Forty years will have passed on May 1, 2007 --the date in 1968 when I opened Rosalea's Hotel. It quickly became "the oasis of the Bible Belt." It would be great to have some sort of smashing celebration in Harper for that memorable anniversary. Do you have any suggestions of what YOU CAN PROVIDE OR DO to help make a great celebration? Our nonprofit organization The Balmer Fund, now owns Rosalea's Hotel. I am the founder and President of it. We also own four vacant lots (two locations) in downtown Harper, so we have plenty of space for a celebration--unless, of course, 10,000 of you show up! Then we will have to rethink! But a thousand would be more like it!......
The hotel is in a sad state of disrepair and the rooms are filled with "stuff" in storage. It is not functional right now, nor are there tours. There are no funds at the present time to restore it. We would love to find a fundraiser who will work with The Balmer Fund to help locate the generous givers to make a restoration possible. (She/he will be paid a commission.) At least we'd like to get the lobby usable again for next year, a place for old hippies to gather and remember........even to find a competent helper to help me do the work (I am 70 and still doing it all! I am nothing short of amazing!) is next to impossible in a small town where meth labs now proliferate like bee hives used to. If you are now an RVer and want to volunteer, let me know! Even one day would help! Yard work. Moving boxes. Janitorial. Doing PR with the locals (they still "don't get it.")
But with adequate contributions, we can work with an architect and contractor, and do it up right forever and not have to worry about finding competent help. I hate doing things half-assed at this stage in life, so it's time to put our affairs in order and leave a special space and place for future generations to savor and enjoy. Now is the time to dig deep and give back any funds that you are not going to take with you six feet under.
Any contributions made to The Balmer Fund, a 501`(c)(3), are tax deductible according to the law. If you feel so inclined to help restore this incredible moment in history, send a contribution, any amount, to: The Balmer Fund, For Rosalea's Hotel, 121 West Main, Harper, KS 67508. Just let us know how you want it used. If you do not indicate, it will be used "where most needed" in the restoration process.
"Preserving the history, art & culture of the prairies for future generations" - Since 1968 & 1994
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment