COMMUNITY KINDNESS

Despite the bad weather, community members braved the cold to attend the Clark Fork Valley Elks' first community baby shower last Saturday in Thompson Falls. Fifty-six guests, including children, were invited to take part in an educational day full of parenting resources, chances to win raffle prizes, games, face painting and lunch.

Michelle Blackstone, Exalted Ruler of the Clark Fork Valley Elks, headed up the event with funds that were granted to her through the Elks National Fund (ENF) Spotlight Grant. This grant, which focuses on children's literacy, gave Blackstone the opportunity to give a little help to expecting mother's and mothers of newborns in the community.

Representatives from the Sanders County Health Department were there to help promote safe sleeping and proper positioning; the department also donated a Pack N' Play for the raffle. Lynne Kersten, director of the Thompson Falls Public Library, brought with her many resources the library offers for children and their families. Every Saturday, the library has story time at 11 a.m. A rocking chair has been provided for breastfeeding mothers and for the older kids there are plenty of toys to go around. Women, Infants and Children, Head Start and parenting coach Mary Trego volunteered their time at the Elks event, alongside Gayle Seratt, Executive Director for Sanders County Coalition for Families, who volunteered her time to do face painting at the baby shower.

Penny Torgrimson, another volunteer for the event, was there to lend her expertise in making balloon animals. "I used to work at the school and I made balloon animals for the kids, I've been making balloon animals for 35 years now. I guess that's why they brought me out of retirement for this," Torgrimson stated.

Along with lunch and story time for the children, there were numerous prizes the guests won in the raffle. Some of the big-ticket items included a car seat, a baby monitor and educational toys. Other items included Disney educational learning books, clothing and formula. Blackstone raffled off the items until everything was gone. Ginger Ward donated hand-knit hats she made for the guests, and a whole table of children's books were donated by community and Elks members. Everyone walked out with an armful of prizes to take home.

Blackstone visited Kalispell Target and bought $2,000 worth of diapers, which allowed every family to go home with a box of diapers, along with two packages of baby wipes. The manager of Target was gracious enough to open a lane specifically for Blackstone. Target also donated 15 gift bags for the event. "I was nearly in tears," Blackstone said about generosity she received from the manager.

As for the turnout, Blackstone considered the number of guests who attended as a success. "It was a pretty good turnout. I was shocked," Blackstone sited because of the cold weather. There were three families who were unable to attend the event. They will be sent care packages full of baby shower items.