Festival of Trees bigger than ever!

The Festival of Trees was a massive whirlwind of activity at the end of last week, with hundreds of people making their way through the library’s doors to bid on auction items, purchase baked goods, raffle tickets, handcrafted Christmas ornaments made by the Junior Friends of the Library, and more.  There was also plenty of time to grab chocolate milk and cookies, visit with Santa Claus, mingle with the many community members who came out for the event, and enjoy a blast of pure Christmas. 

While they won’t have solid numbers until next week, tentatively the library reported that they raised more than $8,000, with some items still being finalized and others still being sold.  Whatever the final figure, it was a great night for the community.

Both the full library staff as well as the members of the Friends of the Library kept on top of the hive of activity throughout the night.  Bidding was done online, and technical difficulties were handled quickly by the staff in order to ensure that there were no hangups for anyone who wanted to bid.  While there were a few claims of having been timed out or a bid not registering, overall the process was fairly seamless, especially considering how many moving parts it involved.  

“Volunteer and mom” Kate Lauck explained, “My kids are big fans of the Music and Movement class on Tuesdays and Story time on Wednesdays—I have two toddlers—and so I’ve become friends with a lot of the moms, and the library staff.  And Beth [Cherriett, president of the Friends of the Library] reached out to me and asked if I’d be willing to help out with the Festival.  Of course I said yes.  I love the library, and I’m glad to come help support.”

Lauck worked on the refreshments for the event, and mentioned that Lallatins had been great to work with, as had Santa himself.  As she was explaining that she only been here for two and a half years and was therefore brand new, Dorajo Messerly whirled by and shouted out “but I feel like you’ve been here forever because we became friends so fast!” as she kept moving to her next project.

That was the kind of energy that infused the whole event.  Part of Lauck’s volunteering also included making gift bags for Santa to give out to the kids.  While eventually the line slowed to a trickle, it was a crush for the first hour or so of his tenure on the chair.  “I love being here,” Santa said, smiling.

Friend of the Library, and Thirkill Elementary teacher Jessica Ineck (who is herself a former librarian), manned a spot near the front desk, keeping the range of activities happening up there under control.  Caleb Messerly occupied a similar spot, overseeing the raffle items.  

“This is the biggest and best festival I have ever seen,” Ineck said.  “I have been helping with the festival for the last five or six years, I want to say, and we’ve always made it really great, and had our patrons from the town come in and show their support, but this is so big!  It’s so neat.”

As Ineck talked, Dorajo jumped on the megaphone to inform people that there was only thirty minutes of bidding left, and that Santa had been ordered back to the North Pole by Mrs. Claus.  “Please come and check out the raffle baskets!  Merry Christmas you guys!”

Shany Beamon is another volunteer who helped out downstairs, where the Junior Friends staffed a counter selling 3-D printed ornaments, as well as baked ornaments.  Georgia Brown was also helping organize the goings-on downstairs.  Some of the popular 3-D ornaments were apparently gone quickly, and the booths were popular with the kids who counted their change to buy ornaments.  

“We really love the library, so anything we can do to support it, we’re happy to,” Beaman said.  One of her children had planned to volunteer with the Friends, but that turned into her volunteering, as anyone with kids will understand.  

Georgia Brown was also filling in as a last minute volunteer.  After several exchanges, it was clarified that yes, that really is her name (which she married into as a Peters from birth).  “They did great!”  she said, in reference to the Junior Friends.  They had sold about 20 handprint ornaments at that point in the evening.  The freeze-dried Skittle ornaments had been very popular as well.  The Junior Friends were raising money to purchase some new seating for their spot upstairs.  “The library is the heart of our community for sure.  I feel like it’s some place we can all go when it’s cold outside.  There’s not always a lot to do in the winter, but there’s always the library.  There are great programs, and they do a lot to entertain our youth.”

The love for the library was widespread, and a lot of familiar faces roamed the building.  Principal Worthington was spotted filling out over 120 raffle tickets, eventually getting some assistance from Superintendent Scott Muir.  By all accounts, the Festival was a smashing success, and sets a high bar for next year.  The event itself is over, but donations are still be taken, and items are still being sold.  Stop by the library if you missed your chance to contribute.  

The funds will go to the Friends of the Library, which is the fundraising group associated with the library, but formed as a separate non-profit.  A long list of projects is on the Hope List, including new wiring and outlets, expansions to the children’s section, outdoor improvements, and much more.

This year’s Festival of Trees was bigger than ever, and has a long list of sponsors.  Supporters included: A+ Contractors, Cozy B Quilts, ABC Factory Preschool and Snow Shack, Ace Hardware, The Alley, Alyson Smith Creations, Baked Fresh Sourdough Bakery, Bayer, Bear Box Self Storage, Bear River Chiropractic, Broulims, Brown’s Bees, Madison Calder, Canyon Creek Dental, Caribou Ford, Caribou Medical Center, Chamber of Commerce, City of Soda Springs, Cassie Collins, Community Gardens Group, Davis Repair, Eastman Drug, TJJones Design, LLC, Farm Bureau, Rhett Price Agency, Full Draw Archery, Geronimo’s, Steve Green, Gritton’s, the Idaho Enterprise, Idaho State University, Idan-ha Indoor Theater and R Pizza, Iron Horse Asphalt, ITAFOS, Jeff’s Auto Body, Kiewitt, Krystyn’s Craft Room, Lallatins, Lava Hot Springs Foundation, Lion’s Club, Little Knot of Horror—RJ Fryar, Lookout Credit Union, Main Street Diner, Tom and Kim Miller, Mountain States Insurance, Mountain View Dental, National Property Inspections, Outer Limits Fun Zone, Patterson’s Quick Stop, River House Caramels, Robinett Studios, Sims Funeral Home, Soda Sip, Soda Smiles, Soda Springs Booster Club, Soda Springs Floral, SSHS Music Department, SSHS Student Council, Tilly’s Chop Shop, Til Then Boutique, Utah Jazz, US Bank, Victoria Smith Photography, Mandy Williams, 3rd Ward Young Women.

Individuals thanked included Kristen Auga, Alexis Brown, Georgia Brown, Beth Cheirrett, Thatcher Cheirrett, Noelia Christensen, Carlie Clarke, Erica Goode, Hope Hansen, Luke Hansen, Telisha Hayes, Rachelle Haymore, Bill Horsley, Jessie Ineck, Kate Lauck, Samantha Lowry, Afton Marowelli, Tasha McClatchy, Brilee McWilliams, Caleb Messerly, Dorajo Messerly, Jospeh Messerly, Paige Messerly, Becky Peterson, Victoria Smith, and Lexi Vi.