A popular fund-raising event returns for the first time in three years when the sixth Mark Pacheco WOW Fund Lip Sync Battle is held Friday, August 26.
The event takes place at the Celoron Legion, located at the corner of Fairmount and Jackson avenues. The doors will open at 6:00, and the show will start at about 8:00. Admission is $15.
The lip-syncing competition is open to anyone. People can participate as solo acts or in a group. The cost to compete is $25 per contestant. Acts will be judged on how well they lip sync; the creativity of their performance; and their “WOW” factor. It is common for patrons to tip the contestants as they perform, and the performer earning the most tip money will receive bonus points in the competition.
People wishing to compete must register in advance by phoning event organizer Marcos Figueroa at 716-951-6118.
The popular event, which is coordinated by The Resource Center and Filling the Gap, was not held the past two years because of the pandemic. In addition to the lip-syncing competition, professional lip-syncing artists Devinity De’Vil, Deja Van Cartier and Fantasee Island are scheduled to perform.
Besides the on-stage entertainment, there will be drawings for dozens of prizes donated by area businesses, as well as drawings for cash prizes.
Money raised through the Lip Sync Battle will be directed to The Resource Center WOW Fund at the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation. The WOW (Working on Wonders) Fund supports Chautauqua County residents with disabling conditions in fulfilling their wishes and dreams to enjoy recreational and travel experiences they otherwise could not afford.
The fund was created in memory of Mark Pacheco, an employee of The Resource Center who died in 2010 of injuries sustained in an altercation on a Jamestown street. Pacheco’s family and friends suggested the establishment of the WOW Fund as a tribute to him and to create something positive from his death. His survivors also were the driving force behind the Lip Sync Battle.
“I took this opportunity to make a bad situation into something I know Mark would love,” Figueroa, Pacheco’s friend and co-worker, said of the Lip Sync Battle and the WOW Fund. “The money raised goes to individuals with developmental disabilities to grant a wish or a dream that they may have or want but just do not have enough funds.”
For more information about the Mark Pacheco WOW Fund Lip Sync Battle, phone Figueroa.
