October 31, 2001
Volunteers gladly lend a hand for fund-raiser
By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
The multiplying power of teamwork is evident at the glittery Gladhander auction every year.
The annual fundraising event for the Grand Traverse Area Catholic Schools this year clocked more than 50,000 volunteer hours. Living the adage that many hands make light work, more than 450 people worked together since January to generate thousands of decorations, solicit a thousand auction items, sell 600 plus tickets and host the premier event last Saturday.
Everyone from students and parents to teachers and administrators helped with all aspects of the event. With an estimated 11 percent of the district's budget coming from Gladhander - a total fundraising effort of more than $5 million after this year - volunteers make a direct investment in every student's future.
"I help because I have all the things in the classroom because of the auction," said Jean Maslowski, a teacher at the school helping set up an auction booth Friday morning. "Without the auction I wouldn't have them. How could I not help?"
The volunteers' efforts culminated with a final push on Friday that transformed the cafeteria, gym and hallways into a glamorous slice of Czarist Russia.
Despite a district-wide day off, many students from St. Francis High School came to help Friday with all facets of the event. This time, plus many hours helping in the months leading up to Gladhander, helps fulfill part of their school's Christian service requirement.
TJ Berden was one of dozens of students helping with the final decorations Friday.
"I like to come here and help out, I've been helping every year for 12 years," said Berden, an 11th grade student at St. Francis High School. "It all goes together so quickly, like a well-oiled machine. It is fun to transform the school from bricks and cinder blocks."
Many students also help out during the Gladhander event on Saturday evening as doormen, valets, coat checkers, models and servers.
"This year I am a hand model walking around showing a ring from the auction," Berden said.
In its 19th year, Gladhander has become such a community institution that many alumni or parents whose students have since graduated come to help. The children of this year's event chair, who will serve a two-year term, are graduated and gone.
Some community volunteers have never had a formal tie to the school, they just want to help promote its mission.
"We get people from the community who are not tied to the Catholic schools," said Mike Kent, publicity director for Gladhander and father of three children in the district. "These people want to support a Christ-centered education and environment."
By Sunday morning, Team Gladhander wound down another year as a breakdown crew fanned out into St. Francis High School to disassemble the Romanov Fantasy theme.
Volunteers carefully stored away the golden domes, velvet tablecloths and costumes, archways, banners and mock Faberge eggs for future use.
With Gladhander's reputation for fanciful themes and elaborate decorations combined with a limited budget, decoration committee members never pass on a chance to reuse or remake something.
"We recycle where we can," said decoration committee co-chair Sheila McIntyre.
McIntyre's participation dates back to the very first Gladhander event in 1982, when the school put on a circus-themed event to help defray a $40,000 budget deficit. When $80,000 came in, committee members realized they had a winning idea and a new school tradition was born.
Now known as the fund-raiser in the region, careful thought goes into selecting each year's Gladhander theme. Once a theme is chosen in February or March, members of the decoration committee are always scouting for new ideas and put in extensive research at the library and bookstores to capture authentic details.
"Whenever any of us who decorate travel, we always keep our eyes open for Gladhander," McIntyre said. "My husband and I have been to Russia and we took pictures for this."
Besides the bottom line of lots of money raised, Gladhander creates cohesion for everyone who participates. Many volunteers noted that this spirit permeates all the schools and families in the district.
"It's not just a school, it's a family," noted teacher Jean Maslowski.