One could describe it as “The Ford Connection” that caused Darling’s Family of Dealerships to launch a major, public fund-raiser for the Susan G. Komen Foundation Maine Affiliate.

The semiformal “Bid and Boogie for the Cure” begins at 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 23, at the Bangor Civic Center. If you want to be one of those in attendance at this exciting event, you should get your tickets now.

Tickets are $35 per person or $60 per couple and may be purchased at any Darling’s auto dealership location in Maine or by calling toll-free (888)-228-9180.

Darling’s staffers Carrie Meo and Leanne Parks made their way to my office Monday morning to tell me about this event, which they hope will become an annual fund-raiser for the Komen foundation that has as its mission the eradication of breast cancer as a life-threatening disease.

Meo, chairwoman of the fund-raiser, said the Bangor-based dealership “became connected” with the Komen foundation several years ago “when Ford Motor Co. was involved with Komen and the Race for the Cure.”

That association led Darling’s to decide “to do something big, companywide, for the foundation and the community.”

The fund-raiser “is a major effort on our part,” Meo said of the event, which is also receiving considerable support from local businesses and the community.

Hosted by WLBZ 2 television anchorman Ric Tyler, the evening features dancing to the band, Moonpuppies, a performance by The Aaminah Desert Dancers, described as “belly dancers,” and a variety of people doing swing dance.

Special guests include Maine Attorney General G. Steven Rowe and his wife, Amanda, and Stephanie Komen, daughter of the late Susan Komen, who died of breast cancer at age 36.

The Race for the Cure was founded in 1982 in memory of Komen by her sister, Nancy Brinker. It since has become the largest breast cancer fund-raiser in the country.

Bid and Boogie for the Cure features not only fine dancing but also “elaborate hors d’oeuvres,” Meo said, “with 12 local caterers and restaurants” offering up their best to tempt your palates.

You also will be able to participate in a terrific silent auction with several outstanding donated items.

Among those featured are an autographed acoustic guitar from B.B. King, a bronze cheetah bust by Forrest “Toby” Hart, a book signed by Stephen King, a three-day sail aboard the schooner Stephen Tabor, two nights at Foxwoods Casino in Connecticut and an overnight stay at the Samoset Resort in Rockport.

Meo and Parks added that items such as golf course memberships, mountain bikes, skis, jewelry, artwork, paintings and “lots of furniture” are included in the silent auction.

Another interesting aspect of the event is a rose raffle in which attendees “buy a rose for $20 and then trade it in for a randomly selected prize,” Parks said.

And, of course, there is the door prize, “which is airline tickets to the destination of your choice,” Meo added.

“There will be lots of things going on,” Meo added of the first Bid and Boogie for the Cure, which has garnered generous support and donations “from all over the state and outside Maine.”

To be sure you can attend, it is recommended that you make your reservations by Friday, Feb. 15, at any Darling’s dealership or by calling the toll-free number above.

Congratulations to everyone involved with the WLBZ 2 and WCSH 6 “Coats for Kids” campaign, which set a new record with more than 30,000 coats collected during the 2001 campaign.

Working with the television stations were Shaw’s, Shop ‘n Save and Hannaford supermarkets, which served as drop-off points throughout Maine and eastern New Hampshire, local Pepsi-Cola and Coca-Cola distributors that provided materials and support, and Gold Star Cleaners and Pratt-Abbott, which cleaned and freshened the coats that were contributed by many caring individuals.

Part of the success of this year’s event was also due to the fact that more than 8,500 coats were collected on Friday, Dec. 1, which was the fund-raiser’s third annual “Coats For Kids Day,” and that more than 60 schools and community organizations actively collected coats for the 2001 campaign.

Representatives of schools, churches, civic groups or businesses interested in participating in “Coats for Kids 2002” as a charitable project can call (800)-464-1213 for information.

Aroostook County’s seventh annual Icebreaker Bash is from 7 p.m. to midnight, Saturday, Feb. 2, at the Caribou Inn and Convention Center in Caribou.

Admission is $8 per person to dance to the live music of the Cobalt Blue Rhythm and Blues Band.

The event is sponsored by United Bikers of Maine and proceeds benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Maine, which grants wishes to children with life-threatening illnesses.

For more information about the dance, call 896-3492.

For information about the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Maine, call (800) 491-3171 or visit www.wish.org/Maine.

The last time I heard from Marie Murphy of Bangor, it was time for another reunion of former Freese’s Department Store employees. This time, it’s something different – bingo!

Murphy wrote that the facility in which she lives has “a bingo machine that is on its way to bingo heaven,” and that she and fellow residents “are trying to raise enough money to buy one.”

Murphy added that she is asking everyone she knows “to keep their eyes and ears open for one.

“We don’t need a real new one, just one that works.”

To advance the cause of purchasing a new bingo machine, Murphy and her friends are hosting a food and book sale from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 2, at Kenduskeag Terraces, 117 Court St. in Bangor.

“There will be all kinds of goodies and bags of books for $1 a bag,” she wrote.

For more information about this fund-raiser, call Murphy at 990-0124.

Joni Averill, Bangor Daily News, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor 04402; 990-8288.