Mad Hatter Tea Party Fundraiser (Apr 26)

Santa Monica’s Mad Hatter Tea Party returns Sunday, April 26, with a brunch-and-auction fundraiser for children’s dental care at the Santa Monica Family YMCA. (smdp.com) The event runs from noon to 3 p.m. at the YMCA event space at 1332 6th Street, and organizers say free parking is available under the building. The Santa Monica Breakfast Club is staging the fundraiser for the ninth year. (smmirror.com) This year’s honoree is Jim Harris, who organizers describe as a Santa Monica Pier historian. The program will include brunch, raffles, silent and live auctions, and stories from Harris about the pier. (smdp.com) The fundraiser is tied to one of the club’s oldest missions: paying for dental treatment for local children whose families cannot afford it. The Santa Monica Breakfast Club says that work has stretched back more than 80 years. (smmirror.com) That focus puts the event in a local service-club tradition that mixes a social gathering with direct aid. The Santa Monica Family YMCA, where the event will be held, describes itself as a nonprofit centered on youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility. (ymcasm.org) Harris is a fitting choice for a Santa Monica audience because his work is closely tied to one of the city’s best-known landmarks. Los Angeles Magazine reported in 2024 that James Harris had spent more than two decades as executive director of the Santa Monica Pier Restoration Corp. (lamag.com) He has also been appearing in public history events tied to the pier. Santa Monica Next listed him this year as the host of “A Talk Through Pier History,” a free storytelling session billed around untold stories and milestones from the pier’s past. (santamonicanext.org) Last year’s Mad Hatter Tea Party honored Santa Monica Mayor Phil Brock, showing the event’s pattern of pairing fundraising with a local tribute. The 2024 event listed individual tickets at $95. (smmirror.com) For this year’s gathering, the immediate next step is simple: tickets and event details are posted online ahead of the Sunday, April 26 brunch. (smdp.com)