With 10 lead singers and over 60 dazzling costume changes, tribute band Alter Ego puts on a show like no other.
A high-energy street party with food, prizes and live music featuring dance hits of the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s through today returns to downtown Billings on Saturday, Aug. 27.
The 2022 Billings Clinic Classic will transform the stretch of Broadway between Third Avenue North and Fourth Avenue North into a lively community event for a great cause. All proceeds from this year's event will help the Billings Clinic reach its goal of becoming a Level I Trauma Center, which will support the needs of the growing Billings Clinic Emergency Department while providing the highest level of trauma care to the region.
This year’s Classic features an energetic outdoor street party, raffle, silent auction and seven golf events. After a wildly successful performance at the 2019 Classic, Alter Ego will return as this year’s headline entertainment at the Street Party Celebration on Broadway. With origins in Montreal, Alter Ego is North America’s top party tribute band and the only act to headline two Classics. The nonstop all-dance repertoire features the best of ’70s disco, ’80s rock, ’90s pop and the hit songs of the new millennium. With 10 lead singers and over 60 dazzling costume changes, this group puts on a show like no other.
The night will start with mingling, refreshments and hors d’oeuvres featuring music by local act Gilda House. The entirety of the 2022 Classic will be held outside on Broadway, between Third Avenue North and Fourth Avenue North. This location, in the heart of downtown Billings, has been an integral part of the Classic for more than 25 years and has become synonymous with the annual fundraiser and celebration.
The 2022 Classic will support Billings Clinic’s work to begin the first phase of the multiyear effort to become a Level I Trauma Center, which includes needs within Billings Clinic’s Emergency Department.
As the region’s largest independent health care provider, Billings Clinic is a leader in maintaining the health and well-being of people who live and work in a vast multistate region that includes Montana, Wyoming and the western Dakotas. Last year, Billings Clinic met the health care needs of nearly 165,000 unique patients. These patients accounted for nearly 1 million outpatient and telehealth visits, as well as nearly 15,000 inpatient hospital stays.
Billings Clinic has taken the important step to elevate lifesaving care across the region by seeking Level I Trauma Center designation. This multiyear effort will include three phases. The first phase will create alignment and increase capacity to provide the highest level of care. This includes meeting growing needs in the Emergency Department — the busiest in Montana — to continue to serve patients from throughout the region. Built in 2007, the Emergency Department saw over 50,000 visits in 2021, a 7.5% increase from the previous year and a 32% increase over the past 10 years.
The region's wide-open spaces, year-round outdoor recreation, and the farming and ranching lifestyle present unique challenges when an accident occurs. Billings Clinic was Montana’s first Level II Trauma Center, verified in 1992, and is the longest continually verified trauma center in Montana. There is no Level I Trauma Center in Montana or Wyoming, so particularly complex, difficult cases can require emergency medical transport to distant centers for the highest level of coordinated care. This delays lifesaving care and is a costly burden to patients and families facing an emergency medical situation. As a result, a person’s likelihood of surviving a severe trauma in Montana is the second worst in the nation. To address these unique needs, Billings Clinic is seeking Level I designation.
Bill and Jean Mills chair this year’s Classic. Jamiee Belsky, M.D., Billings Clinic emergency medicine physician and chair of the Emergency Department, will serve as this year’s physician champion. The theme of this year’s party is “Putting Us on the Map.” The 2022 Classic will also feature a raffle, an online auction and seven golf tournaments, in addition to the street party.
Tickets are now on sale to the public on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information, call Billings Clinic Foundation at 406-657-4670 or go to billingsclinicfoundation.com.
