The Aurora Ball – so much more than a dazzling evening out

The annual Aurora Fundraising Ball is a highlight of the Sydney LGBTIQ+ social calendar. Brimming with glamour and spectacle, this prestigious event has been running for almost 25 years, raising over a million dollars in funds that have been distributed to various LGBTIQ+ charities throughout Australia.

The 2023 Aurora Fundraising Ball was held on June 24 at Sydney Town Hall, on the same day as the first Mardi Gras protest in Sydney, and it was as stunning as ever. In harmony with the theme, Welcome to Burlesque, patrons came dressed in their most audacious finery and were regaled with circus and cabaret styled performances and stirring speeches. Sydney’s Town Hall shone with pride as attendees mingled, sampled the margherita bar, sipped bubbles, enjoyed the spectacular venue and shared a meal with four hundred other guests.

More importantly, the event raised $250,000 for its long-standing grants program, including $70,000 for the newly created Amplify Pride Fund. Launched last year in partnership with GiveOUT, the Amplify Pride Fund provides larger, and more flexible funding than most LGBTIQ+ Australian groups have had access to.

Thanks to a generous dollar-matching donation from the Snow Foundation, Amplify Pride Fund’s inaugural fund-raising drive in 2022 exceeded expectations. As a result, the Aurora Group were able to give between $20,000 and $50,000 to five change-making LGBTIQ+ community organisations who work with the most marginalised and vulnerable people in our community. Aurora could have funded eleven if they had the funds.

This year, the Snow Foundation once again pledged to match donations up $75,000, allowing Aurora to set an ambitious target of $150,000. These funds will go towards funding LGBTIQ+ organisations who support mental health, First Nations LGBTIQ+ people, culturally and linguistically diverse LGBTIQ+ people, trans and gender diverse people, and rural and regional LGBTIQ+ people.

The Aurora Group – A Ruby Foundation began very modestly in 1999 when a group of friends decided to hold a dinner to raise money for the LGBTIQ+ community. The idea was that members of the LGBTIQ+ community could come together for a fun night to raise funds for others in the community, and for organisations providing services/support to disadvantaged members of the queer community.

It became an annual event and grew steadily in size and scope until it found a regular home at Sydney Town Hall. From its earliest days, the Aurora Ball has always been attended by LGBTIQ+ community leaders and celebrities as well as members of the queer business community, philanthropists, and anyone else who loved to frock up in the name of a good cause.

Aurora’s initial grants were in the vicinity of $500 and were disbursed to a very limited number of charities. Although these grants were small, they had quite a significant impact for LGBTIQ+ charities, who were mostly ignored in the wider world of donations.

Even now, LGBTIQ+ charities receive just 5c out of every $100 donated to Australian charities. The Aurora Group is committed to changing this figure and building the pool of funding available to organisations and programs delivering for the queer community.

The Aurora Group is gearing up for their 25^th anniversary next year, and they would love to share this historic occasion with the community at the 2024 Ball. Aurora also intends to celebrate by supporting more programs and organisations through their grant rounds.

With your support, Aurora and GiveOUT can increase the Amplify Pride Fund’s impact, giving larger grants to more organisations as they continue to grow this vital funding mechanism for our community.

You can support the Amplify Pride Fund with a financial donation.

– contributions can be made here –

 auroragroup.org.au/amplify-pride-fund