By Courtney Taylor
news@wbcowqel.com
The sixth annual Power of the Purse through Crawford County took place on April 21 at the Trilium Event Center in Bucyrus. This event is aimed toward women coming together to give back to others and the community.
Around 200 people attended the event, in which the proceeds go to the American Red Cross.
Attendees gather, have dinner, wine and refreshments, and buy purses and other items being auctioned off. The event is organized by ten local volunteers who gather the products from local people, stores, and businesses who donate to the cause.
The Red Cross is also celebrating 100 years in Crawford County. Chris Copper, Director of Development with the Red Cross, spoke on how their big initiative as of now is to promote their home fire campaign. The campaign includes educating and preparing families for fires and any weather disasters, and reducing the number of fire-related deaths.
The Red Cross is attempting to raise awareness to the importance of smoke detectors in the home, and the fact that they are offering a free smoke detector and installation to anyone who asks. At each table, guests received a package giving information on the cause and a phone number to call regarding the smoke detector installation. Already, they have received 159 call backs from the people whose lives have been saved by their detectors.
The “Helen Picking Neff, Women in Leadership” award was presented to Mary Lee Minor. This award is for someone in the community who has inspired others and made an impact in the community.
Claudia Spiegel and Josh Stalling of North Central Ohio Media Group were the night’s emcees.