(Provided information from GCC)
The Genesee Community College Foundation celebrated its 31st season of Encore on Friday night at the GCC Forum with fine dining and holiday music, with a special concert by the Genesee Symphony Orchestra.
About 250 people were in attendance. The annual gala fundraiser directly benefits the student scholarship program at Genesee Community College.
This year’s co-chairs were Jeremy and Sandra Liles, who presented this year’s show.
“We selected the theme “White Christmas” inspired by the 1954 classic film, which captures the essence of the holiday season and will feature a special holiday concert program choreographed by the Genesee Symphony Orchestra”.
Liles is a native of Genesee County and the owner of Oliver’s Candies and Sweet Life Group, its parent organization, and has managed Oliver’s Candies for over 20 years. Jeremy is actively involved in his local community and currently serves on the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors and has served on the Batavia Town Planning Board. Sandra is a New Hampshire native who moved to Genesee County in 2005. Sandra opened Sweet Life Country Store in Elba and has managed the operation for the past 5 years. She enjoys working with many different local product vendors and artisans to make their wares available to the public at this store, as well as partnering with other local businesses to benefit the community. Jeremy and Sandra reside in Batavia with Tahlia, the youngest of their three children.
“Both Sandra and I recognize the importance of education and supporting the Foundation Scholarship program at Genesee Community College. We are honored to be co-chairs of Encore 2023.”
Students in the Fashion Business Program helped design the layout of the stage and created garments they thought would fit the time period of “White Christmas”.
Proceeds from Encore support scholarships for students attending Genesee Community College.
Students from the GCC Fashion Business Program pose for a picture during Encore 2023 with their Professor of Fashion, Laura Taylor (front row/second from right). The Visual Merchandise class created the display and designed the layout on stage. The Design students created the garments.
