Church holding fundraiser for community center

In an effort to continue providing for the community, a Plumas Lake church is seeking to start raising funds to invest permanently in the area by providing a spot for local events to be held.

Bayside of Plumas Lake has become a regular name in the community over the past few years and the church is continuing to serve the community as it seeks to find a permanent home and provide a local community center for public use.

"We want to provide a spot that can not only be used by the church but by all local groups who need a facility for their events," said Nicole Babcock, church member and community center committee chair.

The group will be holding its first of many fundraisers this weekend to correspond with its large scale parking lot sale. The church will hold a bake sale with all the proceeds going to fund the building and land fund for the center.

The sale will run from 8 a.m. to noon at the Rio del Oro Elementary parking lot. The parking lot sale, which will feature dozens of gently used items, will raise funds for another more immediate community outreach effort – a benevolence fund for Plumas Lake families in need.

While the community center is likely two years off from completion, the immediacy to raise funds is present as the church is seeking to come up with $50,000 by Sept. 1 in order to purchase land in the community.

"We are currently looking at about eight acres or so on River Oaks," said Babcock. And while the exact location is not yet concrete, the need for the funding is critical in order to move forward.

Looking ahead the group is envisioning a center that would be the home to its church as well as have the facilities to host indoor sports, a small theater for local productions and a small café and kitchen for events such as weddings and local group fundraisers.

The local group is very excited about the possibilities this center could bring to the local region and is looking to do several community-involved fundraisers between now and the fall to secure the land needed to break ground.

"We need to raise as much money without putting forth a great amount of resources right now," said Babcock.

She said the church is looking at several possibilities in the near future, including a rib cook-off and other such community participation activities.

She encourages residents to contact her if they have other fundraising ideas or would like to donate funding . The church hopes the goal of a community center will be something everyone can get behind.

"We would like to be able to see everyone in the community be able to use this center and to be able to provide another place for the community to get together," said Babcock.

For more information on the community center or to donate ideas and/or funding, contact Babcock at mamababcock@yahoo.com.

Plumas Lake Life correspondent Michele Perrault can be reached at 763-3380 or e-mail her at mperrault@plumaslakelife.com