Tombola Success

This year the annual Fr. Dorta- Duque, S.J. Memorial Tombola sponsored by the Sarria Family was much more than a festival or Belen’s biggest fundraiser. Dedicated to the memory of Anthony Parodi ‘23, the event was peppered with orange, his favorite color. From the beautiful umbrella display in the Garrido Family Plaza to the Senior Staff shirts and even the Tombola logo itself, orange was the color of the event. With an expanded schedule of events and fairgrounds, Tombola exceeded expectations and broke last year’s fundraising record. From February 4- 5, 2023, thousands of people attended, helping raise approximately $1.2 million for the Financial Assistance Program. 

“Tombola has always been an event that brings the community together,” said Fr. Willie. “Dedicating this year’s Tombola to Anthony was a powerful demonstration of love by the Belen family and, in particular, the class of 2023 to his memory and his family. Anthony will always be in our hearts. There’s no doubt of Tombola’s financial success, but, more importantly, it was a bigger community-building success. Our campus was filled with alumni, future Wolverines and their families, and current students, all having a fantastic time. Tombola is a Belen tradition that we can all be proud of.”

Kicking off the festivities was the Culinary Extravaganza on January 28th. With over 35 restaurants and vendors participating, it was the largest culinary event hosted at Belen. Using both the Garrido Family Plaza and the Sarria Family Dining Hall allowed the capacity for this popular event to reach 1,200 attendees. The food, drinks, and music made for an unforgettable night that welcomed parents, alumni, and friends to campus. 

Friday night at Tombola saw two firsts come to fruition. Over 500 tickets were sold to students for the Battle of the DJs event on the Sánchez Field at the de la Cruz Stadium. Complete with a concert stage, lighting, and sound, the field was transformed into a place for dancing and fun. Equally enticing to parents, Friday Night In the Quad also made its Tombola debut. Featuring a Latin band that had everyone dancing, a delicious paella, beer, mojitos, and a domino playing area, the event will surely be considered a staple moving forward. 

Saturday began with a gorgeous rainbow over Belen which served as a reminder that Anthony was watching over us. The day went on to be spectacular. Thousands of people made their way to the campus and enjoyed our expanded ride area, additional food booths, and the Alumni Zone complete with a cigar lounge. Our Grandparents Club hosted a popular booth and sold grandparent-specific merchandise in the Sarria Family Dining Hall. The annual Wine Tasting event has outgrown its former venues (Cosculluela Hall and Saladrigas Gallery) with 500 tickets sold this year. It was relocated to one of the newest areas on campus, the Codina Courtyard located adjacent to the Our Lady of Belen Chapel. This beautiful outside space was the ideal setting for the wine event sponsored by Daou. The night was capped by an incredible concert, albeit under the rain, by Juanabe. Rain or shine, everyone at Tombola had a great time. 

Sunday may have brought the rain, but it didn’t take away the fun. An impromptu dance-off in the Sarría Family Dining Hall by kids and an appearance by Billy the Marlin and Waldo the Wolverine had everyone smiling. The Bazaar in the gym was buzzing with activity. The new art exhibition, “Outside the Lines,” in the Saladrigas Gallery was also a popular place to visit. Masses were held in the Our Lady of Belen Chapel and were very well attended. After a brief delay due to the weather, the annual Leo Caraballo Arroz Con Cosas sponsored by Flores Tutoring was held in the Garrido Family Plaza. As always, our resident emcee - Fr. Willie - was having fun on the microphone while the teams prepared the food. Among the judges this year were the President of Our Lady of Lourdes Academy, Sister Carmen Fernández, IHM and Head of School at Carrollton School of the Sacred Heart, Heather Gillingham-Rivas. Team Caraballo won the coveted championship belt.

Tombola came to a close in an epic fashion. With clear skies, the Pep Band got everyone excitedly to the Garrido Family Plaza at the end of the night. Members of the administration, faculty, staff, and parent advisors led a sing-a-long of “Color Esperanza” accompanied by our band teachers. Fr. Willie then took the microphone and, with the seniors' help, announced the raffle winners. Accompanied by Mike García of Ocean Mazda, the grand prize winner of the Mazda CX-50 was announced to be Carolina Menéndez. Then to the crowd's delight and surprise, a confetti shower covered the central patio in orange and white. It was the perfect ending to a memorable Tombola weekend. 

“Incredible is an understatement,” said Gigi García-Chang, Community Events Director. “This truly was Belen at its best. Tombola was made possible thanks to the help of so many. Thank you to our faculty, staff, class delegates, advisors, and alumni. A very special thank you to our extraordinary maintenance team, kitchen staff, and security department, who went above and beyond. To all our sponsors, thank you for supporting Belen with your generosity.”

Breaking records was the number of sponsors we had for Tombola this year. Over 55 companies and families joined the Belen Business Partners in supporting this event. With their patronage and record attendance, Tombola was a big success.

“On behalf of the whole school community and especially, the many young men who will be able to continue their studies at our school, thank you, Belen family, and congratulations on a job extremely well done,” said Fr. Willie.

Click here to view the Tombola Program Book. Click here to view the photo album. 

The complete list of raffle winners is as follows:

We thank our parent delegates and teachers who worked hard to decorate their booths. We are happy to announce the winning booths are: