December 6, 2025 |
The NOCCA Foundation Celebrates “Home for the Holidays” Annual Fundraiser on December 6 Featuring Musical Guests Irma Thomas, Kermit Ruffins, The Soul Rebels and Big Freedia, Plus Emcee Gralen Banks
Event proceeds benefit the NOCCA Foundation’s Daniel Price Memorial Fund for
Aspiring Artists, honoring the memory of NOCCA alum Daniel Price
Saturday, December 6, 2025, 6:30 pm – midnight
House of Blues New Orleans, 225 Decatur Street
October 16, 2025 (New Orleans, La.) — The NOCCA Foundation and the family of Daniel Price are thrilled to announce this year’s “Home for the Holidays” Fundraiser, taking place on Saturday, December 6 at House of Blues New Orleans (225 Decatur Street). This year’s star-studded music lineup features returning New Orleans legends — the “Soul Queen of New Orleans,” Irma Thomas and Jazz trumpeter, singer and composer Kermit Ruffins — plus brass sensations, The Soul Rebels and the “Queen Diva” Big Freedia, along with Emcee Gralen Banks.
Tickets are now available to purchase at HomeForTheHolidaysNOLA.com. Proceeds from the event support the NOCCA Foundation’s Daniel Price Memorial Fund for Aspiring Artists, which honors the memory of NOCCA alum Daniel Price (Visual Arts, 1993) with scholarships for NOCCA students.
- GA Tickets ($55): GA tickets include great access to the Home for the Holidays Concert starting at 8 pm, with performances by Kermit Ruffins, The Soul Rebels, and Big Freedia, plus access to the silent auction until 9pm.
- Silver Tickets ($150): Enjoy Patron Party Access from 6:30 – 8:30 pm with buffet dinner, open bar and performances by Irma Thomas plus access to the silent auction featuring artwork, experiences and additional items great for holiday gifting. Patrons will also have all-night access to the Parish Room, where there will be an open bar from 8:00 pm – midnight.
- Bronze Tickets ($60): *For NOCCA Alumni!* Get all the benefits of the Silver ticket for less. Only available to NOCCA alumni, limit two tickets per purchase.
- Gold Tickets $290: Gold-level patrons will receive all Silver Ticket items, along with reserved seating in the House of Blues loge for the patron party and concert.
The Daniel Price Memorial Fund for Aspiring Artists — honoring the memory of Daniel Price, a talented artist and NOCCA alumnus who was tragically killed in 2003 — was established to give exceptional NOCCA graduates an opportunity to pursue higher educational studies in a fine arts discipline. The Fund provides scholarships to outstanding NOCCA graduates so they can follow their artistic passion while obtaining a college degree. The Fund also supports tuition at summer programs across the country, providing NOCCA’s young artists with year-round continued education. To date, Home for the Holidays and the Daniel Price Fund have raised over $700,000 for NOCCA and its amazing students.
“The holidays are a time for celebration, bringing together our community and enjoying time together, and this event does just that,” said Richard Read, Director of Development and Communications for the NOCCA Foundation. “Each year, we look forward to Home for the Holidays as a way to honor Daniel’s legacy and celebrate his life with the community that he loved the most. We are proud to continue our partnership with the Daniel Price Memorial Fund, providing resources and opportunities to our amazing students during their time at NOCCA and beyond.”
A native of New Orleans, Daniel Buckner Price attended Benjamin Franklin High School and NOCCA from 1989 to 1993. He received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1998 from Southern Methodist University, where he won national awards as editorial cartoonist for the school’s newspaper, The Daily Campus. During the next five-and-a-half years, Daniel established himself as a first-class professional artist in both New Orleans and San Francisco. In addition to his regularly commissioned portraits of people and dogs, Daniel’s murals and paintings grace the walls of multiple restaurants in the two cities, as well as historic homes and the grand ballroom of Harrah’s Casino.
Tragically, Daniel was shot and killed while protecting his wife, Sarah, a fellow Ben Franklin graduate, from an assailant in San Francisco on December 19, 2003. He was 28-years old. A memorial service was held in his honor at NOCCA, with several of Daniel’s paintings and drawings on display.
Throughout his career, Daniel often credited NOCCA with providing a strong foundation for his artistic skills and love of fine art. And it was at NOCCA that he first began expressing his deep appreciation for the city of New Orleans. Daniel possessed an unending passion for life, art, music, sport, beauty, fun, and for his hometown. The spirit of New Orleans was ever-present in his artwork, and he continually sought to capture the magic he saw in the city and its people. Having come of age in a place where life is seen as one big celebration, Daniel celebrated everyday moments in his paintings, drawings, murals and sculptures, and he made each of those images burst with the same radiant energy he exuded in his own life. Though his career took him to places around the world, such as San Francisco, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and the Loire Valley of France, Daniel’s fascination with New Orleans themes and traditions continued to dominate his art. His last series of paintings, shown in his first solo exhibition at the Canvas Gallery in San Francisco, depicted Mardi Gras Indians and musical images of New Orleans.
For more information on Home for the Holidays, visit HomeForTheHolidaysNOLA.com. To learn more about the Daniel Price Memorial Fund for Aspiring Artists, visit https://danielpricememorial.org/. Follow us on social media for more updates at @noccafoundation (Instagram and Facebook).