MARLENE A. ZLOZA – marlene.zloza@nwi.com, (219) 662-5340 | Posted: Sunday, August 9, 2009 12:00 am
Checking out one of three custom-made playhouses that will be raffled off Friday to benefit the Boys & Girls Clubs of Northwest Indiana are club members, outside the house from left, Briana Joiner, Moesha Spence, Callista Hatfield, Tatianya Neal, Tabitha Melendez, Nikki Melendez and Julia Martin, and inside the house from left, Angielic Edwards, Bria Edwards and Liesl Martin. The houses are displayed at Westfield Southlake in Hobart, and tickets are available for $10 at the mall’s Concierge Desk or online at www.bgcnwi.org.
HOBART | Boys & Girls Clubs of Northwest Indiana are building lives, but this summer they’ve gotten a little help building something else.
Westfield Southlake and Boys & Girls Clubs of Northwest Indiana have teamed up to present the 2009 Building Lives Custom Playhouse Raffle. Winners will be drawn Friday at the Hobart mall.
Three local builders – Stash Construction, of Gary; Midwest Construction, of Chesterton; and Porter’s Restoration, of Dyer – each donated the time, talent and materials to create a custom-made playhouse that would be a charming addition to any backyard. Two of the houses feature a traditional design, and the third has a playground theme complete with a climbing wall, hanging ladder and slide.
“They are all very different, very unique,” said Doris Leaf of Stash Construction, also a member of the Boys & Girls Clubs of NWI Board of Directors who heads the Building Lives Committee. “Our (Stash) playhouse has one wall that is a chalkboard and the others are dry erase boards, another house has a second story and a climbing wall, and the third is a log cabin design.”
Boys & Girls Clubs President and CEO Lincoln D. Ellis agreed. “The custom playhouses are absolutely amazing,” he said. “When I was growing up, we would build a makeshift house in a tree and call it our clubhouse. The houses we are raffling are very unique and really showcase the talents of the builders. It is gratifying to see children exploring each of them at Westfield Southlake, and we are thankful to the shopping center for allowing us to display the playhouses.”
Raffle tickets are $10 and proceeds will benefit local members at Boys & Girls Clubs in Cedar Lake, East Chicago, Gary, Hammond, Lake Station and Merrillville.
The playhouses displayed in the JCPenney Court on the lower level of Westfield Southlake, just east of Interstate 65 on U.S. 30. Tickets may be purchased at Westfield Southlake’s Concierge Desk or online at www.bgcnwi.org. Credit cards are accepted online (Visa/MasterCard).
The public is also invited to vote on their favorite playhouse at the display or by e-mailing sjensen@bgcnwi.org. Leaf said the top vote getter will be awarded to the first winner drawn in the raffle, while the second top vote getter will go to the second winner and the third will be delivered to the third name drawn.
Raffle winners will be announced at Westfield Southlake this Friday. Winners do not need to be present. The playhouses will be delivered within a 50-mile radius of Westfield Southlake.
Leaf has been a BGCNWI board member for two years and is a strong supporter. “I’m from Chesterton and I learned about the clubs while trying to bring one to our community. I feel it is the most positive place for kids and I can’t say enough good things about the clubs,” she said.
