Baskets for Ben fundraiser to feature live auction, raffles, food and entertainment

Dozens of donated themed gift baskets will be put on the auction block Friday, May 17 at the 9th Annual Baskets for Ben fundraiser. Mike Smith of Cherry Tree Auctions will preside over the event to be held at the Queensbury Hotel, 88 Ridge Street, Glens Falls. Tickets are $20 and include admission to the event, appetizers, desserts and door prizes. Entertainment will be provided by guitarist Kyle Lewis. The 2019 Baskets for Ben features raffles for a wheelbarrow of wine, valued at $750 and a custom-forged Adirondack fire pit valued at $500.

 The Ben Osborn Memorial Fund was established to honor the memory of CPL. Benjamin Osborn. Osborn, a Lake George graduate, was killed while serving in Afghanistan with the U.S. Army. The Fund’s tagline is “Giving kids a little lift,” and they do this by meeting the smaller needs of children in Warren, Washington, Saratoga and Essex Counties providing items such as school supplies, eyeglasses, clothing and bedding. The Ben Osborn Memorial Fund also provides services such as transportation and tutoring.

Since its inception, according to Fund publicist Nadine Battaglia, Ben’s fund has helped more than 10,000 children. The Ben Osborn Fund awards scholarships to graduating seniors at local high schools and donates personal care items to food pantries in the area. They promotes literacy with 20 Ben’s Book Stations installed throughout the area.

Each year at the holidays, the Fund adopts families and local organizations and donated more than $15,000 in gifts and food this past holiday season. The Fund works with local schools to identify children with needs and provides school nurses with healthy snacks, clothing for children that need to change during the day, blankets and lice treatment kits.

Tickets for the 9th Annual Baskets for Ben fundraiser may be purchased at the door or reserved in advance at (518)792-4514. Doors open at 5 p.m. The live auction begins at 6:30 p.m. The Ben Osborn Memorial Fund is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit.