JOHN DAY — One of Grant County’s biggest fundraisers — and social events — of the year is coming up.

The 2023 Carrie Young Memorial Dinner and Auction will be held at 5 p.m. Friday, Dec. 1, at the John Day Elks Lodge, 140 NE Dayton St.

The spaghetti dinner, available by donation, is good. But that’s not why people come. They come for the fellowship — and to support a worthy cause.

The annual event, now in its 31st year, honors the memory of Carrie Young, who died too soon at age 32. After her family discovered Carrie had been quietly buying Christmas presents for some of the residents of the nursing home where she worked, they made it their mission to keep the tradition going.

It’s grown every year, with last year’s event bringing in just over $88,000 for vulnerable Grant County seniors. Every resident of the county’s three nursing homes gets a care package with toiletries, linens and such, plus an item or two from their personal wish list. Elders still living on their own get firewood or heating oil and gift cards to buy groceries. Old folks in financial straits get help with medical bills.

The lineup of glittering gift baskets for the silent auction gets bigger every year, and this year’s live auction items will include a Kim Randleas fine art print, a camo-painted freezer with half a hog in it, a Recteq smoker and a gift certificate for a Silvies Valley Ranch getaway valued at $2,500.

If you’d like to help with this year’s memorial gala, chief organizer Lucie Immoos reports she could use some muscle to help move auction baskets from the fairgrounds to the Elks Lodge on Sunday, Nov. 26. She could also use some help during the week to get the lodge set up for the main event on Friday.

To volunteer your services, call Immoos at 541-620-2098.