Pahrump charity dinner aims to raise funds for local addiction recovery

Living Free Health and Fitness will hold its 4th annual Art for Recovery Charity Dinner & Auction on Saturday, March 14 at the Pahrump Nugget Events Center, with doors opening at 5 p.m. The fundraiser will underwrite Living Free’s addiction recovery programming, targeting persistent funding shortfalls that grants and Medicaid do not cover.

Organizers plan both live and silent auctions featuring donated art from the Arts Collective of Nye County and works from the founder’s family, plus gift baskets, travel packages, memorabilia and other items. Entertainment will include performances by John Michael Ferrari with Sophie Love and Pepper Jay, while auctioneer Ski Censke will lead the live bidding. Sponsorship opportunities are tiered at silver, gold and platinum levels; table and business sponsorship packages are also available with pricing and benefits outlined by the organizers. After selling out in 2025, organizers expect a strong local turnout and encourage early ticket purchases and donations.

The event serves a dual role: it raises unrestricted dollars for direct client services and channels economic activity into Pahrump’s hospitality and arts communities. For a nonprofit operating in a rural county, unrestricted fundraising can be decisive. Grants and Medicaid often fund specific clinical services but leave gaps in nonbillable supports such as extended residential stays, transportation to appointments, peer-support stipends and other wraparound services that improve long-term outcomes. Those gaps translate into higher costs for public systems and greater strain on families when clients lose access to essential supports.

From a local economic perspective, the dinner is also a modest yet meaningful demand shock for Pahrump’s service sector. Events at the Nugget draw residents and visitors who spend on lodging, dining and retail, and auctions provide direct revenue to local artists and vendors. A sold-out night, as happened in 2025, signals both broad community willingness to contribute and a marketplace for local cultural goods that organizers can leverage in future fundraising cycles.

For county policymakers and health planners, the fundraiser underscores enduring financing challenges for addiction recovery in rural Nevada. Sustained local philanthropy can bridge immediate gaps, but long-term scale-up of services will hinge on policy decisions around Medicaid benefit design, state grant allocations and investments in outpatient and recovery housing infrastructure.

Residents interested in attending or sponsoring the March 14 event should contact Living Free Health and Fitness for tickets and sponsorship details. For Pahrump and Nye County, the dinner is more than a social night out; it is a vital piece of the community’s safety net and a practical demonstration of how local giving can sustain recovery services that otherwise lack consistent funding.