ST.
CHARLES — The south lawn of the Victorian Lace Inn in St. Charles is where the crowd will gather for the sixth annual Trash to Treasure Charity Auction and Wine Tasting event Friday, Aug. 28. The event will begin at 4:30 p.m. with the wine tasting for a suggested donation of $10 per person. There also will be snacks, live music by the Bandanas. Auction items will be on display for preview. The auction will begin at 6 p.m. under the white tent, rain or shine. “The Trash to Treasure Charity Auction was created six years ago when the Women in Business members wanted a way to donate to charity as a group,” said Sharon Vreeman, owner of the Victorian Lace Inn and Tea Room. “The first year we started the auction we only did windows and doors, as we thought that was one thing that most everyone probably had or could find to do something with and there were a lot of good ideas produced.” The theme that year for Gladiolus Days, an annual celebration in St. Charles, was “Doors to the Past, Windows to the Future.” With creativity and a little skill, trash was turned into treasures. “It seemed appropriate to take these old discarded doors and windows and give them a new life,” she said. The first year the auction was held on a Sunday after the Gladiolus Day parade. The auction received a number of donated items and the revenue was enough to cover expenses to donate to two charities. To increase attendance, the event has been moved to a Friday evening. The wine tasting has since been added as well.
“My sisters Diane Perry and Janell Kraut, also known as the ‘Pfarkle Sisters,’ and I did almost 45 projects last year to donate to the auction — most of which we picked up curbside such as a rocking chair with no bottom that became a garden feature, a maple desk that was painted light pink and mosaic top from broken dishes with pink flowers, it went into a little girl’s bedroom,” Vreeman said.