Community High School sponsors the Annual Marginal Arts Festival every year in February. The festival starts on February 11 with a kickoff event at Hollins University and culminates on February 16 with our Annual Fat Tuesday event. You are crucial in making sure that this event is a success. It is our major fundraiser of the year and helps keep tuition costs down.

To that end, we need to make you aware of how you can help this great project. In the next two or three weeks, you will receive a call requesting your time to volunteer at events. We need a variety of volunteers and will have many times and jobs available. Please considering giving your time to help staff events during the week of February 11 – 16.

Additionally, we need food items and silent auction items for our Fat Tuesday event. Fat Tuesday is a fabulous event and this year it will be more exotic and elegant than ever before. We need beautifully prepared finger foods and individually sized deserts. A note from our Fat Tuesday Food Coordinator follows with ideas for what kinds of foods we are looking for. You can reply directly to her or respond to me – either way, we’ll coordinate.

As for the Silent Auction, we have found that new items such as gift certificates, hand-made items, gift baskets, and art items sell well. It might be fun for a couple of you to get together to create themed baskets some suggestions include baby baskets, chocolate basket, action figure baskets. Or, you can use your own creative ideas to come up with something. In the past, parents have approached business owners that they know to get corporate donations for the auction. Please let me know if you are willing to donate or contact someone to donate as we have a form that needs to be completed. We would like to have an idea of our auction items no later than January 31, so time is ticking.

Finally, Corporate donations – either in-kind by donating sodas, food items or auction items or cash donations are always welcome. We are happy to display corporate logos on our posters, t-shirts and flyers. If you are able to procure Corporate Donations either through your own company or a company contact, please let me know. We also have a letter that we have used in the past that I am happy to share with anyone who would like to contact a corporation.

For now, please read Wendy’s request for food items below and contact me with any questions. WE NEED YOU!!

Roni

Hi there,

Hope everyone had a terrific Christmas and New Year. We are gearing up for the Marginal Arts Festival next month and need to start thinking about food for the Fat Tuesday party that closes the Festival on Tuesday Feb. 16. As you know (or are about to find out) parents, teachers and students contribute special delicious appetizers, finger foods and desserts to the festivities. We will obtain a few donations from local restaurants but find that some of the best yummies come from our own kitchens. Some contributions from past years include: turkey-sausage rolls, sun-dried tomato dip and veggies, sandwich platters, Isha’s fabulous cake(!), fruit trays, swedish meat balls, cheeseballs…I could go on but I have to stop for dinner….did I mention shrimp with dill sauce? Chocolate-covered strawberries?

Hmm, oh yes. Finger foods only please. We will have exciting new surprises for you this year but generous seating is not one of them. You’ll be moving around a lot so bowls of soup are not practical. Those who can’t cook can still contribute serving utensils and platters, dish cloths and towels for cleaning up or volunteer to help in the kitchen. However you choose to contribute, thank you. This is our one and only fundraising event of the year and we really try to do it up right. We have some wonderful new ideas we are going to start to implement this year – that is all I’m going to say. Don’t miss this party!

Please get back to me to let me know what type of edibles you will bring so that I can make sure we have a diverse selection:

dips
finger sandwiches
appetizers
fruit trays
desserts
other – surprise me!
non-edible contributions

Any questions, comments, criticisms or if you just want me to sample your cooking, please call 540-425-4355 or email windexx@mac.com.

Thank you,

Wendy Rowden