This fall, and all of life during the current COVID pandemic, has been a little busier than anticipated. The good news is we were able to get out and record as well as take a handful of trips. The bad news is we are slightly behind on those, but they will start to open up now that we are getting into the cooler weather. And besides, maybe the best time to talk about the late summer and early fall sun would be when we are seeing near freezing days over the coming weeks! Speaking of near freezing days, the event we were able to go to and highly recommend you check out was the festival of trees.
Location
The festival of trees is a fundraiser for Allegheny Health Network. Typically, this is an indoor event where individuals can actually bid on decorated Christmas trees. However, this year is obviously a different one. In fact, it’s a drive-through event in Fairview Business Park where you can stay in your car and practice being socially distant the entire time.
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Fairview Business Park is located just off of Route 98, just north of the I-90 exit. Or, you can take U.S. route 20 and then head south onto Avonia Road, just a short drive past the Fairview Elementary, Middle and High Schools. The event itself starts inside of the park, so just turning in and following Klier drive will take you where you need to go.
Property Description:
The property itself is a business park with a main road that heads back and circles around a pond. There are multiple commercial and office buildings built around the park, and one side of the road is closed so you don’t need to worry about oncoming traffic. Basically, all that you need to do is drive up and slowly drive through to see the lights, scenes and other characters at the event.
Things to do:
This is a great combination of characters, individual scenes (both fixed in place and with moving characters who are dressed up), and light displays. There are some very festive scenes, some princesses and heroes that the kids will love, and even a Santa and Mrs. Claus. While you are there, they even suggest you listen to 99.1 FM on your radio to hear the Christmas music as you drive through. The entire event will vary slightly depending on how quickly you drive (or the speed of the car in front of you), but all in all, this was about a 20-minute drive through.
Who Can Go:
Because the speed was reasonably slow (less than 20 mph), you are able to see most all of the sites. This means it’s great for children or the elderly as well. And while it may be a little bit colder, the weather allows for individuals to roll their windows down and interact with the characters who are present.
One point to note, because this event is only offered for this weekend (November 27th – 29th, 2020) from 5:00-9:00PM, it is crucially important to get there early. We pulled into the park at about 4:45, and were probably around 15 to 20 cars deep from the first car to go through. They allow the next car to go every 20-30 seconds or so, so it meant we were able to “start” at about ten minutes after 5:00, and were exiting the display area by about 5:30PM. However, as we were exiting, we saw cars more than a mile down the road to the entrance of the park.
Santa!
Final Thoughts:
Because this is a charity event, the cost is displayed on the website, but for a car with 10 or less passengers, the total cost is $20.00. It is going towards helping Allegheny Health Network build a Healthy Food Center for nutritional support. Also, it is nice to see different participants involved and sponsoring different displays, and there is even a contest to vote for which one was your favorite. This certainly is a short event for the fact it is only running three days total. But if you consider the ability to get out and let your children have fun while doing something new for the holidays, this is an event to try.
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I hope you’re all doing well! We wanted to do something different today and give you some information on upcoming charity events in the Erie area! All the information was taken from Facebook and the nonprofit’s websites! Please support local causes! And if you know of other events we missed, please comment below!
Bark and Brunch
Join the Erie Humane Society on Saturday, August 8, 2020 for Bark & Brunch! They will have Tuxedo Dogs selling food, Sundae selling vegan treats, and bubbly refreshments made available by the Erie Humane Society. The first 100 dogs will receive a free doggy brunch bag. Admission is $10. Doggy activities include a Doggy Agility Contest, Puppy Pool Time, and a Pupsicle Stand with Pupsicles for donation.
Childrens activities include Popcorn, Slushies-for donation, Cotton Candy, and a Craft Station. There will also be a Bad Art Show! This is how it works: A $5 donation a portrait will be painted of your pet. A volunteer will paint a portrait of your pet within 15 minutes. There will also be a Shelter Pet Toy Box where you can purchase a $5 toy to help provide each shelter pet residing at the Erie Humane Society a new toy for their kennel (There are 124 Kennels).
There will be a 20% Discount on all pet adoptions from 10AM-1:30PM (August 8, 2020 only).
Open Air Craft Fair
Orphan Angels Cat Sanctuary is having an Open Air Craft Fair! Stop by 12pm – 4pm on August 9! After you’re done stop in to meet our adoptable cats and kittens!
Erie Gives Day 2020
It’s the tenth year of Erie Gives! Join us to top off a decade of amazing generosity and community support. Nonprofits – register at ErieGives.org! Members – access the Erie Gives toolkit now at YourNPP.org! The minimum gift is $25. There is no limit to the amount of money you may give. There is no limit to the number of organizations you can donate to in a transaction. Credit Cards: Only Visa, MasterCard and Discover will be accepted. Checks: Donors can write a check for their Erie Gives donation. Prorated Match: The Erie Community Foundation and our sponsors will enhance donors’ gifts by providing a prorated match to each gift made to a nonprofit. Your Receipt: You will receive an email receipt of your gift, which you should retain for tax purposes. Unless you choose to remain anonymous, your donor information will be sent to the appropriate organizations. Questions about #ErieGives2020? Contact Khristina Bowman at kbowman@eriecommunityfoundation.org
2020 Grady’s Golf Tournament
The Annual Graden Vincent Smith Golf Tournament is held every year in August at Whispering Woods Golf Course in Erie, PA. The tournament is structured as a four person scramble. Both men and women are welcome to play in the tournament. At the tournament, prizes will be awarded to the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 23rd, and last place teams. Proceeds from the tournament will help us continue our vision of assisting NICU families in need of support. They will take requests for tee times as they will not do a shotgun start this year. You can request early morning, late morning, early afternoon, and late afternoon teebtimes. They also will be taking 9 hole tee times. They only have room for the first 40 foursomes, so register today!
FUROCIOUS 5K Run/Walk and Children’s Fun Run Virtual Race
NEW DATE: RUN NOW UNTIL AUGUST 31, 2020. The Ashtabula County APL FURocious 5k Run/Walk & Kid’s Fun Run is now a VIRTUAL RACE. ONLINE REGISTRATION:
https://www.gcxcracing.com/furocious PACKET PICKUP: SEPTEMBER 3rd-6th during open hours@ Ashtabula APL 5970 Green Rd Ashtabula, Oh 44004 SOME FAQ:
1. What is a Virtual Run? You register for the event and run 3.1 miles wherever you want between NOW and August 31st. 2. What do I do after I complete my run? Email raceinfo@acapl.org or text (440)413-9250 with your name and 5k finish time. To be included in awards, you must submit your name and time by September 1st. 3. How do I pickup my shirt and medal? Stop by the APL on the days listed under packet pickup. Only 5k participants registered by 8/22 get a shirt. You must email or text your results in order to be included in the medals/trophies.
No Fleas Market
NOW COLLECTING DONATIONS for the NO FLEAS Market Purrista Yard Sale Fundraiser!
*PLEASE NO broken items. NO clothing WITH stains OR rips. NO OLD electronics, TVs, VCRs, or computers. ITEMS THEY WANT/NEED: (They are looking for items that you would sell at a garage sale): Tools, Books, Clothing, Kids Toys, Baby Gear, Home Décor, Small Furniture, Anything Vintage/Antiques, and any items in decent or gently used condition that you are looking to donate or get rid of. When you donate your used goods to the Purrista Sale, your donation has the potential to help find cats their forever homes. Items sold at The Purrista No Fleas Market will help raise start-up funds for the opening of Purrista Cat Café. DONATION DROP OFF DATES & TIMES: Every other Saturday starting July 18th from 11am-2pm (JULY 18 | AUG 1, AUG 15, AUG 29). Contactless Drop-Off will be behind the Bastion Studios … you can just leave your items by the back door. Someone will be there to get them into the studio for storage. VOLUNTEERING OPPORTUNITY:
If you can volunteer the morning of the sale, Saturday, September 19, please let then know! They will need help setting up and “cashiers”. Email: PURRISTACATCAFE@GMAIL.COM with the subject of “Volunteering” … would love to have your help! About the event itself: Join them for an open-air NO FLEAS Market fundraising event behind the Bastion Studios (back parking lot) September 19 8AM-2PM!
You will find a variety of gently used, old, and new goods to check out. Come sip some coffee and walk around in a safe, open market environment (with plenty of sanitizer and wipes). The NO FLEAS Market will open at 8AM sharp. From 1PM – 2PM, they will have a $10 bag sale; you pay $10 for a garbage bag & fill it, they will provide you with the bag.
Pets at the Pub
Erie Humane Society is offering a re-vamped, special Corona Edition of Pets at the Pub (formerly known as Pints for Paws) this year on September 6 from 3-7. The event will be held at the Erie Humane Society, on the 3 acres of green space behind our Pet Wellness Clinic. The ample space will allow attendees to enjoy this event outdoors with plenty of room to comply with CDC guidelines, as we will have two large tents set up, with seating available. Beer will be available for purchase from Erie Ale Works, and wine will be sold by EHS. Food will be available for purchase from Tuxedo Dogs, and Sundae will have vegan dog treats for sale. Take a chance on a themed basket in our basket raffle or try your luck in a 50/50 raffle. Well-behaved, leashed pets are welcome and encouraged to attend. Tickets are available for purchase at the Erie Humane Society. Cost is $10.00 and includes a free pint glass. Still have questions? Feel free to contact the shelter at 814-835-8331.
Lions Tigers and Beers
On October 3 Small Town Rollers will be performing at Erie Zoo’s Lions, Tigers, & Beers Festival, in Erie, PA!!! Enjoy sampling craft brews while listening to our acoustic grooves! Gates open at 6P and proceeds go to the Erie Zoological Society!
Emma’s Footprints Virtual Memorial Walk
Emma’s Footprints Memorial Walk is going VIRTUAL! While we are certainly disheartened that we will not be able to meet at an event location, we want to offer you a chance to be with your friends and family, taking steps to remember your baby in a social distance atmosphere. Emma’s Memorial Walk offers friends and family grieving pregnancy and infant loss the opportunity to gather and remember the lives of their babies. While their life on this earth was far too short, their memory and impact live on forever. Please join them virtually on Thursday, October 15th – October 18th. Stay tuned for more details! Family Fundraising is back!! What does this mean?! No registration fee! Without a registration fee, they hope you’ll be able to build your team, gather more support than ever, and walk in memory of your baby for free!
Serverie Soiree
Join them for a night out on October 16th from 7-10 to celebrate ServErie and help support future Erie community initiatives. Enjoy the Erie Art Museum after hours, as well as, numerous food tastings from several local restaurants! All this and more while enjoying music from one of Erie’s local talent. You won’t want to miss this event!
Keep checking the blog for information on upcoming charity events in the Erie area! We’re bringing you this information before the events so you can attend them! Hopefully we will be blogging a few of them!
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Wander Erie 