Jacksonville’s Shriner temple, founded four years ago, will hold its annual charity ball event this weekend.
Ali Temple was founded on January 13, 2018, under the leadership of Jeff Barrett, the Temple’s first illustrious potentate, or leader. Honorary Past Potentate James Smiley said the temple came to be due to many members driving over 40 miles to attend Shriner meetings at Arabian Temple #42 in New Bern, leading to the need for a Jacksonville Temple.
Smiley said Ali Temple currently has a membership of about 57.
“But we’re still growing, and I’m quite sure we will grow much larger than that,” Smiley said. “I think COVID slowed us down a lot, because we couldn’t do the things we normally do, but we still worked in the community.”
Previous coverage: Shriners celebrate new Ali Temple
Working in the community is a big part of what the Temple does, and Ali Temple was even awarded the Temple of the Year award for the Desert (state) of North Carolina, after only being in existence for one year. The award is given to the most active temple, with community service and volunteerism being the most important factors.
Smiley said Temple members have done everything from partnering with the CHEW program, holding school book drives with Clyde Erwin Elementary, sending bookbags full of supplies, reading at elementary schools, donating toiletries to nursing homes, and doing Thanksgiving and Christmas Cheer.
“We will do what we call Thanksgiving and Christmas Cheer, where, sometimes we get with DSS (Department of Social Services), I would say it’s a combination, but we also take recommendations for families that are in need and we provide them with turkey and hams and nonperishable items, that way they have a suitable Christmas feast and Thanksgiving feast,” Smiley said.
He said the charity ball is the Temple’s largest fundraiser, which helps raise the money needed to give back to the community like they do.
“We bring people from all over,” Smiley said about the event. “I would say, all up the eastern seaboard, from Florida all the way to Connecticut, Jersey, places like that. For the ball weekend, we usually bring about a total of 800 people that fills up about four hotels.”
He said it’s a formal, elegant event, and everyone who attends gets a meal, and gets to see members from other temples across what they call their domain.
“They get to get, not only a good show, but they get to hear about and see some of the charitable events that we do,” Smiley said. “One of the biggest things during that weekend is scholarships. We usually give away about $3,000 in scholarships over that weekend to deserving students that have been accepted into a college, and I mean, for us, that is the highlight of that weekend, being able to give those scholarships out, but also some of those proceeds that comes from the charity ball with it being our biggest fundraiser.”
The event will take place this weekend, Friday, June 24 through Sunday, June 26, at both the Hampton Inn & Suites, and the American Legion Building. From 4-7 pm on Friday, attendees can enjoy a fish fry at the hotel, followed by a party at the American Legion Building from 9 pm to 1 am, complete with a cash bar, and BYOB.
Saturday will start with the scholarship luncheon at 1 pm, followed by the charity ball at the American Legion Building with doors open at 7 pm, dinner served at 8 and the ball starting at 9.
Dress includes summer dress/regaled for nobles, regaled for daughters, semi formal suit and tie for male guests, and semi formal tea length dress for female guests. Those interested in attending can still get tickets, which is an $80 donation that covers the entirety of the weekend.
Reporter Morgan Starling can be reached at mstarling@gannett.com
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