Community

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Seeing a need to help support the Latinx community, South Lake Tahoe's local social justice group, #IRunWithMaud, reached out to its members nd got to work raising funds. They spent the past several weeks gathering donations and today donated the last of almost $3,000 in food gift cards to the Family Resource Center.

"This community has been overwhelmingly impacted by COVID resulting in food insecurity," said one of the organizers Jen Dawn.

A South Lake Tahoe woman has become the 11th resident of El Dorado County to die from COVID-19. Elda Yadira Dueñas passed away at Barton Memorial Hospital on December 16, 2020.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Many people in the South Lake Tahoe area could use some extra help during the holidays, and local sources of free food are available to help ease some needs.

Bread & Broth will be open on Monday, December 21 and 28 from 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. with bags of food. Also, their Friday food bag operation will not be open on Christmas Day but will resume on New Year's Day, January 1, from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. They are located at St. Theresa Grace Hall at 1041 Lyons Avenue, South Lake Tahoe.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The local group tasked with improving and promoting tourism, the South Lake Tahoe Tourism Improvement District (SLTTID), is donating $10,000 to an Essential Food Bag Program for South Shore locals in need during these challenging times.

This follows their program this spring where $10,000 was donated to help support community members, especially those in the tourism industry and families of the Lake Tahoe Unified School District. People who were impacted with the stay-at-home order shutdowns received approximately 500 grocery bags.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The holidays will be a bit more brighter this season after the community Toys for Tots toy drive provided special gifts for 347 kids.

Toys were collected in bins located around the community as well as online via Walmart's virtual toy drive.

The presents will be given to youth from the Family Resource Center who collected applications for the Toys for Tots organizer. Now the families will be picking up a bag full of books, toys and stuffed animals.

Christmas Cheer, the South Lake Tahoe-based food pantry, is in need of food to give to the local community. The Tahoe Chamber has teamed up with a chamber member who is matching donations of food and cash given to Christmas Cheer this season up to $1,500.

All donating with locally purchased items and donated funds are eligible for the Chamber's Go Local Passport program. Spending locally gives the donator entries into the passport's $500 grand prize.

What is needed most this week at Christmas Cheer are hams and turkeys.

With El Dorado County and South Lake Tahoe falling under California's regional Stay-at-Home order starting Thursday at 11:59 p.m. Thursday, the Tahoe Chamber is holding a Virtual Town Hall meeting with local health officials to receive guidance on the recent stay-at-home order in El Dorado County and how the new restrictions will affect restaurants, retailers, and other local business operations.

Featured speakers will be El Dorado County Public Health Officer Dr. Nancy Williams and Barton Health President and CEO Dr. Clint Purvance.

The holidays this year are set to be especially hard for many families throughout El Dorado County and beyond, with many facing the threat of going hungry without the means to put food on the table. To help relieve some of this stress, and help ensure families can eat this holiday season, Feed El Dorado has provided $25,000 in food cards to be distributed by Choices for Children and Head Start on both the Western Slope of El Dorado County and in South Lake Tahoe.

Local businesses and residents are lighting up the town for the Light Up the South Shore Holiday Contest and bringing much-needed cheer with their festive light displays. The community is invited to travel the Holiday Light Trail Map for a fun and safe activity to enjoy some holiday spirit!

INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. - Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival, in partnership with Great Lakes Theater and Idaho Shakespeare Festival, will present The Snow Must Go On – A Virtual Holiday Cabaret Fundraiser on Sunday, December 20, 2020 at 4:30 p.m. A merry ensemble of artists will share festive songs and stories that will bring comfort and joy straight to patron’s homes this holiday season.

South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue has been able to reverse its earlier decision and is once again going to launch the decorated fire truck through the community. They will be running nightly from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. December 10-24, 2020.

Here is their schedule:

Thursday Dec 10th – Keys/Venice

Friday Dec 11th – Glenwood area

Saturday Dec 12th – Keys/State streets

Sunday Dec 13th – Barton / Tahoe Island Dr

Monday Dec 14th – South Y / Tata Ln area

Tuesday Dec 15th – Al Tahoe Blvd / Pioneer Village

Wednesday Dec 16th – Springwood / Bijou Pines

The Kiwanis Club of Lake Tahoe has donated $8,000 to the Boys and Girls Club of Lake Tahoe. It will be split up to support two funds at the club, $3,000 directly to the Club to support their ongoing operations and $5,000 towards its new building.

Ring in the holiday season with the Meyers Community Foundation and enjoy their virtual tree lighting celebration on Friday, December 4 at 6:00 p.m.

To comply with COVID-19 safety precautions they moved the annual tradition to Facebook. It can be watched live here - www.facebook.com/MeyersCommunity/live.

The Virtual Meyers Community Tree Lighting Celebration will feature comedian and radio show host Howie Nave doing the annual countdown to light the very special tree. Lake Valley Fire District will join in and illuminate the holiday spirit.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The South Lake Tahoe Police Department (SLTPD) is celebrating kindness and paying it forward this holiday season by visiting locals deserving of a special treat purchased from local small businesses.

Staff members are not shaving this December for 'Decembeard', and taking the funds collected to buy a gift at a local small business and then deliver to the chosen person....each day for the 12 Days of Christmas. They did the same beard fundraising last month along with City staff for 'Novembeard' which raised money for a cancer charity.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Now that Small Business Saturday has come and gone, and there is still plenty of holiday shopping ahead during the month of December, South Tahoe Now has a proposition for local businesses.

Send us a few sentences of what makes you unique and what you offer for sale whether its jewelry, food, clothing, dog treats, experiences (and the list continues). What are your hours and do you have any special sales coming up? What is your address or website?

Bread & Broth’s holiday Thanksgiving meal giveaway on November 23 was a tremendous success thanks to the kindness of many generous community supporters. In addition to the regular bags filled with fresh fruit and vegetables, milk, eggs, butter, bread and pastries, 170 holiday meal “fixings” bags were handed out in the foyer of St. Theresa Grace Hall. The Thanksgiving meals went to 549 very grateful individuals and family members.

Santa is going to be very busy this season in South Lake Tahoe, not only preparing his gift list for children and keeping the elves busy, but by answering each and every letter left for him in a special mail box.

2020 has been a difficult year for many, and who couldn't use some extra cheer with a letter from the jolly guy in the red suit? He will be responding to each child with a message about kindness and hope during challenging times along with a special personalized certificate of kindness!

Let's start dreaming of a BRIGHT Christmas! Get out your jingle bells, your silver bells, your boughs of holly, and your LIGHTS! The Tahoe Chamber in launching the Light Up the South Shore Holiday Light Contest to spark some holiday cheer, showcase our creative community, and illuminate the town.

Will we be bright enough to be seen from SpaceX and the Space Station?

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - To our South Lake Tahoe Library Friends and Community, Thank you for your patience as the Friends of the Library have been working with Library staff and the El Dorado County Public Health Services to continue our book sale events at the Library. Unfortunately, due to weather and grounds concerns and also increasing Covid-19 virus cases in the area, we are canceling our Saturday, November 21 sale and suspending book sale events until the weather warms or we can go back inside. As conditions change, we will let you know and welcome your participation.

The winners of the 13th annual Blue Ribbon Awards were announced Thursday, November 19 during an awards show shown on Lake Tahoe Television. In place of the annual awards dinner the community was invited to tune in virtually with hosts Chris Fiore from the City of South Lake Tahoe and Meg Peart from the Tahoe Resource Conservation District. If missed, everyone can watch the celebration of the 2020 finalists and winners at https://tahoechamber.org/13th-annual-blue-ribbon-awards-show/ (and don't read any further if you want to be surprised).

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - In search of something positive to do while staying at home during the pandemic, South Lake Tahoe parent Gantt Miller and his daughter Mackenzie started brainstorming. They couldn't sew, so making masks were out of the question. What could they do?

They could tell a story.

The nine-year-old Mackenzie and her dad, who wrote the book under a pen name, M.C. Behm, started to explore what messages they could convey between the front and back covers.

Bread & Broth is seeking donations for a Thanksgiving Meal Giveaway that will be distributed on Monday, November 23, 2020 from 3:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at St. Theresa Grace Hall in South Lake Tahoe.

During past Thanksgiving holidays, Bread & Broth has sponsored a hot Thanksgiving turkey dinner with all the trimmings, once that guests could enjoy with the fellowship of others in the community. During those dinners over 250 individuals joined in the special holiday meal.

This year will have to be different due to the COVID-19 restrictions.

The community is invited to attend the Tahoe Chamber’s 13th Annual Blue Ribbon Awards to honor South Shore businesses and individuals that have impacted the community for the better. In place of the annual awards dinner, winners will be announced in an awards show that is pre-filmed and broadcast on Lake Tahoe Television on November 19 from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Those wishing to attend the free event can register in advance on TahoeChamber.org to get direct access to the awards ceremony.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. . – A fun and unique gift and golf-themed fundraising auction in underway to benefit the Boys & Girls Club of Lake Tahoe.

More than 50 items can be bid on including golf caddie spots at Edgewood Tahoe during celebrity golf, a one-week vacation in Hawaii, and golf and hotel packages across the country.

The online auction will accept bids through Saturday, November 21 at 7:00 p.m. TO bid, visit https://m.charityauctionstoday.com/m/auctions/BGCLT2020-15641/items.