Community Bank Delaware thanks Nouveau Beaujolais participants

The purpose of this letter is two-fold. It contains a big thank you and an apology.  First and most importantly, we would like to thank everyone who attended, sponsored, donated to, or worked at the 24th Annual Nouveau Beaujolais Wine Tasting which was held Nov. 27 at Irish Eyes in Lewes.

The food this year was amazing, with everything from appetizers to desserts donated by the finest restaurants in Lewes and Rehoboth (and that means the best food in Delaware to be sure). We can’t thank those wonderful folks enough for their generosity.

Generosity could be the byline of this event, as over 200 local businesses and individuals donated great items for our silent and live auctions. Lots of gifts were scratched off Christmas lists.

Those who worked the event - and this includes the dedicated committee led by Shannon McGinn, the Irish Eyes staffers, and all the staff of Community Bank Delaware - you have our gratitude for the selfless donation of your time. We know you all have other commitments on your time and it means a lot that you gave some of that precious commodity to us.  Our gratitude also goes out to the local Red Cross volunteers who worked that evening. These are true heroes, selflessly giving of their time and energy in times of crisis to friends and neighbors in need right here in Sussex County, or anywhere in this country they may be deployed.

Thanks to our sponsors.  Atlantic Liquors: thanks Dale Lomas and Mike Subric; you come through every year.  Community Bank Delaware: thank you to our board for continuing to support this great event.  Thanks to Irish Eyes: Tom Jones, Kathy Newcomb and Jim and Ronnie Kiernan.

Jim and Ronnie Kiernan deserve special thanks. They started this event 24 years ago and are responsible for hundreds of thousands of dollars contributed to our local Red Cross to help local people in times of need.
Finally, thank you to the over 200 people who came out in the rain and cold to participate in the 24th annual wine tasting.

It is to those of you who bought auction items that we need to apologize for the computer crash that held up our auction check out. Please accept our apology for the delay, our gratitude for your patience, and our promise that it will never happen again.

Those of us who work to support the American Red Cross are proud of our association with this fine organization. It is an organization “of the people” where 95 percent of all work carried out by the Red Cross is performed by volunteers. It’s an organization “by the people” where the funds to accomplish its humanitarian mission are provided through the generosity of the American people. And, it’s an organization “for the people” in times of disaster or crisis, from hurricanes to house fires and floods, the American Red Cross will be there to serve Americans in need.

The generosity and support of the people noted in this letter will help ensure that our Red Cross will indeed be there when help is needed in Sussex County.

Lynda Messick
president, Community Bank Delaware