Winds, Waves & Wines benefits Aquarium of Niagara

M&T Bank, grand marquee sponsor, invites the community to raise a glass of wine to celebrate the 45th birthday of the Aquarium of Niagara while helping to raise funds for the not-for-profit living museum at its annual Winds, Waves & Wines gala on Thursday, Sept. 16.

WWW XI will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. at The Convention Center Niagara Falls, 101 Old Falls St. Wines from both the Niagara Wine Trail and Finger Lakes will be sampled and hors d'oeuvres, desserts and coffee will be available, too. Music will be provided by the Rod Nickson Project, sponsored by Turner Construction, and disc jockey Pat Proctor of Premier Sound. A raffle and auction with great prizes also is planned.

Free parking will be available at the Aquarium of Niagara lot, between Third and Whirlpool streets. Shuttle service, provided by the Niagara State Park Trolley, will run from 5:45 to 9:30 p.m. Parking also is available on city streets and in nearby lots.

The popular fundraiser will feature Aaron Mentkowski of WKBW Channel 7 as celebrity host. Participants include the following wineries: Arrowhead Spring Vineyards, Niagara Landing, Freedom Run Vineyards, Vizcarra Vineyards, Schulze Vineyards and Winery, Dr. Frank's Vinifera Wine Cellars, Heron Hill Winery, Johnson Estate Winery, Merritt Estate, Standing Stone, Wagner and Vetter vineyards.

Caterers/restaurants include the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Muscoreil's Bistro & Dessert Gallery, NCCC culinary/pastry arts program, Torches, Starbucks Coffee/Niagara Falls, Richard's On Main, The Cheesecake Place and The Conference Center Niagara Falls.

Prizes for the silent auction have been donated by Whitenight's Jewelers, Art Effects Glass, Southwest Airlines, Fichte, Endl & Elmer Eye Care, WELCOME Magazine, Wyland, a marine life artist, and others.

Tickets for WWW XI are $55 each or $100 a couple. They can be purchased in advance at the Aquarium of Niagara or at the door that night. For more information, call 285-3575, ext. 204.

Sponsors for the event include Business First, Calamar, Niagara Frontier Publications, Sharp Printing Inc., DeLorenzo Electric, Empire Building Diagnostics, Covanta Energy, Welcome Magazine, The Talking Phone Book and Turner Construction.

 For further information, call 285-3575, ext. 204.