COSPU GALA Celebration!
Schedule
Sat Aug 23 2025 at 04:00 pm to 09:30 pm
UTC-04:00Location
Park View Mennonite Church | Harrisonburg, VA
Dear Friends and Community Partners, If you are like us and enjoy peaceful walks around our beautiful local parks, you may have noticed something missing lately. The parks are desolated. Stores and restaurants are emptier. People are rushing to get home and disappearing from public spaces. Even our churches are reporting fewer attendees at services.
What we are witnessing is not the aftermath of a natural disaster, but a humanitarian crisis fueled by aggressive immigration enforcement. While this crisis hasn’t come in the form of a storm or a virus, the fear of losing a loved one feels hauntingly familiar. Families are posting pictures of missing relatives—again and again—only to discover they were taken by masked, armed men in unmarked SUVs and vans.
Parents are terrified to send their children to school, go to the doctor, or attend graduations and school events. Family separation is no longer just a policy—it is a daily, paralyzing nightmare.
But we have faced fear and uncertainty before—and we have overcome it by standing together.
Now, more than ever, we need you.
In lieu of our annual Hispanic Festival, COSPU is hosting its first-ever Gala to raise critical funds for immigrant families directly impacted by these escalating enforcement actions. This year’s festival was difficult to cancel, but we could not, in good conscience, place our community in harm’s way. The cancellation is not a retreat; it is a form of defiance—our stand against racial profiling and systemic cruelty.
We invite you to stand with us and SAVE THE DATE:
COSPU’s 15th Anniversary Gala
📍 Park View Mennonite Church
📅 Saturday, August 23, 2025
⏰ 4:00 PM – 9:30 PM (Dinner served at 6:00 PM)
Celebrate 15 years of organizing, service, and resilience. Your presence and support will help us raise essential funds for our Rapid Response Fund to provide immediate relief to families facing detention, deportation, and family separation.
All proceeds will help cover food, rent, utility bills, school supplies, and other urgent needs of children and families torn apart by immigration enforcement.
🎟️ Ticket Options:
Single Ticket – $85 (includes dinner + program)
Sponsorship Table – $600 (8 seats + logo recognition + mention during event)
We are selling physical tickets. If you are interested in purchasing tickets, please email us at [email protected] or text us at 540-860-0304.
We would be happy to schedule an appointment to pick them up at our office or arrange for them to be delivered to you.
Tickets can be purchased by check, cash, or money order made payable to COSPU.
🎵 Event Sponsorships & Band Sponsorships Available!
Sponsor a live Latin band that will play after dinner—help us end the evening with joy, community, and dancing.
🍽️ Dinner Options (select when purchasing your Ticket):
Option A: Beef entrée
Option B: Chicken entrée
Option C: Vegetarian entrée
Together, let’s send a powerful message to our immigrant neighbors: You are not alone. We see you. We are with you.
We look forward to celebrating with you and continuing this movement together.
With gratitude and solidarity,
COSPU Board of Directors.
Where is it happening?
Park View Mennonite Church, 1600 College Ave, Harrisonburg, VA 22802-5541, United StatesEvent Location & Nearby Stays: