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Luncheon raises $23,000 for Kathy Barnett Foundation

Hundreds of Whistler residents attend luncheon at Fairmont Chateau Whistler
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It was a packed house at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler's Frontenac Ballroom on Thursday for the first annual Kathy Barnett Leadership Luncheon, a fundraiser for a foundation set up to honour the memory of the Pique co-founder and entrepreneur.

In total the sold-out event raised close to $23,000 based on sales, donations and a live auction to get some one-on-one mentorship from local business gurus.

People donating their time were former Olympic communications director Maureen Douglas, Origin Design + Communications founder Danielle Kristmanson, Whistler Blackcomb Senior Vice President Doug Forseth, realtor Maggi Thornhill and grocery store owner and North Shore Credit Union chair Sue Adams. Adams brought in the most, with a $1,075 bid for face time with the entrepreneur, and a night at the Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival - a fundraiser for the Vancouver Playhouse Theatre Company, where Adams is the vice chair.

The main event of the luncheon was a talk by Lauren Douglas, the CEO of the Women's Enterprise Centre and a friend of Kathy's from her own involvement with the organization.

Kathy was killed in early 2008 after being struck by a car during a bicycle trip in New Zealand. Shortly afterwards a fund was set up in her name through the Community Foundation of Whistler, providing grants to women to improve their leadership goals for the betterment of the community.

As well as her work with the Women's Enterprise Centre, Kathy was a founding member and former director of the CFOW in 1999. The CFOW now manages over $3 million in funds, which provide support to local non-profits, scholarships, environmental grants and more.