La Sierra Guild of Childrens Hospital, May, 2010 Newsletter

La Sierra Guild’s Newsletter
May, 2010

72nd Edition

Each year the month of May brings abundant work for La Sierra Guild members. The first week begins with one of our traditional signature fundraising events, the Cinco de Mayo Luncheon and Raffle. There is a tremendous synergy between our guild and community merchants evidenced by the approximate 300 meals purchased and served. Volunteer guild power is at a premium in April, with the commencement and completion of merchant solicitations, basket consolidation, preparation, numbering, and staging. Design, administration and display of posters honoring merchant contributions take patience and fortitude. Year after year there are certain members who sell significant numbers of lunch/raffle tickets! There are the time honored decorations, host/hostesses, servants, and the seemingly endless task of cleaning. We never want the least of helpfulness to go unnoticed or thankless, therefore we sincerely THANK each and every participant for anything and everything you did to help raise monies for Children's Hospital through this fundraiser. We particularly want to extend our appreciation to Cinco de Mayo Chairman, Carol Besselievre, and Co-Chairman, Linda Mosley.

The second week we have our general meeting. May 12^th there were 16 members in attendance. Delightfully delicious refreshments were furnished by Pat Meadows and Lee Spurgeon. Some of us want the recipes, yum-yum! A brief summary of discussions at the meeting included the announcement that “we got opening night for Wicked”. Refer to April’s newsletters for details about what this event means as an all guilds fundraiser April 16, 2011. The other all guilds fundraiser in the works has to do with selling tickets ($25.00) for very large, elaborate, and expensive Play Houses which will be constructed and donated by a local builder. This is a win-win for the Guilds because there is no expense involved. Ticket sales will be scheduled for each guild in the Fresno area, probably River Park. A couple of radio stations have already committed to promote the fundraiser.

The third week, May 17^th, Lunch Tray Favors will be delivered to Children’s Hospital. Tray Favors continues to be "a commitment of excellence" for La Sierra Guild members. Each year we are responsible for delivering 150 tray favors to Children's Hospital. This year our Tray Favor Chairman, Lori Howard, and her well chosen team of volunteers: Carol George, Vicki Burkhalter, and Pat Spinelli shared in the purchase, and assembly of perfectly adorable tray favors. A prototype was passed around the April general meeting and received ogles and ahs. When offered reimbursement for their generosity, they ALL declined. Our Blue Piggy's tummy (designated for such expenditures) is still full thanks to these dear hearts.

The fourth week of May is our All Guilds Picnic. It was an enormous success, especially because the predicted rain never materialized. We were furnished instead with a brisk, but comfortably sunny afternoon. The first picture below is our La Sierra Guild's Fall Raffle Ticket Booth (contact Chairman, Judy Hanson to get raffle tickets to sell) hosted at that time by Berta Lindman and Buffy Swire. Look closely at the elegant beaded necklace and earrings that Linda Mosley hand crafted; her design featured a giraffe mosaic. Linda donated this time consuming masterpiece as a raffle item. Thank you Linda! Fourteen La Sierra Guild members attended the event and their names are listed by table in alphabetical order at Table #11: Linda Fisher, Pat Meadows, Linda Mosley, Jeanette Newton, Patty Privett, Joanne Wagers, Jerrie West, and Bev Williams. Table #15: Vicki Burkhalter, Wanda Chatelle, Carol George, Lori Howard, Berta Lindman, and Buffy Swire.

The table decorations of hot pink and tangerine orange included a centerpiece white box with bright ribbon and a stuffed giraffe. It included an envelope with a suggested donation to the hosting guild of $10.00 for the centerpiece. Someone at table #15 suggested we all donate a dollar and some change and buy both centerpieces for our guild to use at a later date. The party favors were a metal giraffe napkin ring (which doubles as a key chain) and candied nuts. Lunch boxes and bottled water were delivered to everyone and included a chicken salad croissant sandwich, a strawberry and spinach salad, and a fruited lemon bar dessert.

There are a several specific functions of the All Guilds Picnic each year. Mainly it is a time to meet fellow guilds and learn about their signature events and multiple fundraisers. This is also the event which marks the actual distribution of proceeds raised by All Guilds the previous year. Proceeds are presented in the form of a check. Thus the large mock-up check replicating the actual one given to Children’s Hospital in the picture included with this newsletter. In 2009 the guilds raised $582,948.26. Great cause for celebration!

The All Guilds Picnic is also the venue where guilds honor their “Volunteer of the Year.” The La Sierra Guild’s “Volunteer of the Year” has been an active member for 10 years. During this time she has been our President for 3 terms and when needed to step into that position again, she graciously complied by being our President for an additional two more months. She was the driving force for La Sierra Guild to join "Kids Day" in the mountains and has been the Chairman of this event for 10 years. Another office she graciously agreed to be chair or help co-chair for several years is our very successful Cinco de Mayo annual luncheon and basket raffle event. She introduced the basket raffle to the luncheon and this has proven to be quite successful. Our volunteer is a very busy lady who plays tennis every week; is part of a bridge group who play each week; married for 48 years; the mother of 4 and grandmother of 7. La Sierra Guild is proud to announce our volunteer of the year: Carol Besselievre.

Another aspect of the All Guilds Picnic is the expectation that each guild donate prize(s) for the raffle. These gifts, stylishly wrapped, are becoming more sophisticated each year. Thus cheerfulness permeates the air as more and more tickets are bought and sold. The gaiety really cuts losse when winning numbers are called. This year some lucky person had the pleasure of winning our La Sierra Raffle items which turned a few heads, including the photographer's.

Linda Fisher, whose passion for quilting is equal to her enormous generosity, spent long days/nights handcrafting a quilted handbag with a giraffe design and coordinating fabrics. Her attention to detail is absolute perfection. Then she had the heart to donate it as a raffle prize. "Thank you Linda!"

Linda Mosley donated a vintage 1988 Arthur Court serving platter with a giraffe design. Arthur Court Designs® has been creating elegant serve ware since 1976. Earlier in this newsletter there is reference to another raffle donation by Linda; the hand beaded amulet bag/necklace. Wow! "Thank you Linda--that goes double!"

Pictures of the All Guilds Picnic can be viewed on Facebook

June 9^th—general meeting, 1:00 P.M., Oakhurst Lutheran Church, Road 426, Oakhurst.

June 23^rd—Coordinating Council—Children's Hospital. Contact Margaret Starr, CC Chairman, if you wish to attend. This date is also our lunch out for June: 1:00 P.M., Di Cicco's, Oakhurst.

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