When June Wright thinks of Christmas she pictures the wonder and awe on a child’s face – the presents, the lights and the parties.
“The children wake up with the wonderment and the awe,” said June Wright, who owns Backhouse Cafe with her husband, Ron.
This season will be different, but the Wrights want to keep the wonder alive. They have organized an outdoor Candlelight Christmas Sing fundraiser from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 5 at Ways Garden on West Fourth Street – just one way the couple hopes to contribute to the holiday season.
“So many things are being canceled this holiday season … we’re trying to do something that helps people get some kind of joy out of the season,” Ron said.
There are 100 tickets available for the event. They will be sold until 2 p.m. on Saturday, or until they are sold out. Each ticket includes a cup of hot chocolate, a cookie and a battery-operated candle to hold during the caroling.
But it’s not just about singing Christmas carols. The event also is a fundraiser for Dwell Orphan Care, a local nonprofit focused on offering support to local foster and adoptive families.
Jennifer Lake, director of Dwell Orphan Care, founded the organization in January 2019 to fill a need in the community.
“Everybody has a role to play in caring for orphans and adopted kids,” said Lake, an adoptive parent herself. The organization builds a support system around families who choose to adopt or foster. This allows other members of the community to offer support, even if they can’t adopt children themselves.
“It takes a village and then some to foster and adopt a child,” Lake said. “We were never meant to do this alone. We were born and built for community.”
Many of the nonprofit’s early meetings were held at June and Ron’s coffee shop on West Fourth Street. As a child of adoption, Ron Wright says Dwell holds a special place in his heart.
All of the funds raised at the event will benefit Dwell Orphan Care. Other donations also will be accepted, according to the Wrights.
“As a nonprofit, we’re always trying to fundraise. So when someone else in the community offers on their own to do it, it’s just such a blessing,” Lake said.
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