St. Matthew’s Christmas Faire to Ring in Holidays

The Parish of St. Matthew and St. Matthew’s Parish School hosts its annual Christmas Faire at 6 p.m., Friday, November 17 at the Sprague Center, 1031 Bienveneda Ave. The annual event serves not only as a kick-off to the holidays but more importantly as a great way to help those less fortunate in our community. All of the proceeds go directly to the parish’s outreach partners–19 organizations in total. Among some of the local ministries that receive funds are Angel Interfaith Network, which provides housing and transportation for needy families with children at Los Angeles County/USC Medical Center; OPCC, which provides food and shelter for the homeless and counseling and aid for victims of domestic violence; CLARE Foundation, which supports teens at risk for substance abuse; Common Ground, which supports HIV/AIDS- related services including education, prevention and counseling; and Westside Food Bank, among many others. The faire offers something for everyone to enjoy–including the gift boutique, which features handmade goods and unique specialty items; the food boutique, selling delicious homemade treats wrapped and ready to go; the St. Matthew’s Thrift Shop, which showcases some of its best finds; the wine auction for all the wine connoisseurs; the silent auction offering amazing items in categories such as travel, sports, jewelry, shopping and more; and the parties auction, which entices with a wide variety of fabulous parties, including a private art tour, in which guests will visit a world renowned private art collector’s collection and are treated to a fabulous dinner–and a ladies progressive shopping party, which will include cocktails and limousine transportation to preselected hot spots like Diane von Furstenberg and Tory Burch. This year’s Christmas Faire will also feature a raffle offering items such as iPod Nanos and UCLA basketball tickets. All of the funds from the raffle will be specifically used to support the work of the Global AIDS Interfaith Alliance (GAIA). Admission is free and open to adults and children over 12.