Glendon School hosted its annual cake auction fundraiser for the sixth consecutive year on April 6. The annual event is one that residents look forward to, and this year was no exception.
Brittany Norton, a humanities teacher at the school and organizer of this year's event, said that this auction was particularly special because of a recent tragedy that affected a family connected to the school.
“Normally, the funds we raise from the cake auction go directly back to the school for activities and other things that we would need. But this year, we’re really happy to be raising money for an even better cause,” said Norton.
That cause was to support Randy Norton and Coreen Sommers and their children, who lost their home to a fire in early March.
“It's really incredible to see how much everyone in Glendon has rallied and come together to help us out,” said Randy. “It's like being part of one giant family.”
Over 60 cakes were donated to the auction, ranging from store-bought to professionally designed, and many of them were baked by Glendon students themselves. The auction took place in the Glendon School gym, which was filled to standing room only with those eager to get a piece of the pie.
Roger Bilodeau and Don Luciak were the auctioneers for the evening, and many of the cakes sold for high prices. A few of them, including a highly contested poppy seed peanut butter cake, went for over $300. Another unique “cake” made out of supplies for a newborn baby, including diapers and toys, sold for more than $100.
Norton, who was recently nominated for the Alberta School Boards Association's Edwin Parr Award by the Northern Lights Public Schools Board of Trustees, was thrilled with the success of the event.
“Overall it was a great night, and it was amazing to see all of the community support for the event, and I'm very grateful that the Glendon staff and student leadership was there to help out with the event as well,” she said. "”t was wonderful to see everyone come together. We're extremely grateful to all of the cake donors, those who helped us spread the word and to all who came out to the event.”
In total, the auction raised more than $4,800 to donate to Randy and Coreen's family. The family is now able to make concrete steps forward, since losing their home.
“It's been really tough,” said Coreen. “But, we've had so many people around us to help out. We've just been renting a place for now and have all of our basic needs taken care of. But we're so grateful for the school helping us out like this, because now it’s like we can finally look forward to the future instead of focusing on the past.”
