’s Silent Auction featured more than 100 items generously donated from local businesses and EC staff, alumni, and families. Guests also had an opportunity to participate in various games and activities including the Wine and Spirit Pulls, the crowd-favorite, Heads or Tails, the photo booth, and new for this year – dueling pianos!

Once everyone was seated for the program, Rev. Jeremy Mulder, President of the EC Board, welcomed everyone and prayed over the evening. Next up was the exciting game of Heads or Tails led by our talented auctioneer, Chris Ward. Those playing the game donned their light-up necklaces and made their choice by putting their hands on their head or their tail. Chris flipped a coin and if the players guessed the way the quarter fell, they stayed in the game; if not, they took a seat. The crowd cheered for the winners as we made our way down to one final winner who took home a week’s vacation in Lavallette! The Live Auction followed next with nine special items that created friendly bidding competition throughout the room.

Following the Live Auction was the Fund-A-Need moment where all three principals briefly spoke of the importance of scholarships at EC. After watching a video that focused on the impact of the Angel Scholarship Fund for a current EC family, guests were encouraged to give generously to help fund tuition support for grieving students whose parents either have terminal illnesses or have recently died. Over $60,000 was raised in just 10 minutes thanks to the warm generosity of everyone in the room.

Maura Byrnes, Executive Director of the Foundation for EC, then gave a celebratory update on the Building on a Firm Foundation capital campaign. Maura shared the success of the campaign, the completion of the building project that our students are already benefiting from on the Wyckoff campus, and the opportunity to continue to help reduce construction costs. She also announced that an anonymous, generous donor who was in the room offered a $400,000 matching gift to help make all capital donations go further! If you’re interested in helping us reach this match, please click here to learn more.

To close out the program, Dr. Ruth Kuder, Head of School, thanked everyone for their commitment and support to EC and announced the amazing total amount of money raised during the event. All guests were invited to stay for the Encore Celebration that included more passed food, drinks, and entertaining music from the dueling pianos.

It was a fantastic night of joyful fellowship! Thank you to all the sponsors, donors, and many volunteers who helped make this event so successful. Mark your calendar for next year’s Auction Gala on Friday, April 16, 2027!

To relive the evening, please enjoy the event recap video and photo library.

View all event photos online here. Looking for photos from the photo booth? Check them out here.

Did you miss the event but still want to contribute to the success?

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Sponsors

Please see the list below for our valued event sponsors and think of them next time you require a service: 

Gala Sponsors:

Ahoy Telecom
Bushoven LLC
Heerema Co.
KV Builders LLC 
Martin Orthodontics
Passaic Bergen Water Softening
Regency Wealth Management
Reiner Group

Auctioneer Sponsor:

Wayne Tile Co.

Reception Sponsors:

Christian Health
Columbia Bank Foundation
Kuiken Brothers Company Inc.

Wine and Spirit Pull Sponsors:

Groenewal Electric
Wiegers Inc.

Signature Drink Sponsor:

Align Real Estate

Heads or Tails Sponsors:

Green-Way Irrigation
Hilb Group
Sietsma Landscaping
Veenstra Family Dental

Fund-A-Need Sponsors:

LAN Associates
Shotmeyer Brothers Heating and Air Conditioning

School Spirit Sponsors:

Abbey Carpet & Floor of Hawthorne
Katie Rose Inspired
Mark Tirondola Jr. Painting and Contractor
Mr.PhotoboothNJ