Guests toured the museum galleries for the first time, sipped champagne, mingled in the courtyard and dined inside a tent on the former high school's grounds. Comments from gala chair Ariane Dart, Ringling College president Larry Thompson, museum executive director Anne-Marie Russell and gala honoree Dr. Lowery Stokes Sims took place as attendees dined on tenderloin and prawn; a live auction and paddle raise generated more funds for the museum's exhibition programs; and an after party provided the chance to dance to finish off the celebration.