The Naperville Garden Club showed its holiday spirit with a decorative twist through its annual Cup of Cheer event on December 1 and 2.
What Is Cup Of Cheer?
“Cup Of Cheer is the major fundraiser for the Naperville Garden Club, and we’re really excited. This is our 60th year that we’ve been putting this event on. It is a house walk, we have featured four homes within Naperville and then we have a holiday market. Everyone who gets a ticket gets a commemorative, either teacup and saucer or a mug to take home to celebrate the year,” said Gwenn Lloyd, Cup of Cheer Chair.
The Houses
Those with tickets get the addresses to the four homes. Each of which has a specific theme, unique to the families.
The Mehta home located in the Kinloch subdivision had a non-traditional take on holiday décor, filled with special art that was imported from Africa. It also boasts a bowling alley, mini arcade, and a golf simulator.
The Foley home in the Silver Springs Estates Subdivision followed a black and white checkered theme while the Gerding and Kaczmarski home consists of roughly 15 Christmas trees.
The last house on the tour was the Smith home in the East Highlands Subdivision. The Smiths just recently moved to Naperville after living in Barcelona for four years, and getting to show off their new house was something homeowner Lauren Smith couldn’t pass up.
“I was approached by the realtor that helped us buy this home and she said, I have this amazing opportunity for you to be able to share your home during the Christmas season, and it’s called the Cup of Cheer. So, when I learned about it, I thought this sounds like a really great and fun, creative experience. So, it’s been super special to be a part of it, and we’re just proud to be able to bring joy to people’s Christmas season through sharing our home,” said Smith.
Christmas Market & Scholarships
Before exploring the houses there was a market at the Judd Kendall VFW where people could shop for their own holiday decorations.
Proceeds of the event not only help the garden club, but Naperville residents as well. “We put money back into the community in the form of scholarships, and then it also helps us with programs that we have here within our club to pay for that,” said Lloyd.
After a rough turnout last year due to COVID, Cup of Cheer was sold out this year, getting visitors in a festive mood for the holiday season, and possibly inspiring some décor ideas along the way.
Naperville News 17’s Anthony Yench reports.
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