It was a fundraising gala that was out of this world with a phenomenal transformation, great food and rocking entertainment to raise $325,000 for the Keyano College Foundation.

The hottest ticket in town, dubbed this year as Odyssey 2010, was again sold out as 1,200 guests enjoyed the event highlighted by a concert with Tom Cochrane and Red Rider who, by all accounts, loved the response they received and can't wait to be invited back.

And it was the future that played heavily into the event whether it was the flashing ice cubes in martini glasses or the iPad and texting options for numerous silent auction items. For a $20 donation to the foundation, patrons could even 'drive' a 797B thanks to the heavy hauler simulator.

That simulated experience was highly stressful for Shelley Voss, but she admitted it was well worth the $20.

"You always hear about the heavy haulers and when they said this was the 797. I know it was the biggest and I just thought it would be really great to drive it.

"It was very stressful, especially with my husband behind me, critiquing," she laughed. "He was a backseat driver. It was all his fault I didn't do better."

She couldn't have done too badly though as instructor Dennis Bezina jokingly asked her when she could start working.

This was the fourth year Voss had attended the gala: "Excited as usual; looks wonderful. I've seen lots of auction items I'd like. I love supporting the college. We came up from Edmonton for it."

For Brian Colbourne and Bryan Newton, it was their first time attending the gala, and were enjoying themselves as they tried their luck at the gaming tables, thanks, in part, to the 'funny money' patrons were given on their arrival at the black tie affair.

"I thought it would be a nice night out, different from the norm," said Colbourne.

For Newton, Cochrane was the draw, especially as his wife is a "huge fan and that's why we came."

And, he chuckled, "love the gambling."

Looking around the venue encompassing two field houses featuring various hot tables offering tasty edibles catered by the Sawridge Inn as well as the liquid refreshments prepared by seven different local bars all amid the futuristic lighting and decorations, Newton approved: "It's fantastic; I'm really impressed."

Noting the "incredible support" from sponsors and guests, Russell Thomas, Keyano's director of marketing and communications, said that every year, organizers do their best to go above and beyond the previous year in terms of adding new elements to the event and to the design and the aesthetic of gala.

"What we hear from people year in and year out is how much they look forward to this event. It's always popular, but this particular year more than any other, it seemed the demand to get into this event was through the roof, and when you got there you understood why. It really was an amazing event," he added.

Thomas also acknowledged the role the artist plays in the success of the gala. The word from a pre-gala reception the night before was that Cochrane was the nicest guy on the planet and was really into the event and very supportive.

"You could tell through the whole night he was really into what he was doing and the energy that he brought to that stage just incited the audience. That makes a tremendous difference into the energy of the event into the spirit, how people are feeling and how they responded in the live auction component. All of that combined, of course resulted in another record breaking gala event."

It was Ross Jacobs once again adding his vocal — and comedic — talents to the live auction which featured a selection of desirable items.

A couple of the more pricey items were the the Super Bowl package, donated by HCS Focus, which had tickets, accommodation and transportation as well as $1,000 spending money, was purchased for $27,000.

Then there was the firefighters dinner package featuring dinner prepared by three top chefs, including one from France, for 10 people. Dinner is served by the firefighters. This package went for $18,500.

Putting technology to use for the silent auction, Thomas said that five years ago, when the gala was being held in the theatre "if you looked out five years into the future, you couldn't have imagined where we are today on many different levels. The technology is at the top of the list, but from the lighting design to how we changed this facility into this amazing environment, nobody could have imagined it five years ago."

Setting the stage for the gala begin early that week and it's full bore by mid week with the production company rolling in and laying out all the cables and lights.

Jim Foote, Keyano president, was frequently spotted smiling Saturday night because, as he explained this morning, "it's such a terrific event.

"Our staff and all the volunteers just do a magnificent job. I really think it's the party of the year."

With so many great community and corporate supporters that come out, he added that it's great to be associated with an event that people really enjoy and "enjoy giving you money for a very good cause and it's money that is just put to such good use by our students and our staff.

"It seems to be every year the party just gets better. ... It's something we all look forward to."

The effort put into transforming the centre into a venue worthy of Odyssey 2010 made it difficult for some to believe they were actually standing in a gym, and one Foote called a real success story for the college.

"I hope everyone is finally OK for work this morning because it was a pretty raucous event and it will be bigger and better next year," promised Foote.

Recognizing the gala as a hot ticket, he pointed out that planning for next year's gala — the 30th anniversary — is already underway, but he was mum on the performer.

"There's a lot of speculation about the performers and there's a lot of suggestion," he chuckled. "I've even had offers of donations if you would get this person or if you would get that person. Maybe we'll turn this into a new gala event of guess the performer. We all have a keen interest in it. I think it's important to maintain that party atmosphere."

Given the event was a sell out, and raised a significant amount of money for the college, Foote agrees it's an indication of the support from both sponsors and the community. He added that supporters of the college comment about how well the Keyano foundation is managed, and the quality of not only the gala, but all the events it puts on.

"So I think people want to be associated with quality. ... It's a testament to the institution, but particularly the people we have that organize and run these events that we can do very significant things even though we're a modestly-sized institution."