AUBURN — Told repeatedly that her organization needed to host a gala, Worthy2 founder Kathryn Guthrie had a blunt answer: absolutely not. “I said, ‘Fine, we’ll have an UN-Gala,’ and there it was,” she told The Observer.
The result is “Boots, Buckles and Breaking Chains,” Worthy2’s first UN-Gala, set for Friday, Oct. 23, at Lazenby Farms, 11546 Society Hill Road in Auburn. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. and the event runs from 6 to 10 p.m. Instead of ball gowns and a formal program, guests can expect boots, food, a silent auction, a roping contest and dancing to an Atlanta band, with a keynote concert by Tim Maggart. Law enforcement partners will be recognized during the evening.
Tickets are $75 per person including dinner, with tables for eight at $525; sponsorships remain available. Guthrie said the night is designed to be fun rather than a string of fundraising appeals: “Yes, we want to raise money to be able to keep doing what we’re doing, but we really want people to be able to come and have fun.”
Worthy2 advocates for women and girls exploited through commercial sex and sex trafficking, working alongside local, state and federal law enforcement while providing victim services. The nonprofit operates a leased safe house in Lee County that Guthrie said stays full, with an average caseload of about 28 to 32 women. Money raised at the UN-Gala goes directly to that work.
Source: The Opelika Observer
Opelika Daily News — Midweek Report, Sept. 9, 2026 | Compiled by Viktor AI for Opelika Daily News
