On Friday night, some of the hundreds of people who propel RAINEs charitable efforts through the holiday season will sit down and enjoy a good moment together at the sold-out annual Gala at Jacques Reception Center. Then theyll pop back up to stroll through the amazing Gift Basket Auction, and drop tickets in hopes of winning a prize to bring home to the family, or for themselves. The gifts this year are phenomenal, said Karen Bachmann, a RAINE Trustee who oversaw the assembly of more than 185 baskets with a team of 20 volunteers. Among them is a 7-foot tall Christmas tree decorated with bows and over $150 in lottery tickets. A Whole Foods specialty food basket. Circus tickets. Luxury pocketbooks. Wine tastings. And a Money Cake made with $100 cash. (Save room for that dessert!) Since August, Bachmann and her team have been seeking gift basket donations from the local mom and pop stores, to corporate headquarters. Donations were a bit hard to get this year, she said, due to the economy. You could see the businesses aren’t doing as well as they used to, she said. Some had already reached their limits on donations. But despite the challenges, a good number of local merchants still found a way to give to RAINEs gift basket auction, which benefits Bayshore families in need. These businesses are such a huge part of RAINE, said Bachmann. They are the most generous. At midnight following Thanksgiving dinner, Bachmann and RAINE volunteer Tricia Sheldrick braved Black Friday madness to scoop up researched deals at Kohls in Holmdel, using $850 cash donated to the organization for the purpose of bringing in some exciting I want that! items like a KitchenAid mixer, a Keurig coffee machine, and a telescope and more -- which Bachmann estimates would regularly have cost $2,500. With the Kohls Cash rebates, she returned the other day to buy a pair of $750 diamond earrings to entice bidders at the silent auction table. They join other prizes in that section, like Disney World tickets, Great Wolf Lodge accommodations, and more. The committee has spent the past two entire weekends slicing cellophane, tying bows and creating the auctions printed materials for the baskets, which filled RAINE Trustee Irene Baldassanos basement. When Friday night comes, Bachmann is looking forward to having a glass of wine with friends and taking a chance on her favorite item of all: the opportunity to sail away in a Hot Air Balloon. ~ Thank you to RAINE Trustee Joe Szutyanyi for photo contributions.
Posted on: Thu, 04 Dec 2014 03:03:10 +0000
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