Who: Forty-somethings in rocker chic at Hope Rocks, TV types at the Midwest Emmys
What: Party Patrol does double duty
When: Saturday, September 26, 2009
Where: Hope Rocks at Epic; The Midwest Regional Emmy "freak on" at Seven
Why: To rock some hope, plus we hoped to win some awards

On Saturday, 1200 rocker-clad Twin Citians headed to Epic for Hope Rocks, a fundraiser for Faith's Lodge, a retreat for families coping with serious illness or the death of a child, founded by Mark and Susan Lacek.

Hope Rocks is one of those signature events that is run like a well-oiled machine. Check-in is staffed like Target at check out--no waiting. There is an army of volunteers with headsets and walkie talkies. Three different duos came up to us within a half an hour to tell us about the auction and how to bid in it. It was an effective way to remind guests why they're at Hope Rocks--to raise funds for Faith's Lodge, of course.

But we missed out on the rest of the night that promised a concert by the Bodeans, and emceeing by Amelia Santaniello and Frank Vascellaro. Party Patrol instead marched to the Pantages to support our troops at the Midwest Regional Emmy Awards (mspmag.com was nominated for online videography and commercial spot).

The ceremony, hosted by FOX 9's Jason Matheson, was more than three hours long, but did kick off with a memorable high-energy dance number involving clowns who stripped down to lingerie. We spotted FOX 9's Maury Glover, KARE-11's Kim Insley, Boyd Huppert, and Joe Fryer, WCCO-TV's Jason DeRusha, Jeanette Trompeter, Rudy Maxa, and TPT's Cathy Wurzer and Mary Lahammer. We lost in our categories but decided to attend the post-party "freak on" at Seven regardless. We're not poor losers, especially if there's a complimentary drink ticket involved.