Who: Local celebs, music lovers, and friends of Open Arms of Minnesota
What:The Butterball Party 2011
Where: Graves 601 Hotel
When: Nov. 19, 2011
Why: To support Open Arms of Minnesota, an organization that provides meals to people with life-threatening diseases

Butterball, one of the best parties in the Twin Cities, only happens every other year. I was thrilled to score a ticket to this event. As I made my way into the Graves, I saw Twin Citians dressed to impress, from men in flashy jackets to women in sleek dresses and fur. The snow and ice outside didn’t stop ladies from wearing sky-high heels, either. Partygoers sipped Opulent Vodka cocktails while go-go dancers and stilt walkers paraded around the room.

Who: Rock stars, both on and off the stage
What: Hope Rocks
Where: Epic Event Center
When: Saturday, September 25, 2010
Why: A benefit for Faith’s Lodge, a retreat center for families facing a child's serious illness or the loss of a child

Rocker chic was the dress code and hope was the attitude at Hope Rocks, an event that creator Mark Lacek calls “The Twin Cities version of the Grammy’s.” The evening included a private concert by Everclear, open bar, snacks galore, and a live auction Saturday night at Epic. Hope Rocks raises funds and the profile of Faith’s Lodge, Mark and Susan Lacek’s retreat center for parents who have lost a child—like they did—or have one with a serious illness.

Who: Socialites, style setters, media mavens, restaurateurs, and other TC notables
What: Macy’s Passport Presents Glamorama 2010
Where: Orpheum Theatre and Macy’s Minneapolis Eighth Floor
When: August 6, 2010
Why: To raise funds for Children’s Cancer Research Fund and to raise the bar on Twin Cities fashion

Twin Cities fashionistas made their annual pilgrimage to the Orpheum to show off their style, soak up fall looks, and celebrate fashion at Macy’s Passport Presents Glamorama 2010.

Who: Foodists meet the art elite
What: CuisineArt 2010
Where: The Walker Art Center
When: Friday, May 21, 2010
Why: To party with fusion chef extraordinaire Wolfgang Puck and raise funds for the Walker’s programs

“The only thing you are missing is a room so you can have sex,” said chef and restaurateur Wolfgang Puck.

For clarification, he was referring to the Walker Art Center during his introduction to the crowd at CuisineArt 2010, after he rattled off all the other wonderful things you can do at the world renown museum, like taking a class, seeing an exhibit, or eating at 20.21.

Who: TC celebs, dance fanatics, and supporters of Susan G. Komen for the Cure
What: Dancing with the Twin Cities Celebrities
Where: Minneapolis Hilton
When: Saturday, March 13, 2010
Why: Because it is a fantastic idea—take TC celebrities, put on some dancing shoes, and watch the donations roll in!

How did it take so long for someone to come up with idea? Hats off to Arthur Murray Dance Studios to throw a little cha-cha-cha into the charity circuit’s usual cocktail-silent auction-dinner routine. The first annual Dancing with the Twin Cities Celebrities attracted some of the Twin Cities’ best-known do-gooders to the Hilton last Saturday.

Who: Dan Buettner and his hoodrat friends
What: ButterBall 2009 aka BuettnerBall
Where: Graves 601 Hotel
When: Saturday, November, 21, 2009
Why: A benefit for Open Arms of Minnesota

It’s been two years since I wrote about Dan Buettner’s blue zones, and our relationship is still stuck in a weird blue period of our very own, but despite that fact (or maybe only because Mpls.St.Paul Magazine is a media sponsor), I got a media pass to Buettner’s big party, The ButterBall, held at the fifth floor ballroom at the Graves.

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.

Who: The fashionphiles of Minneapolis and St. Paul
What:  A fashion show with live music performances, plus an after-bash
When:  Friday, Aug. 14, 2009
Where: Orpheum Theatre and then up to Macy's rooftop
Why:  To kick off the fall fashion season and raise funds for Children's Cancer Research Fund

Nineteen hundred fashionistas flocked to Macy's annual Glamorama this year themed as Come Together Music + Fashion. Ne-Yo delivered the dance  moves, Kristinia DeBarge the pop grooves, the guys from The New Standards did their loungey spin on Britney Spear's "Toxic," and Miss Piggy made us laugh by acknowledging Marc Jacobs' handy work--her custom-made outfit.