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SALT LAKE CITY — Former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin is coming to Utah next month to headline the Pregnancy Resource Center's annual "Banquet for Life" fundraiser.
But just how much the Christian faith-based, nonprofit organization is paying the former Alaska governor for the appearance is not being made public.
"We are very, very limited in what we can say," said Kevin Andrews, the center's board chairman, citing the terms of the contract signed with Palin. "I can't get into it. I can say it was very reasonable given our expectations."
Andrews said the organization is also obligated to pick up "very nominal" expenses for Palin. He said the seven-member board has already covered both her fees and expenses, through donations as well as from their own pockets.
We are very, very limited in what we can say. ... I can say it was very reasonable given our expectations.
–Kevin Andrews, Pregnancy Resource Center
That way, Andrews said, the money raised from ticket sales to the semi-formal cocktail reception and dinner at the Grand America Hotel on Oct. 2 will all go towards funding the center and its expansion plans.
The price for hearing from Palin, who shared the GOP ticket with Arizona Sen. John McCain in 2008, starts at $100 per person. Tables with priority seating for 10 people start at $1,500, but for $5,000, donors all have the opportunity to attend a "meet and greet" with Palin.
What will be the 30th annual fundraising banquet for the Salt Lake City center is expected to raise several hundred thousand dollars, Andrews said, declining to be more specific.
"We are stepping up in faith with this event because we believe there is an extreme need in this valley and this state for the services we provide," Andrews said, describing his organization as a "life-affirming" ministry for pregnant women and their families.
Palin's own experiences as the mother of a young boy diagnosed with Down syndrome and an unmarried daughter pregnant for the second time resonate with the center's mission and those it serves, he said.
Her appearance was announced at last year's fundraiser, which featured the mother of Tim Tebow, the former NFL quarterback known for kneeling down in prayer on the football field after scoring touchdowns.
Jim Kerr, the center's executive director, said picking Palin had nothing to do with her politics. Palin has been in the news for saying she'd like to be the U.S. energy secretary under a President Donald Trump so she could abolish the federal agency.
"We try to bring in speakers obviously who can speak to what we do and help the attendees of our banquet get a sense of who we are and what we're about — and raise excitement," Kerr said.
That shouldn't be a problem if the response to Palin's 2009 stop at a Salt Lake Costco during a national tour to promote her book, "Going Rogue," is any indication. More than 800 people stood in line for Palin's autograph, some overnight.
Chris Karpowitz, co-director of the Brigham Young University Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy, said Palin likely will be a big draw on this visit, too, especially given the cause she'll be supporting.
He said Palin "clearly feels passionately about the issue of right to life that have touched her own family" and should be able to attract a crowd despite declining support in Utah for her tea party politics.
"This is an issue she'll find a friendly audience for in Utah," Karpowitz said. "I don't know that people take her seriously these days as a candidate for the highest office in the land, but that does not mean she won't be an effective advocate."
