The WiSH Education Foundation held its second annual Cocktails on the Roof event atop the Macy’s parking structure on Friday night, Sept. 9.  Hundreds bought tickets to the event to enjoy local restaurants and spirit vendors share their “Signature Cocktails” and food pairings amid cozy, modern lounges and inventive lighting.  Dancers were on the floor all night long with the DJ and there was even a flash mob to “Thriller.”

While final numbers are still being calculated, the four-hour event raised over $40,000 for the Wm. S. Hart School District and its 23,000 students in grades 7-12.  The money will support programs and initiatives that are not funded by tax dollars alone.  A portion of the money has already been gifted to Sequoia School for badly needed science equipment, in line with the foundation’s funding focus for the 2016-17 school year: alternative programs.  While that remains the focus for the year, WiSH will continue to fund programs that benefit all students of the district.

New this year was guest voting on the “Favorite Drink” of the evening and we are thrilled to announce the winners for this year; in First Place, Newhall Refinery; in Second Place, Olive Terrace Bar & Grill; and in Third Place, Salt Creek Grille.  We encourage all guests to visit all of our participant locations and let them know how much they appreciate their generosity at #COTR16.

The event would not have been possible without our hosts, Eve Bushman of Eve’s Wine 101 and Marlee Lauffer, President of Henry Mayo Newhall Foundation. Our presenting sponsor, Westfield Valencia Town Center, provided our amazing venue and Crystal Sponsor The Magazine of Santa Clarita covered the event over the past several months and was there with a well-used Step & Repeat for the fun of all partygoers.  Without sponsor support we could not raise funding and WiSH would like to thank the following loyal and generous sponsors: Cocktail Sponsor Lundgren Management; Title Sponsors Littler, California Credit Union and Balfour Beatty Construction; Festival Sponsors Steven B. Chegwin, CPA, Chiquita Canyon and Julie M. Sturgeon, CPA; Rooftop Sponsors Ruhnau Ruhnau Clarke and Oasis Associates and our in-kind sponsors mitchpickswine.com, SOS Entertainment, BrightView Tree Company, 24/7 events, Andy Gump, Burrtec, Sol Print Solutions, Vom Fass Ventura, Enchanted Kids, KHTS and SCVTV.

Our amazing participants are what make the event wonderful for our guests and their generosity goes above and beyond; many thanks to Speakeasy Bakery, Shacksbury Ciders, TPC Valencia Golf Club, Persia Lounge & Restaurant, Sake Sommelier Yoshi Murikami, Wolf Creek Restaurant and Brewing Co., Sisley Italian Kitchen, Bowen’s Whiskey, California Fruit Wine, Deep Eddy Vodka, Solita Tacos & Margaritas, Honu Coffee (with alcohol, too.), Newhall Refinery, Parashars’ Indian Kitchen, Olive Terrace Bar & Grill, Culinary Wonders and Lazy Dog Restaurant and Bar.  Other favorites included Salt Creek Grille, Nothing Bundt Cakes, Marston’s, iCUE, LA Scotch Club, The Distillery at Opolo, St. Mayhem Wines, Xevichez Sushi Bar, 12 Bottle Bar, Sweet Beams Ice Cream and Shining Sons and Dancing Daughters Blended Spirits.

For more information, contact Executive Director Amy Daniels at wish@hartdistrict.org.  Find out more about WiSH and our upcoming events and news at www.wishscv.org.