On Sept. 14, The Baddour Center hosted an inaugural annual art auction at The Ice House in Batesville, raising nearly $25,000.

“This was a new event for us, and we were blown away by the support of sponsors, guests and artists,” said Mary Dade Ford, manager of donor relations. “Our goal for this first-time event was to at least break even with our expenses, and we exceeded that goal.”

The Baddour Center shared a pre-event video called “Born for Beauty,” which can be found on their YouTube Channel, that showcased some of the resident artists, which they call “heARTists” as a play on the heart in their logo, and it gave the viewer a glimpse into the thoughts of residents on why they were created.

Resident artwork varied from pottery magnets and platters to painted canvases and notecards. The table centerpieces were pottery vases made by residents and floral design provided by Blossoms in Batesville, who also donated the catering table centerpiece that was part of the raffle.

In addition to artwork by residents of The Baddour Center, more than 25 professional artists donated their works to be auctioned or raffled at the event, such as Roark Studios, Steve Nelson, Sheila Clark Pottery, LacyBPottery, KK Buteau Designs, and MK Decker Designs.

SoLa Oxford catered the event, Hannah Roye provided musical entertainment and Liquorty Splitz and Southern Beverage were cocktail sponsors, providing wine and beer.

Other sponsors included the following:

• Diamond – Landhawk Realty
• Gold – Lawrence Crane Theming and Design Concept LLC, Rosemary Oliphant-Ingham, Zed and Rachel Howell
• Silver – Paul and Sunny Baddour, Como Courtyard, Joyce Riales, Upstairs Closet and Smith, Phillips, Mitchell, Scott and Nowak LLP
• Bronze – Batesville Vision Clinic; C. Gaines Baker, Attorney at Law; Family Pet Hospital; First Horizon Bank; First Security Bank; Guaranty Bank; and Tri-Vista Rehab.

“We are so thankful for the support of the community,” Ford said. “When we planned this event, we hoped it would be a fun, unique fundraiser and we were so thankful for all of the guests who came from DeSoto, Tate, Panola and Lafayette counties. We are already looking forward to planning next year.”

The Baddour Center in Senatobia is dedicated to providing a model residential community for adults with mild and moderate intellectual disabilities and autism in an environment that promotes maximum growth intellectually, spiritually, physically, socially, emotionally and vocationally.

For more information about the center or to get involved in the the 2nd Annual Art Auction set for September 2024, contact Mary Dade Ford at 662-366-6930, by email at mford@baddour.org or through www.baddour.org/art.