Georgia Club Foundation Tour of Homes to Benefit Oconee Food for Kids
The Georgia Club Foundation Christmas Tour of Homes welcomes you "Home for the Holidays" Sunday, December 9th, 2012, from 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at The Georgia Club. Celebrate the season with friends while touring six tastefully decorated homes and gathering decorative ideas to adorn your own home. The Georgia Club Foundation Christmas Tour of Homes is the perfect way to begin your holidays!
One of the main beneficiaries for this year’s tour of homes includes Oconee Food for Kids, which distributes sacks of nutritious food to children who do not have enough to eat over the weekend.
With the economic decline, there had been an increase in the number of children needing assistance. Oconee County School system partnered with the Oconee Area Resource Council to create the Oconee Food for Kids program. During the first few months, they served just 30 children, but that number doubled by the end of the first year as word spread throughout the generous Oconee community. Donations started arriving from individuals, businesses, and churches, as well as the school system’s staff and faculty. Oconee Food for Kids is now serving over 80
children each week.
The special needs students at North Oconee High School sort and bag all of the food items. Also, many of the various Oconee County school clubs raise money which benefits them as well. Oconee Food for Kids is very much a collaborative effort from many people of all walks of life.
“One of the long term goals of Oconee Food for Kids is to continue to improve the quality of items in each bag,” says Ann Hester, Executive Director of the Oconee Area Resource Council. “At the end of last year we surveyed the children to find out what their favorite and least favorite items were. This year we added a second piece of fruit because it was by far their favorite food.” Two nutritionists help to make sure the food sent home is healthy and also includes milk.
“Our goal is to keep the bags of food under $5. This gets increasingly difficult due to the recent rise in food costs. We estimate the cost per child is $240 per year,” adds Hester. “This is why it is so exciting to be working with The Georgia Club on their Christmas Tour of Homes. We are dependent on the generosity of others and the local community can support our efforts at Oconee Food for Kids just by going on the tour.”
Another beneficiary for this year’s tour is St. Mary’s Hospice, which provides care for individuals and
families facing end-of-life issues. In addition, The Georgia Club Foundation is dedicated to serving the unmet educational, spiritual, and basic human needs of persons primarily within the surrounding counties of Barrow, Oconee, and Clarke and The Georgia Club Community. Through partnerships, volunteer efforts, and fundraising, the Foundation acts as the helping hand that improves and strengthens life in the community. Since its establishment in 2006, The Georgia Club Foundation has raised over $200,000 for various charities. The Georgia Club Foundation is the philanthropic arm of The Georgia Club, which offers homes from $300,000 to the $1,000,000 plus range.
“I am humbled by our one hundred plus tour volunteers who help with everything from transportation to hospitality, along with the generosity of The Georgia Club itself,” says Baginski. “I’ve always heard that it takes a village and The Georgia Club community really has a heart for helping those in need.”
This year the tour includes all types of décor including coastal chic, southern traditional, modern eclectic, whimsical, and shabby chic. Each individual family has a different design aesthetic which shines through for a nice variety on the tour. To facilitate the tour, the foundation has a new transportation system which includes 15 minute time slots and 11 buses.
“I am extremely excited about the implementation of our new and improved transportation system,” says Mary Marshall, co-chair of the 2012 Tour of Homes. “This system, along with other improvements, should make the tour run more smoothly with less waiting for
everyone.”
“With the various architectures of homes and contrasting design styles, there is something for everyone on this year’s tour,” smiles Baginski. “It will definitely put you in a festive mood for Christmas!”
The tour begins at The Georgia Club, 1050 Chancellors Drive, Statham, GA. Tickets are $25.00 in advance/$28.00 day of tour and can be purchased at TheGeorgiaClub.com or by calling 770-725-4902. Please no
children under 12.
