Winners of the Ugly Sweater Contest (l to r): 2nd – Sherry Patterson, RE/MAX Alliance; 1st – Jill Cummings, RE/MAX Alliance and husband, Ben Snell; and 3rd – Kathy Shemwell, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Elite Properties.

The Greater Gateway Association of REALTORS® gathered last week in Edwardsville for its Christmas Charity Celebration at the Wildey Theater, collecting 35 bags of toys and more than $800 to distribute among five area charities.

The charities included:

  • Community Care Center in Granite City,
  • HIS Kids in Highland,
  • Oasis Women’s Center in Alton,
  • Riverbend Family Ministries in Wood River and
  • Staunton Lions Club in Staunton.

Members donated $837 while participating in an Ugly Sweater contest at the holiday gathering.

These activities came on the heels of association members donating nearly $7,000 to local food banks at Thanksgiving, said GGAR Association Executive Kyle Anderson.

GGAR officers for 2018 are: President Mark Massey (Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Elite Properties in Edwardsville), President-elect Laurie Moore (RE/MAX Alliance in Collinsville), Vice President Rick Lauschke (Paul Lauschke & Associates in Alton) and Immediate Past President Sandy Michel-Stempinski (Heart and Home Realty in Vandalia).

This is the 13th in a series of blog posts about local associations giving back to their communities during the holiday season. See the previous stories about the: