Written By Lisa Breslin

The Granite House Second Annual Rock Ball, held on April 26 at The Portico of St. John in Westminster, featured cocktails, dinner, dancing, a silent auction and surprise performances by rock legends Chaka Khan, Heart, The Bangles and Blondie.

For $100 a ticket, the 100-plus attendees got to see Lynn Davis, Carroll County Youth Service Bureau’s director, don a wig and “sing” as Chaka Khan. Other Chaka Khan impersonators included Cheryl Schuster, Pam Zappardino and Lyndi McNulty.

“It’s heartening and great fun to have professional people willing to put themselves out there for a good cause,” said Laura Rhodes, program development manager for Granite House. “We hoped to raise at least $5,000 for Granite House and we actually got about $10,000.”

Granite House is an affiliate of the Sheppard and Enoch Pratt Foundation, whose mission is to assist community members with mental illness live productive and satisfying lives.

“The whole evening was both formal and fun,” said Spencer Gear, executive director of Granite House. “And knowing that the money raised will help people with mental illnesses made the whole evening perfect.”