2012 Dock of the Bay event is a seaside success

More than 300 guests enjoyed an evening of casual elegance May 5 at the ninth annual On the Dock of the Bay fund-raiser at the Eastern 4-H Environmental Education Conference Center in Columbia. The yearly waterside soiree is sponsored by the N.C. 4-H development Fund, in the N.C. Agricultural Foundation Inc. Proceeds support camperships and construction at the Eastern 4-H Center.

Set on the Bulls Bay boardwalk, this year’s activities featured a waterfront dinner of sumptuous local foods — including the event’s dessert centerpiece, the chocolate fountain — and dancing to live beach music from The Embers.

Throughout the evening, guests browsed among tables of silent auction offerings and tried their luck in a beach house vacation raffle. Festivities culminated in a champagne diamond toast at sunset.

Among notable sponsors were Tommy and Lee Cahoon, CenturyLink and county Farm Bureaus from across northeastern North Carolina, as well as 30 Green Clover sponsors, mainly businesses from across the region. The event raised more than $33,000, including $27,000 in Clover sponsorships and gifts and $6,000 from the silent auction.

On the Dock of the Bay is supported regionally by Cooperative Extension colleagues and 4-H programs through publicity, event donations and ticket sales.

The Eastern 4-H Environmental Education Conference Center is operated through N.C. State University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, its N.C. 4-H Youth Development & Family and Consumer Sciences Department and Cooperative Extension. — Terri Leith