Herndon-Reston FISH (Friendly Sympathetic Instant Help) will be holding its 7th Annual Fling on Saturday, May 19, at the Crowne Plaza Dulles Airport Hotel in Herndon. The festivities will begin at 6 p.m. with appetizers, games, photo booth and Silent Auction items. This will be followed by a seated dinner and dance music by the Free Tom band. The live auction will feature some extra special items and Delegate Tom Rust will serve as the auctioneer this year. Reservations are still available at $85 each ($45 tax deductible). For reservations contact: FISH@HerndonRestonFISH.org
Herndon-Reston FISH is a local nonprofit in operation since 1969. FISH provides residents of Herndon & Reston with Friendly Instant Sympathetic Help when they are experiencing difficulties such as threatened power disconnection or eviction due to falling behind in their payments. FISH also helps with other emergency needs such as prescriptions, auto repair and transportation to medical appointments. Clients are handled on an individual basis through the Assistance program.
As FISH has each year, a number of volunteers will be honored guests and recognized as Star FISH because of their contributions to FISH. The four individuals being honored this year all have a long history with FISH and have helped in many ways throughout the years. All have shown dedication and generosity to an unusual degree.
Current Treasurer Diane Hardcastle and her husband Jim began in 1980 making assistance calls and picking up furniture. After a few years off Diane began working at the store, The Bargain Loft, as a cashier and since 2009 she has been Treasurer on the Board of Directors. This task became increasingly complex as FISH experienced considerable growth and record keeping moved fully into the online age.
Chris Griffin has been a long time supporter of FISH and served as a Corporate Member of the Board of Directors for several years. The Griffin-Owens Insurance offices hosted board meetings on a regular basis until this year. Chris and her husband, Don Owens, have made some of the raffle offerings possible. Their ongoing generosity as FISH sponsors helps fund essential assistance work.
Sue Maynard started volunteering at the Bargain Loft in 1981 when it first opened. She ran the toy and vintage toy departments for 15 years. Sue also served on the Board of Directors two different times. She scheduled assistance workers for six years. Sue took a break to teach school then retuned in 2003 and has been at The Bargain Loft since. Currently she is the historian and the FISH scrapbooks will be available for viewing at the Fling.
Helen Sellman began working with FISH in 2004 at The Bargain Loft and then began assistance work. She served on the Board of Directors for 3 years during which time she wrote thank you letters and served as Assistance Volunteer Coordinator. Helen continues to work at The Bargain Loft and handles assistance calls on a regular basis, finding this work extremely rewarding.
This year FISH will be honoring a company that has provided significant help over the years, including FISH Fling sponsorship for the last six years. NRTC, the National Rural Telecommunications Cooperative, employees have collected food and gifts for Holiday Basket Programs. Each autumn they begin their work and their contributions allow FISH to make the holiday period a bit brighter for many families.