On April 29th, the Waterfowl Building in Easton was alive with the sounds of music, applause, and joy as Talbot Interfaith Shelter (TIS) hosted its 7th Annual Lip Sync Battle fundraiser. By the end of the evening, nearly $83,000 had been raised to help TIS in its mission to provide Shelter, Stability, Support, and a path to Success for local families and individuals in need.
The Lip Sync Battle is a unique fundraising event that draws participants from all over the community to either perform a lip sync routine live on stage or create a lip sync video. Each team competes to get votes in the form of donations to Talbot Interfaith Shelter. The goal is to be the team in each category that raises the most money in support of TIS’ mission. Altogether, seventeen different teams raised a total of $61,000.
This year, there were winners in three separate categories. The Country School Faculty won in the Live Performance Category, Father Nash of Saints Peter and Paul Parish was the victor in the Live Show Video Category, and Vintage Books took home the trophy in the Online Only Video Category. At the end of the event, the Live Performers also competed for audience applause, and the 2023 “People’s Choice Award” went to the Saints Peter and Paul School Students.
Hosts Jayme D, Jay Hudson, and Ricky Vitanovec set a joyful tone from the start with an opening performance that had the crowd singing and clapping along. Seven teams then performed live, drawing laughter and cheers from the audience with their creative routines during the Free for All round. In the second half of the evening, the teams played Lip Sync Roulette, spinning a roulette wheel and performing whichever song the arrow landed on. The audience even got in on the action – some hopped up on stage and spun the wheel, while others sang and danced along from their seats.
“We are so thrilled to be back hosting the event in its original form, with a big audience and people performing live on stage,” says TIS Executive Director Julie Lowe. “Looking out in the audience and seeing all ages, races, religions, and more experiencing joy together – there is no other feeling like it. We are beyond blessed that so many people in our community choose to put themselves out there to draw attention to our mission each year. Lip Sync 2023 raised more money than ever before to help our neighbors get back on their feet. We are humbled and so grateful.”
This year’s Lip Sync Battle was presented by Sun Management Rising Technologies. For a complete list of sponsors, and to meet all of the participating teams, visit talbotinterfaithshelter.org/lsb.
Talbot Interfaith Shelter is a homeless shelter and transitional housing program based in Easton, MD and serving the five counties of the Mid-Shore (Talbot, Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Annes). They have developed the innovative and comprehensive S4 Program (Shelter, Stability, Support, Success), which is designed to guide local families and individuals from homelessness to self-sufficiency.
Guests begin at one of TIS’ two neighboring shelter homes – Easton’s Promise for families and Evelyn’s Place for single men and women – where they receive rigorous case management and attend life skills training while they work to attain financial stability. Once they are ready, guests move into one of TIS’ 15 off-site transitional apartments, where they continue to receive case management while their portion of rent gradually increases until they can sustain all of their expenses.
To learn more about Talbot Interfaith Shelter and how to help, visit https://talbotinterfaithshelter.org or contact Julie Lowe at 410-310-2316 or [email protected].
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