Festive fundraiser aids Kinderhaven kids
Kids of all ages got to meet Santa during Kinderhaven’s annual Festival of Trees Family Night on Thursday.
(File photo/MARY MALONE)
(Photo by MARY MALONE) More than 20 trees were decorated and donated by individuals, organizations, businesses and others in the community for Kinderhaven’s annual Festival of Trees fundraiser. The three-day event kicked off with the annual Family Night on Thursday, where community members viewed the trees, visited with Santa and enjoyed some hot cocoa and cookies.
(Photo by MARY MALONE) Young visitors to Kinderhaven's annual Festival of Trees Family Night on Thursday got to visit with Santa in addition to looking at all the festive, decorated trees and enjoying hot cocoa and cookies.
(Photo by MARY MALONE) Kinderhaven board chair Kathy Chambers and her husband Chris Chambers were dressed in holiday spirit for Kinderhaven’s annual Festival of Trees Family Night on Thursday.
SANDPOINT — From “Winter Wonderland” and “Toyland, to “Cinco de Mayo” and “Nashville Bound,” the assorted themes for Kinderhaven’s Festival of Trees this year were many and diverse.
“There is a tree for everybody,” said Kathy Chambers, board chair for Kinderhaven. “There are simple, tiny trees that are very organic, and then you have some of the over-the-top ones, so there is something for everybody every year.”
Kinderhaven’s three-day Festival of Trees began Thursday evening at the Bonner County Fairgrounds with the event’s annual Family Night, where visitors could view the fully decorated trees, visit with Santa and enjoy some hot cocoa and cookies.
“This is one of our favorite nights, because this is the night we get to open it up for free and let everybody come enjoy the trees,” Chambers said.
The Festival of Trees is a Kinderhaven’s annual fundraiser, which helps the organization continue as a community nonprofit “dedicated to supporting children in crisis and giving them back their right to thrive by providing a safe, secure home in which their emotional, physical and mental well-being are protected and enriched,” according to its mission statement.
Kinderhaven is staffed 24 hours a day and is open to children at a moment’s notice, functioning as a group foster home and emergency shelter for children who have been removed from their home for their safety.
“We are really kind of a one-of-a-kind home in the area,” Chambers said. “We take kids from all over North Idaho and even into central Idaho. This is our biggest fundraiser, so it is really important that we have all of this incredible support from the community.”
Each year, around 20 live trees are decorated and donated by different individuals, organizations, businesses, schools and others throughout the community to show their support the nonprofit. During the Grand Gala on Saturday, a live auction will be held for guests to bid on the trees.
The Festival of Trees continues today with a holiday luncheon at 11 a.m. As of Thursday evening, a few tickets remained available for the luncheon, which consists of a silent auction, after which guests can head over to the main event area for lunch and viewing of the live decorated trees. Tickets for the luncheon are $50. Tickets for Saturday’s Grand Gala are sold out.
Information: kinderhavensandpoint.com
Mary Malone can be reached by email at mmalone@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow her on Twitter @MaryDailyBee.