29th Benefit Champagne Luncheon


We are back with hybrid programming celebrating in Noor’s OUTDOOR* courtyard!

We invite you to join us for Red Hen’s annual benefit gala for an exciting lunch event filled with readings, a live auction, and a chance to meet Red Hen Press authors and members of the literary community.

Date: Sunday, October 8, 2023

Time: 11:00 AM – 2:30 PM

Location: Noor Pasadena – 300 E Colorado Blvd #200, Pasadena, CA 91101

Noor is located in the Paseo, and the check-in area will be in the Paseo courtyard


Featured Gold Table Host Authors:

Kazim Ali — Sponsored by Francesca Bell
Kazim Ali was born in the United Kingdom and has lived transnationally in the United States, Canada, India, France, and the Middle East. His books encompass multiple genres, including several volumes of poetry, novels, and translations. He is currently a professor of literature at the University of California, San Diego. His newest books are a volume of three long poems entitled The Voice of Sheila Chandra and a memoir of his Canadian childhood, Northern Light: Power, Land, and the Memory of Water. He edited the anthology New Moons: Contemporary Writing by North American Muslims with Red Hen Press.

Brenda Cárdenas — Sponsored by James Wilson
Brenda Cárdenas is the author of Boomerang (Bilingual Press) and the chapbooks Bread of the Earth/The Last Colors with her husband Roberto Harrison; Achiote Seeds/Semillas de Achiote with Cristina García, Emmy Pérez, and Gabriela Erandi Rico; and From the Tongues of Brick and Stone. She also co-edited Resist Much/Obey Little: Inaugural Poems to the Resistance (Spuyten Duyvil Press) and Between the Heart and the Land: Latina Poets in the Midwest (MARCH/Abrazo Press). Cárdenas has served as faculty for the CantoMundo writers’ retreat and as Milwaukee Poet Laureate. She currently teaches Creative Writing and Latinx Literature at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Her poetry collection Trace was released this Spring with Red Hen Press.

David Mas Masumoto — Sponsored by Ann Beman
Mas Masumoto is an organic peach, nectarine, apricot, and grape farmer and the author of thirteen books including: Epitaph for a Peach, Wisdom of the Last Farmer, and a cookbook, The Perfect Peach. A documentary Changing Season on the Masumoto Family Farm was nationally broadcast by PBS in 2016. His newest book Secret Harvests (Red Hen Press, 2023) is about a family history of struggles, disabilities and secrets. His writing awards include Commonwealth Club medal, Julia Child Cookbook award and the Independent Publisher Book Award. He currently serves on the boards of the Public Policy Institute of California and CalMatters. Masumoto is a third-generation farmer south of Fresno, Calif and a pioneer in organic farming since the 1980s. He grows award-winning heirloom varieties on their 80-acre farm, partnering with his wife, Marcy, and two children, Nikiko and Korio.

Featured Silver Table Host Authors:

Sponsorship Packages and Tickets

Individual Tickets – $200

  • 1 admission to the benefit luncheon
  • Red Hen gift bag including exclusive merchandise and books

Virtual Tickets – $50

  • 1 virtual admission to live-streamed programming from 12:30p-2:00p
  • Red Hen gift bag including exclusive merchandise and books, mailed to you!

Gold Table Sponsorship – $6,000

  • 10 admissions to the benefit seated at the same table with your host(s)
  • Sit alongside an author of your choice from the gold table host list
  • Autographed books by the author for you and each of your guests
  • 3 broadsides featuring each presenting author’s work and hand-signed by their respective authors
  • A Red Hen gift bag exclusively for event attendees
  • Acknowledgment during the event and online
  • A bottle of champagne at your table for you and your guests

Silver Table Sponsorship – $4,000

  • 10 admissions to the benefit seated at the same table with your host(s)
  • Sit alongside an author of your choice from the silver table host list
  • Autographed books by the author for you and each of your guests
  • A Red Hen gift bag exclusively for event attendees
  • Acknowledgment during the event and online

Bronze Table Sponsorship – $2,500

  • 12 admissions to the benefit seated at the same table
  • A Red Hen gift bag exclusively for event attendees
  • Acknowledgment during the event and online

Other Sponsorship Opportunities

Publishing Sponsor – $5,000

  • Inclusion on a Red Hen donor wall, to be displayed at the front of its Pasadena office
  • Receive in-text acknowledgment in publications of your choice of one of Red Hen’s programs: Letras Latinas, Pighog Press, Quill Publishing, Story Line Press, Xeno Books, or Writing in the Schools
  • Sponsorship noted on our website and at the event
  • Ability to use Red Hen Press resources in corporate campaigns or personal branding

Program Sponsor – $3,000

Book Angel Sponsor – $1,000

  • Sponsorship noted on our website and at the event
  • An optional choice of acknowledgment (in-print) inside an upcoming Red Hen title

Please call (626) 406-1205 or email development@redhen.org to request additional information about Red Hen’s benefit or make a table purchase.

*Please note that the health and safety of our community are of our utmost concern. To ensure the safety of all guests, all event activities will take place outdoors and masks are encouraged (when not eating or drinking).


Special Thank You to Our Official Media Sponsor