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Carnival at North Belle Vernon park to raise money for Make-A-Wish

By Rachel Basinger for The 2 min read
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A Carnival in the Park event this Saturday at North Belle Vernon Community Bank Park will benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Southwestern Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

“We really wanted do something in our local park this year, and the idea for a carnival came up,” said Bobbi Saylor, event organizer and real estate agent for Berkshire Hathaway, who sponsored the event. “It has really taken off.”

From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., carnival features will include games, refreshments, Chinese auction, bake sale, caricatures, a petting zoo and more.

There are at least 25 vendors who will be participating, including Essential Oils, Tastefully Simple, Homemade Candles, LuLaRoe, and Thirty One, and Saylor said they are still getting calls.

“They’re all bringing a basket for a Chinese auction, plus all of our agents in the office are bringing a basket, and there are about 10 games for the kids to play,” she said.

The games will be 50 cents to play, but Saylor said the kids will get a prize every time.

R.J. Sokol, chairman of the parks and recreation committee for the borough of North Belle Vernon, said they were happy to donate use of the park for the event.

“The park just opened last August and when we built it we had two things in mind — to provide a safe place for families and to be a draw for young families to move into the borough,” he said. “A fundraiser for Make-A-Wish feeds right into what we dreamed of for the park.

“They do good for others and it’s an event that is tailor made for what our goals are for the park,” Sokol added.

He pointed out the importance of the Make-A-Wish Foundation being a nonprofit organization, however.

“We don’t ever want the park to be part of a scam, so we have to be careful who we approve to use it,” Sokol said.

Saylor said she is hoping they raise at least $2,000 at the carnival.

“Make-A-Wish helps to provide wishes for sick children ages two to 18 and our goal is to raise enough money to help at least one child,” she said. “Carnival in the Park is a great opportunity for the community to come out, have fun and raise money for an excellent organization.”

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