“Twenty-nine years ago, a group of volunteers, many of whom are still involved, opened their homes, decorated them for Christmas, baked some cookies and charged admission in an effort to keep Child Advocates of Fort Bend’s (CAFB) doors open,” stated Lisa Moore, Child Advocates of Fort Bend Development Director. “They raised $2,000, kept the doors open and the lights on and began a new Fort Bend County tradition. Historically, the two-day Home Tour has hosted visitors from all of Fort Bend County and surrounding areas. Over 3,000 guests take part in the event each year, including 1,000 volunteers who took their time to participate and make it an amazing event! With the current nature and ensuring safety, we have decided to proceed with a VIRTUAL event this year.”
“Because the Christmas Home Tour kicks off the holiday season for many families in Fort Bend County, we are excited to be able to continue that tradition again this year,” said Moore. “With the help of our homeowners, decorators and some fantastic new partners we are thrilled to offer an innovative and fun event to help you get ready for the holidays. We’ll have 7 fully decorated homes, along with videos and highlights of previous tours, entertainers, a wreath raffle, silent auction items and demonstration videos with “how-to” topics such as how to select the perfect Christmas tree, tree decorating 101, making a perfect bow, designing a tree topper, cocktails, entertaining, setting a holiday table and MORE. In addition, we are creating a variety of festive gathering opportunities for girlfriends, couples or families to safely share the joy of exploring our VIRTUAL Christmas Home Tour. Stay tuned to our website to be the first to grab one of these exclusive offerings.”
You can learn more about our mission of helping abused and neglected children in Fort Bend County, win one of our giveaways and purchase a raffle ticket to win one of the wreaths in our 7th annual wreath raffle. Sponsorships are currently available on our website at https://www.cafb.org/events/home-tour/ and include fun perks including a personally delivered Jingle Box. Tickets to view the programming on your own time are $30 and wreath raffle tickets are 3 for $30. Content will be available beginning at 9am on December 11. The wreath raffle and auction will close on December 17 at noon but you will continue to have anytime access to view the content through January 4th so you can go back and watch all the content to be sure your décor looks just right!
Nationally, one in four girls and one in six boys will be sexually abused by the age of 18 and it is estimated that only 1 in 10 ever tells anyone. “The number of children and families served by our agency has increased 13% during the COVID health crisis on top of a 53% overall increase over the past five years,” stated CEO Ruthanne Mefford. “By sponsoring or participating in the Home Tour, you can help us ensure that all child victims of abuse get the therapy and healing services they desperately need.” The Home Tour is one of the Child Advocates of Fort Bend’s largest fundraisers. “Our team works extremely hard to keep our costs low so that 94% of every dollar raised goes toward our programs and services.” Sponsorships are critical to our ability to do this,” continued Mefford. Sponsorship opportunities ranging from $100 to $10,000 are available. To become a sponsor, purchase tickets or for more information go to https://www.cafb.org/events/home-tour/. For questions or more information contact Tarina at TSheridan@cafb.org.