Published: Monday, July 23, 2012
Echota’s annual Fourth of July celebration was a welcome reprieve from June’s soaring temperatures in western North Carolina and it also benefited local school children. More than 500 people escaped the steamy humidity in the lower elevations and attended Echota’s family-focused event bringing food donations for the Hardin Park Elementary School food distribution program.
Held high in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Boone where the air is cooler and the mountain breeze heaven-sent, for the third year in a row, Echota families and friends donated over 500 pounds of non-perishable and canned food items to the food distribution program as part of the July 4th celebration.
“The food assistance program is something that is close to home for us,” said Echota Marketing Director, Leah Grove. “This is our third year to ask for food donations and thanks to our generous Echota families and their guests, we have provided over 1,500 pounds of food for local children.”
The Hardin Park Elementary School food assistance program distributes food during the school year and especially during the winter months to families in the High Country struggling with increasing energy costs, reduced working hours and seasonal layoffs. The food pantry at the school sends basic, easy-to-prepare food home with the children each week.
Echota staffers and families donate to the program throughout the year. “Our children attended Hardin Park Elementary and we have seen first hand how difficult it is for children to do their best at school when they go without adequate food at home,” said Mark Harrill, Echota Developer. “The food distribution program targets a real need for real families.”
The July Fourth celebration at Echota included a parade, BBQ, family fun and games, bluegrass music and a raffle for the 25 much-admired table arrangements created by Sheri Furman of Bless Your Heart in Blowing Rock.
“We began raffling off the centerpieces in response to our homeowners always wanting to take them home after the celebration. Having a raffle gives everyone a chance to take home their favorite centerpiece and builds a little more excitement in to the festivities,” Grove said.
Echota is a 250-acre community featuring wooded home sites with long-range views of Grandfather and the surrounding mountains. Echota has a well-appointed community clubhouse with vaulted ceilings framed by heavy timbers, double-sided stone fireplace and a caterer’s kitchen. Echota’s amenities center features a four-season pool and fitness center.
Echota and the Chalakee community are located between Boone and Blowing Rock, NC in the high mountains of western North Carolina. For additional information about living in the high country communities of Echota and Chalakee, visit the website at echotanc.com.