We are so thrilled to announce that we’re going to be holding our second-ever fundraising gala on Friday, Sept. 19 at The Loading Dock on Beryl Road in Raleigh. This fabulous event will be romantasy-themed!

Romantasy, for the uninitiated, is a very popular genre these days that blends romance and fantasy (examples include Fourth Wing and A Court of Thrones and Roses). The theme means we’re going to have:

A dramatic reading from a Redbud student who’s writing a fantasy novel
A performance from musician Azul Zapata
Fantastical face-painting by Lymari Moreno
A photobooth featuring a throne and other magical props
Beers from Trophy Brewing, Elegant Elixirs from sparkling rum company Casalú, wine, nonalcoholic seltzers, and catering from Spread NC
Costumes! They are not required, but you can find some inspiration for your outfit here.
A “Chosen One” raffle and a “Sexy Villain” raffle.
A silent auction with prizes from amazing local businesses—think Figulina, the Umstead, Edge of Urge, Poole’s Diner, English Garden Raleigh, Fearrington Inn, Brewery Bhavana, Unscripted Hotel, and many more.

why a fundraising gala?

Creative writing changes lives. It’s fun, meaningful, and an essential tool of wellness and healing. But too often, creative writing courses are not accessible to people who need them most.

That’s what Redbud aims to change. We are a community organization whose goal is to provide the community, catharsis, and craft of writing to everyone, not just those who can afford it.

This gala will be Redbud’s main fundraiser for 2025. All proceeds from ticket sales and from the auction will go towards:

—Keeping Redbud tuition costs affordable. We provide subsidized tuition options for our writing classes, and 98 percent of our students over the years have benefited from that option. Supporting Redbud means keeping our tuition costs low and accessible.

—Our scholarship fund. To date, Redbud has offered more than $25,000 in scholarships to students who cannot afford to pay any tuition for our courses. Our scholarship fund has helped low-income single mothers to write their books in our Novel Intensive; it’s helped writers of color craft short stories in our Intro to Fiction courses. More scholarships means more opportunities for writers who hail from marginalized or under-represented backgrounds.

—Completely free classes for marginalized and under-represented writers. To date, Redbud has offered tuition-free community classes for survivors of domestic violence; BIPOC writers; unhoused writers; low-income seniors living in a rural area; writers in addition recovery; writers seeking to set down their stories of reproductive justice; and more. We’ve partnered with InterAct, Planned Parenthood, the Durham Center for Senior Life, RUMAH, Raleigh Rescue Mission, and Healing Transitions to create safe spaces for hundreds of students to connect with others and tell their stories. As one student, L, said, “This class changed my life.” And another, J, said, “The class provides such a beautiful space for survivors of domestic violence to come together to not only process various trauma through creative writing, but also to build community.”

Our goal is to raise $30,000 to support the above initiatives in 2026.