–by Mary Helen Darah
PUBLICATION DATE: July 21, 2020

Barefoot at the Beach
Barefoot at the Beach, the popular summer event presented by Fifth Third Bank and enjoyed on the shores of Maumee Bay State Park, has been canceled. It is now a summer-long campaign to raise critical funds for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Toledo, as well as help the community and local economy. The campaign runs through Sept. 8.
Instead of gathering in August, the clubs are asking the community to Stay Barefoot through the summer. The campaign kicks off with “virtual tickets” and sponsorships available for purchase. Each ticket includes “Sand Dollars” which will act as a currency that can be spent at restaurants and local businesses. In order to keep the community engaged leading up to the event, the
clubs will release a treasure map that will give people opportunities to support local businesses with prizes for completing the map.
The Stay Barefoot 2020 Campaign includes a virtual event which will stream on Facebook, Youtube and Vimeo and on the clubs’ website on Aug.15.
Visit barefootatthebeach.org/stay-barefoot/ to participate. With each ticket or sponsorship purchased donors will receive an allotment of “Sand Dollar” coupons, in $5 increments, that can be used at participating locations through Sept. 8. Barefoot at the Beach is an essential fundraising event that typically generates over $250,000 towards the clubs’ annual operating budget.

Susan B. Komen
Another organization has decided to go virtual as well. The Susan G. Komen Northwest Ohio, part of the world’s leading nonprofit breast cancer organization, announced that the Findlay and Toledo Race for the Cure events in 2020 will be held virtually.
The decision to conduct its signature fundraising series of 5Ks and family walks virtually this year was made in the interest of protecting the health and safety of its participants from COVID-19, as many are breast cancer survivors and those living with the disease. “We are heartbroken to not be gathering with our friends and supporters in person this year, but our number one priority is keeping breast cancer survivors, those living with metastatic disease, and others with compromised immune systems safe,” said Mary Westphal, executive director of Susan G. Komen Northwest Ohio. “Despite this change, we are still planning an incredible virtual event, and we need everyone’s help. COVID-19 may have taken a fun weekend from us, but breast cancer robs our friends, loved ones and neighbors of their health, their hair, their bodies, and, for some, even their lives. We can’t stop, because breast cancer doesn’t stop. That’s why we need our community to rise up, register, fundraise, and then celebrate the fight against this terrible disease. We are grateful to this community that has rallied around our fight against breast cancer for 27 years and we need your support now more than ever. The primary way that we raise funds to provide direct service to women and men battling breast cancer and fund research is through the Race for the Cure. Register, fundraise and make a difference.”
Instead of gathering at Blanchard Valley Hospital in Findlay or in downtown Toledo this year, the organization encourages participants to walk 3.1 miles in their neighborhoods, local parks, or wherever else socially distancing is possible. To register online visit komennwohio.org/virtual or call 1-877-604-2873.
Pierogi & Polish Favorites Drive Up
Tom Pruss, president of the Polish-American Community of Toledo (PACT) announced that the Northwest Ohio Polish-American Festival committee will sponsor its first Great Pierogi & Polish Favorites Drive-Up, presented by the Quintessential Event Company, on Sunday, July 26 from 10 am to 8 pm at Club 16, 316 King Rd., Holland, Ohio.
“With the cancellation of the Northwest Ohio Polish-American Festival due to the COVID-19 outbreak, we searched for a way to have an event that wouldn’t compromise the health and safety of the participants and still allow for people to indulge in the great Polish food they enjoy at our festival,” said Pruss. “We can’t have our festival, but it doesn’t mean we can’t have our great Polish food.”
Caterers and restaurants will have safe and convenient curbside pick-up with offerings that include Polish dinners, frozen/refrigerated pierogi by the dozen in traditional and contemporary flavors, as well as heat and serve individual and family-size portions of Polish favorites like kielbasa, Golabki (stuffed cabbage), city chicken, cabbage and noodles, bigos (Hunter’s stew), czarnina, potato pancakes, and more. Orders must be placed online by Tuesday, July 21, at 9 pm and must be prepaid. Costs vary by vendor and items ordered. To order visit DoYouLovePolishFood.com. For more information, call 888-504-8103.
Vendors expected to participate include Stanley’s Market, Tata’s Pierogi of Elk Grove, IL., Czapski Kitchen & Catering, Lost Village Pierogi, Pierogi Palace of Cleveland, and Srodek’s Campau Quality Sausage Co. of Hamtramck, Mich.
Bark in the Park will be virtual
The Toledo Humane Society’s 35th annual Bark in the Park is going virtual.
At this time, for the safety of supporters and sponsors, the Toledo Humane Society has made the decision to officially shift the event to a virtual walk and run for the animals. As a nonprofit organization that receives no government funding, the Toledo Humane Society hosts fundraisers such as Bark in the Park to raise the life-saving funds needed to support the thousands of animals coming into their building every year.
Although this may not be the intended avenue for the 35th annual Bark in the Park, it is believed that the Bark in the Park Virtual Edition will incorporate a new world of online fundraising. Participants are invited to fundraise as an individual or with a group of friends to win some ‘pawsome’ prizes and help the Toledo Humane Society reach its goal of raising $95,000 for the animals.
Visit facebook.com/ToledoHumane/ on Saturday, Aug. 22 from 9 am to noon to virtually experience some of the yearly Bark in the Park events.