Gingerbread Fantasies--Annual HATAS fundraiser a building success

A Spanish galleon, a winter market scene, carousels--all made out of gingerbread?

These were just some of the fantastic submissions to this year's HATAS Home Sweet Gingerbread Home event. "There were a lot of imaginative ideas," said Natasha Pernicka, Assistant Executive Director for HATAS. This annual fundraiser for Homeless and Travelers Aid Society (HATAS) brings together corporate teams, community teams and culinary professionals from across the region to construct gingerbread homes. The homes are then auctioned off, and proceeds donated to this social service agency.

This year, the homes, 15 in all, were displayed at Crossgates Mall on November 8, and then sold by silent auction at the Winter Gingerland Evening at the Fort Orange Club on November 13. The Gingerland Evening event, held for the first time this year, was very successful, said Pernicka. Last year, the gingerbread house auction raised $11,000, and this year, HATAS believes the fundraiser made nearly twice that, she said.

HATAS is a mission-based organization dedicated to providing assistance for the homeless and low-income individuals and families. HATAS serves as a central intake point for the Albany County emergency shelter system. HATAS offers emergency services as well as mental health programming, housing, and employment programming, for a truly comprehensive approach to the crisis of homelessness. The funds raised through Home Sweet Gingerbread Home are dedicated to furthering this mission, and raising awareness about homelessness in our community.