Making the Holidays Merry and Bright

This article appeared in the North Lake Tahoe Bonanza on December 10, 2008
Written by: Jean Eick, Bonanza Community Editor

Holiday Events Aplenty in Incline/Crystal Bay:

As the holiday season approaches, many in Incline Village hope for some­thing as basic as being able to find food, clothing or shelter for the holiday. The community has always had many tradi­tional ways to share with others and this year is no exception.

“This is an extremely challenging year for the North Tahoe Hebrew Congrega­tion’s Holiday Food and Clothing Pro­ject,” said Jeff Corpuel, project coordina­tor. “With the struggling economy, local families in need are hurting more than ever. Not only are individual families more distressed, but there are a greater number of families in need.What makes this year particularly precarious is that the needs of recipient families are greater yet community members who typically donate money to our event are more stressed financially and therefore have less to give. The end result is that our monetary donations are down from previous years while we face the task of providing food and winter clothing to more families than ever.”

The North Tahoe Hebrew Congrega­tion is conducting its Holiday Food and Clothing Project between 9:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 20, at the North Tahoe Conference Center in Kings Beach. The goal of the project is to distribute food and winter clothing to local families in need and the project is funded by the NTHC, community members as well as local organizations and businesses.

Money is needed to help pay for the food that is purchased for this project. Please make checks payable to: “NTHC Holiday Food and Clothing Project” and mail to: Holiday Food and Clothing Pro­ject, North Tahoe Hebrew Congrega­tion, P.O. Box 201, TahoeVista, CA 96148.

Volunteers also are needed to help at the North Tahoe Conference Center from noon to 2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 14 and from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 20.

Donations of warm winter clothing items (in good condition) such as coats, boots, hats and snowsuits are needed. Drop off winter clothing in the lobby of the North Tahoe Hebrew Congregation at 7000 Latone Avenue (off National Avenue) in Tahoe Vista. Call Corpuel with any questions at (775) 831-5513.

If you are in need of a food and cloth­ing distribution or know of a family that is in need of a distribution, please call (530) 584-5855.

Coldwell Banker is in its 29th year of asking for unwrapped, new, good quali­ty toys to be placed in the collection bar­rels for Toys for Tots around the Village by Dec. 18. This project will provide gifts to local children who otherwise might not receive one.

To donate food, Raley’s sponsors a Food for Families Holiday Bag Program that continues through Wednesday, Dec. 24. To participate, stop at Raley’s and purchase one of the bags available for $10.

The Lions Club sponsors See’s Candy Sale until December 24. From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Ace Hardware you can pur­chase boxes of chocolate and specialty items. Proceeds from the purchases are used for local eye exams and glasses, the Lion’s Eye Foundation, Hearing Foun­dation, Boys and Girls Club, Camp Dat­So-La-Lee, Tahoe Women’s Services, Kids and Horses, high school scholar­ships and many other programs in the Incline community.

The Incline Village General Improve­ment District Senior Programs and the Social Service Team of the Parasol Tahoe Community Collaboration sponsor the Holiday Giving Program for seniors to reach seniors who are homebound, liv­ing alone or in any type of need. Refer­rals for recipients can be made by calling (775) 832-1310 and the deadline to apply is Dec. 10. To contribute to this program visit the Incline Village Recreation Cen­ter by Monday, Dec. 15 and select an angel from the tree. If you want to donate a check instead of selecting an angel, make a check payable to Parasol Tahoe Community Foundation - Seniors and mail to The Donald W. Reynolds Community Non-Profit Center, 948 Incline Way, Incline Village, NV 89451.

Adopt-a-Family program helps local low-income families not only during the holidays but throughout the year. This program is sponsored by The Children’s Cabinet and the Lake Tahoe School. To participate, stop at the Lake Tahoe School by Wednesday, Dec. 17 and select an ornament off the tree in the foyer, then purchase the item on the wish list and return the item, unwrapped to the Lake Tahoe School.

Stop at the Raley’s parking lot to pur­chase a Christmas Tree or wreath from the Incline-Tahoe Rotary Club.

“Sales this past weekend picked up,” said Alan Castator who is in charge of the project for the club. “Sales from this organization are used to support many different charities in the Incline commu­nity. “The Power Hour” at the Boys and Girls Club in Kings Beach is one of the programs we support,” Castator said. This program has more than 50 children enrolled in the after-school program.

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