Photo: Rhonda Mather and Julie Webster selling raffle tickets.
Friends of Horton House & Warmington Lodge held their annual fundraising stall last week to raise money for the local aged care facilities.
Committee President Rowena Weir said the group was really delighted with how it went and appreciated everybody’s support.
The not-for-profit sold cakes, biscuits, garden produce, plants, jams, preserves and chutneys.
It also marked the launch of their annual Christmas raffle, their largest fundraiser of the year, which will be drawn on Saturday, December 11.
“On the day people were very generous stopping by, buying tickets and goods off the store,” she said. Rowena said they were amazed at the number of people who stopped, however, after another wet and windy weather forecast.
“It was just a lovely trickle of people that kept coming,” she said. “It’s such a worthy cause and one so well known in the community that people are happy to support.”
She said their Christmas raffle is also quite well known in town as it’s been operating for two decades.
But the committee has reduced the number of raffle prizes down to five over the last two years due to the pandemic.
“The prizes are fabulous,” she said. First prize is a large gourmet Christmas hamper with ham, turkey, wine, pudding and festive trinkets.
Vice President Katie Walker is the lead organiser of the raffle and creates the basket prizes herself.
“[Katie] decorates it beautifully with Christmas decorations and it really looks spectacular,” Rowena said. Other prizes include a superb bedroom linen and towels combo, a $600 Yass Mobil Fuel voucher, luxurious beauty basket, and a gardener’s delight collection.
Tickets are $2 each and can be purchased at Woolworths or the Newsagency on: Friday, November 19; Thursday, November 25; Friday, Novemebr 26; Friday, December 3; Saturday December 4; Friday, December 10; and the morning of Saturday, December 11.
The raffle will be drawn at the Christmas Party Friends of Horton House & Warmington Lodge held yearly in the activity room at Warmington Lodge.
Rowena said each year they donate about $6,000 directly to the residents at the aged care homes for birthday presents, Easter gifts, craft activities, puzzles and bingo.
On top of that, depending on the group’s budget, they also provide funding for special requests such as setting gel and food moulds.
These are for residents who can’t chew properly and require their food to be soft and often mashed.
“The kitchen staff put the appropriate food into the moulds so that it looks like what they would expect it to eat and apparently that has really helped their appetites,” she said.
By Brianna O’Rourke
