Living Savior Marti Gras 2009 raises $12,000 for Gulf Coast Relief
Please click here to view photos of the event
On Saturday, February 21, 116 members, family, and friends of Living Savior Lutheran Church (LSLC) gathered there for their Fourth Annual Mardi Gras Celebration & Silent Auction. The first event was held soon after the devastation that Hurricanes Katrina and Rita left behind in the Gulf Coast in 2005. LSLC members had family and friends who had been affected by this disaster, and wanted to do something to help.
The funds raised in these four Mardi Gras events have totaled over $53,000. Every penny goes directly to hurricane relief. All attendees bring food and drink to share, and an overflowing buffet is always a feature. Music from the Bayou and New Orleans help set the mood, along with decorations, beads, boas, and masques that bring Mardi Gras to Northern Virginia.
Members, family, and friends make donations, getting more creative with each successive auction. The 172 donations this year included delicious homemade foods, jewelry, antiques, handmade crafts, tickets to sporting and cultural events, and vacations in beautiful locations. Participants get to know one another better by the giving and receiving of talents and services donated: horseback riding, art tours, golf lessons, landscape design, interior design, photo digitizing, tutoring, leaf raking, hauling, driving service to airport, etc. Individuals, families, and small groups at the church are encouraged to participate. The Youth each year have generously donated free babysitting so that more parents of young children can attend. The Choir annually donates a musically inclined item; this year a $100 gift certificate to Wolftrap. The list goes on and on.
LSLC now has a pastor from New Orleans, Andrew Lissy, and he and his family can feel right at home in the festive purple, green, and gold of the Mardi Gras Celebration. Andy and his family lived through the hurricanes in New Orleans, and have now settled in Clifton. “Select a Sermon” has been a popular item that he has offered for auction; and of course the topic must be appropriate for Lutherans of all ages.
Habitat for Humanity estimates that at a rate of rebuilding 54 houses a day, it will take 10 years to replace what was lost. Determined to not forget those still suffering in the areas hit, LSLC brings both needed funds and volunteers to the Gulf Coast. This summer, for the third year, a group of volunteers will go to New Orleans to do some hands-on rebuilding (JoAnn & Jack Grant, trip coordinators, jjjgrant@verizon.net).
Continuing to help this recovering area of our country, LSLC will be hosting the Fifth Annual Mardi Gras Celebration & Silent Auction on Saturday, February 13, 2010. We welcome you to attend!