The Inaugural Rare Affair was a unique wine experience with access to rare varietals, vineyards, and vintages, to benefit families facing rare diseases. We kicked off the event with a special pre-event tasting for VIPs with the winemakers from Napa Valley’s award-winning Dakota Shy winery. The wine experience was held across six rooms, each offering access to rare varietals, vineyards or vintages, in addition to a featured food pairings. As this is the first Rare Affair, we hosted approximately 300 event attendees representing our Board of Directors, partner organizations, employees of Atrium & Levine Children’s Hospital, and families from the local community that have been impacted by rare disease. During the event there was also an open bar, a jazz trio, dueling pianos, a live auction, a raffle for a trip to Napa Valley, and a “Diamond Drop” opportunity. WARD’S Foundation raised $400,000 from A Rare Affair to help further advance the care of rare disease patients at Atrium Health Levine Children’s through The Ward Winslett Center for Complex and Rare Diseases.