Festival nets $28,000 for Youth Home

Editor,

The board of directors of Lake County Youth Home and the Festival of Trees committee thank all of our friends and supporters in the community who gave so generously to make our seventh annual Festival of Trees gala last week such a smashing success.

For the third year in a row we sold out the event within the first two or three days after tickets went on sale, and we had a waiting list for people wanting tickets. The Festival truly has become a holiday tradition in Lake County to kick off the Christmas season.

This year we were able to exceed our wildest expectations by raising over $28,000 for the Youth Home. This total exceeds the 2004 event by over $10,000. Wow!

This comes on the heels of a very difficult year financially for the Home. With state restrictions on funding for placements of kids, we have struggled to keep our doors open. Two other group homes in the state did close this past year.

We are committed to work to provide this invaluable service to the youth of our area who need our services to provide some structured direction to their lives. This year, 29 kids will have spent some time in our facility.

Thank you, thank you, thank you again to the dozens of businesses and individuals who have partnered with us with your donations of time, money, services and merchandise to make our 2005 Festival of Trees fundraising effort a success.

Mark your calendars now for Saturday, Dec. 2, 2006, our next Festival of Trees.

We will also have an open house in the near future at the Youth Home in Ronan and we invite all interested friends to join us and view the project your generosity has made possible. Watch the paper for details of the open house date and time.

Barbara Monaco, chairperson

2005 Festival of Trees Committee

David Conrad, chairperson

Lake County Youth Home

Board of Directors