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McLeese Lake Christmas pot luck fun for all ages

What a beautiful evening at the McLeese Lake Hall on Sunday, Dec. 18.
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Five-year-old Aaron Swoffer was so excited to sit with Santa and receive a gift.

 

What a beautiful evening at the McLeese Lake Hall on Sunday, Dec. 18.

That was the night of the 13th annual Christmas pot luck supper for area residents and friends.

This event has become the social event of the season for McLeese Lake citizens and everyone looks forward to it every year.

Well over 100 people attended this special event from McLeese Lake, Wildwood, Williams Lake and area. A special thank you goes out to Cariboo Regional District Area D director Deb Bischoff, who attended with her husband Oleh Lazarchuk.

Bischoff is a wonderful supporter of our local community events and she is greatly appreciated.

The stage area was decorated so nicely and a huge thank-you goes out to Jackie King, Maj Sutherland and Howie Chamberlin for getting the hall set up and ready for the celebration.

The evening started off with a prayer from John Noble and then table order was picked and everyone enjoyed an incredibly delicious pot luck supper.

There was everything there from ham, turkey, dressing, salads, potatoes, lasagna, baked beans, vegetable dishes, yummy desserts and more!

After supper, McLeese Lake Recreation president Howie Chamberlin gave a short speech on all that was accomplished with the hall property in the past several months.

Following that, we were entertained by the singing and playing from siblings Luke, Stephen and Paul Noble. Their musical ability always brings magic to the room and we feel incredibly honoured to have them sing to us.

After the Noble boys entertained everyone, Samuel Colp played a song on his tenor sax which was so pleasant to listen to as the sound of that instrument is very melodic.

The entertainment continued with a short skit by Clarence and Samuel Colp who did a very funny play on words relating to computers. It was a play on the famous “Who’s on First” skit and brought several chuckles from the audience.

Luke, Stephen and their sister Mary Noble led the audience in a few Christmas carols including Santa Claus is Coming to Town. With everyone helping with the singing, the children in the audience were so pleased and excited to see Santa Claus arrive.

He sat in a wicker chair on stage with Mrs. Claus beside him and an elf to help with the gifts. The children were so eager to sit on his lap and tell him they’ve been good all year and receive a gift. Santa was so jovial and he made us all wish we were kids all over again for just a quick minute.

He was spreading such good cheer and his happiness was very infectious. Residents were asked to bring new or nearly new items for the fundraising auction and as usual, they did not disappoint.

After Santa left, the auction started. There were many big ticket items which brought in several high bids. All funds go towards future hall community events and expenses.

There was also a silent auction for both general and baked goods and the bidders were very generous for both of these as well.

There are always several people to thank because without the help of so many, the event would not happen. A huge thank you goes out to all members of the hall committee for their involvement.

Thank you also to Kathy Carter, Greg Foster, Cynthia Noble and Kathy Suski who all helped in cooking the hams, turkeys and dressing.

Lisa Johnson was a big help with the gifts as were Julia Robertson and Stephanie Carter. The auction would never be as successful as it is without the assistance of Terry Fowler.

We truly are grateful for Terry’s appearance every year as our auctioneer, as he can really get the audience going and somehow convinces them to dig a little deeper. Helping with the auction were Joanne Regush, Kathy Suski, Clarence Colp, Gordon Kolcun and yours truly.

There were several members of the community who came out on Monday to help with the cleanup, as well.

If anyone has been missed in these thank yous, please know that the members of the McLeese Lake recreation commission appreciate all assistance that was given by everyone.

It was an enchanting, entertaining, wonderful evening. Just ask everyone who attended. It is always such a successful community event and we can hardly wait for next year.

From everyone in McLeese Lake to every one of you, have a safe and amazing Christmas holiday season with your family and friends and all the best in the new year.