Foundation Gala Offers Music, Food in Striking Setting

There's a 245-foot-tall clock tower in San Francisco modeled after the 12th-century bell tower in the Seville Cathedral in Spain. To those who still commute to and from San Francisco by ferry, it is a welcome sign. For those attending APA's 2009 annual meeting, it is the location of the American Psychiatric Foundation's annual benefit.

All those coming to the annual meeting will have an exclusive opportunity to do something fun—enjoy the historic Ferry Building—while doing something good: attending the foundation's annual fundraising event, aptly named this year “Benefit by the Bay,” on Saturday, May 16, beginning at 7 p.m. Event proceeds support the foundation's grants, programs, research funding, and awards that advance public understanding that mental illnesses are real and treatable.

Attendees will dine on fine cuisine while listening to live music. The evening's program also includes a silent auction and the presentation of the Awards for Advancing Minority Mental Health.

The San Francisco Ferry Building is close to the Bay Bridge, on the Embarcadero at the foot of Market Street. The historic trolley cars (Line F–Market) stop directly in front of the building.

The Ferry Building, which was completed in 1898, was the city's bustling transportation center until the Golden Gate and Bay bridges were built in the 1930s. In 2003, an extensive renovation of the building was completed, and today it houses a world-class marketplace and offices with spectacular views.

The building was designed in the Beaux Arts style, and the feature most notable to shoppers—the Nave—was restored to its former beauty as part of the renovation. The 660-foot-long Nave is remarkable for its marble mosaic floor, manila brick and terra cotta arches, clerestory windows, and eight-foot steel gates, all topped by a skylight that runs the length of the building. Vendors in this space, once the Ferry Building's baggage area, sell California produce, specialty grocery and prepared foods, and a wide selection of cheese, meat, and fish, as well as antiques, cookware, books, wine, coffee, and tea. The intimate cafes and full-service restaurants lure visitors to tarry after browsing the numerous stalls.

The price of a ticket for the gala is $225, which includes dinner and entertainment. Tickets may be purchased online at<www.psychfoundation.org> or by calling (703) 907-8503. ▪